Gesture development in Peruvianchildren and its relationship with vocalizations and vocabulary

Gesture ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 20 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-29
Author(s):  
María Fernández-Flecha ◽  
María Blume ◽  
Andrea Junyent ◽  
Talía Tijero Neyra
Keyword(s):  
Index Finger ◽  
Age Effects ◽  
Older Children ◽  
Linguistic Development ◽  
Communicative Development ◽  
Gesture Development ◽  
Significant Change ◽  
Pointing Gesture ◽  
Gesture Production

Abstract We examine gestural development, and correlations between gesture types, vocalizations and vocabulary at ages 8 to 15 months, employing data from MacArthur-Bates Communicative Development Inventories for Peruvian Spanish, in the first such study with Peruvian children. Results show (1) significant change with age in the production of gesture types, with older children producing more; (2) important correlations between gesture types, and both vocalization types and vocabulary after controlling for age effects; and (3) correlations between the trajectory of the pointing gesture in its two modalities (whole-hand and index-finger) with age, vocalizations, and vocabulary, an effect that persists with respect to vocalizations after controlling for age. Our findings, based on a sample from a non-weird population, support a key role for gesture production in early communicative and linguistic development.

Age Effects in the Processing of Typical and Distinctive Faces

1995 ◽  
Vol 48 (2) ◽  
pp. 447-465 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert A. Johnston ◽  
Hadyn D. Ellis
Keyword(s):  
Young Children ◽  
Recognition Memory ◽  
Memory Task ◽  
Age Effects ◽  
Decision Task ◽  
Older Children ◽  
Cognitive Architectures ◽  
Differential Processing ◽  
Four Dimensions ◽  
Adults And Children

Two experiments exploring the differential processing of distinctive and typical faces by adults and children are reported. Experiment 1 employed a recognition memory task. On three out of four dimensions of measurement, children of 5 years of age did not show an advantage for distinctive faces, whereas older children and adults did. In Experiment 2, however, subjects of all ages classified typical faces faster than distinctive ones in a face/non-face decision task: the 5-year-olds performed exactly as did adults and older children. The different patterns in performance between these two tasks are discussed in relation to possible cognitive architectures for the way young children represent faces in memory. Specifically, we examine two alternative architectures proposed by Ellis (1992) as precursors for Valentine's (1991a) multidimensional adult face-space and discuss whether implementations of these spaces should be based on a norm-based or an exemplar-based framework.

Learning Tool Use: Body Scheme Recalibration and the Development of Hand Skill

1981 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 13-29 ◽  
Author(s):  
Richard K. Schwartz ◽  
Marie A. Reilly
Keyword(s):  
Visual Information ◽  
Index Finger ◽  
Body Schema ◽  
Intermediate Stage ◽  
Older Children ◽  
Body Scheme ◽  
Normal Children ◽  
Accuracy Test ◽  
Motor Accuracy ◽  
Better Than

Skill at using tools depends on somatosensory and visual information being integrated into a body schema. “Calibration,” defined as the ability to accurately localize a limb in space, and “recalibration,” the ability to accurately localize a limb plus tool in space, are proposed as intermediate stages between the development of manipulative prehension and the acquisition of skilled tool usage. Each of these depends upon body scheme information. The ability to recalibrate muscular output for different weights and lengths of tools was investigated. It was hypothesized that such recalibration is an intermediate stage of skill that should be developed prior to extensive practice with tools themselves. A total of 48 normal children, ranging in age from 4.0 to 8.11 years, served as subjects. Test instruments included the Southern California Motor Accuracy Test (MAC) and three tests of recalibration skills. These three tests involved touching a target with the tip of the index finger and with the tips of both a short and a long tool. Results were as hypothesized. Older children performed significantly better than younger children on all tests of hand and tool skill. Ability to use a tool appears to increase with increased ability to recalibrate. Skill in using the hand as a tool appears to develop earlier than skill in recalibrating for short / light tools, which precedes skill at recalibrating for longer / heavier tools.

Development of Pointing Gestures in Children With Typical and Delayed Language Acquisition

2017 ◽  
Vol 60 (11) ◽  
pp. 3185-3197 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carina Lüke ◽  
Ute Ritterfeld ◽  
Angela Grimminger ◽  
Ulf Liszkowski ◽  
Katharina J. Rohlfing
Keyword(s):  
Longitudinal Study ◽  
Index Finger ◽  
Language Skills ◽  
Primary Caregivers ◽  
Language Delay ◽  
Communicative Development ◽  
Pointing Gestures ◽  
Second Year Of Life ◽  
Second Year ◽  
Gestural Input

Purpose This longitudinal study compared the development of hand and index-finger pointing in children with typical language development (TD) and children with language delay (LD). First, we examined whether the number and the form of pointing gestures during the second year of life are potential indicators of later LD. Second, we analyzed the influence of caregivers' gestural and verbal input on children's communicative development. Method Thirty children with TD and 10 children with LD were observed together with their primary caregivers in a seminatural setting in 5 sessions between the ages of 12 and 21 months. Language skills were assessed at 24 months. Results Compared with children with TD, children with LD used fewer index-finger points at 12 and 14 months but more pointing gestures in total at 21 months. There were no significant differences in verbal or gestural input between caregivers of children with or without LD. Conclusions Using more index-finger points at the beginning of the second year of life is associated with TD, whereas using more pointing gestures at the end of the second year of life is associated with delayed acquisition. Neither the verbal nor gestural input of caregivers accounted for differences in children's skills.

Sex and Age Effects on Choice-Sequence Preferences of Preschool Children

1978 ◽  
Vol 43 (1) ◽  
pp. 20-22
Author(s):  
R. N. Hughes ◽  
V. A. Daley
Keyword(s):  
Preschool Children ◽  
Choice Task ◽  
Age Effects ◽  
Older Children ◽  
Choice Sequence ◽  
Age Related

Choice-sequence preferences of 20 preschool children were examined in relation to their sex and age. Females generally adopted fewer repeating sequences than males but this difference was largely dependent upon the age of the subjects and stimulus characteristics of the choice task. Older children appeared to show weaker preferences for repetition. The results were discussed in terms of age-related preference changes and females' developmental precocity.

scholarly journals You may point, but do not touch: Impact of gesture-types and cognition on language in typical and atypical development

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mila Vulchanova ◽  
Joana Acha ◽  
Sara Ramos-Cabo ◽  
Valentin Vulchanov
Keyword(s):  
Index Finger ◽  
Longitudinal Design ◽  
Expressive Language ◽  
Children With Autism ◽  
Typically Developing ◽  
Typically Developing Children ◽  
Communicative Development ◽  
Atypical Development ◽  
One Year

We investigated whether two types of pointing hand features (index finger and open palm pointing) and three types of relation with the referent (manipulation, contact, no contact) similarly predict language in children with and without autism, and whether cognition mediates the longitudinal relationship between pointing and language development. Sixteen children with autism, thirteen children at high risk for autism, and eighteen typically developing children participated in an interactive gesture-elicitation task and were tested on standardized cognitive and expressive language batteries in a longitudinal design. Cognition was a significant and direct predictor of language skills in all groups. However, index finger pointing was a direct predictor of language in the autism group above and beyond cognition. In addition, index finger pointing total score and percentage of no contact pointing bids were key predictors of expressive language measured one year apart, once the effect of group, expressive language and cognition at Time 1 were controlled. Findings highlight the role of cognition in communicative development, but suggest a key role of index finder use in the longitudinal relationship between deictic gestures and language atypical development above and beyond cognition.

scholarly journals Goats follow human pointing gestures in an object choice task

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christian Nawroth ◽  
Zoe Martin ◽  
Alan G. McElligott
Keyword(s):  
Index Finger ◽  
Choice Task ◽  
Capra Hircus ◽  
Middle Position ◽  
Object Choice ◽  
Pointing Gestures ◽  
The Subject ◽  
Object Choice Task ◽  
Pointing Gesture ◽  
Human Pointing

Dogs (Canis lupus familiaris) are extremely adept in interpreting human-given cues, such as the pointing gesture. However, the underlying mechanisms on how domestic non-companion species use these cues are not well understood. We investigated the use of human-given pointing gestures by goats (Capra hircus) in an object-choice task, where an experimenter surreptitiously hid food in one of two buckets. Subjects first had to pass a pre-test where the experimenter indicated the location of the food to the subject by a proximal pointing gesture. Subjects that succeeded in the use of this gesture were transferred to the actual test. In these subsequent test trials, the experimenter indicated the location of the food to the subject by using three different pointing gestures: proximal pointing from a middle position (distance between target and index finger: 30 cm), crossed pointing from the middle position (distance between target and index finger: 40 cm), asymmetric pointing from the position of the non-baited bucket (distance between target and index finger: 90 cm). Goats succeeded in the pointing gestures that presented an element of proximity (proximal and crossed) compared to when the experimenter was further away from the rewarded location (asymmetric). This indicates that goats can generalise their use of the human pointing gesture but might rely on stimulus/local enhancement rather than referential information. In addition, goats did not improve their responses over time, indicating that no learning took place. The results provide a greater understanding of human-animal interactions and social-cognitive abilities of livestock, which allows for the provision of enhanced management practices and welfare conditions.

The MacArthur-Bates CDI-III for Spanish-speaking Children

2022 ◽  
Author(s):  
Donna Jackson-Maldonado+ ◽  
Virginia A. Marchman ◽  
Philip Dale ◽  
Marta Rubio-Codina
Keyword(s):  
Effective Means ◽  
Growth Curves ◽  
Cost Effective ◽  
Parent Report ◽  
Older Children ◽  
Additional Information ◽  
Spanish Speaking ◽  
Communicative Development ◽  
Developmental Growth ◽  
Multiple Languages

Parent report measures have been shown to be effective, valid and cost-effective means for obtaining information about early child language development. There are several measures available in multiple languages for children below the age of 3. There has been a need for such measures for older children. This study presents the development of a Spanish version of the MacArthur-Bates Communicative Development Inventory-III for children 2 ½ to 4 years of age. A total of 571 families of monolingual Spanish-speaking children from a diverse socio-economic group were asked to fill out the parent report measure in order to obtain a norming sample. Data are presented by age and socio-economic groups that show developmental growth curves for vocabulary production and sentence complexity. Norming tables that show variability by ages are presented. Additional information is given for a General Concepts section. This study presents a new parent report instrument that can be used both clinically and for research purposes.

The relation between index-finger extension and the acoustic quality of cooing in three-month-old infants

1995 ◽  
Vol 22 (2) ◽  
pp. 247-257 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nobuo Masataka
Keyword(s):  
Index Finger ◽  
Gaze Direction ◽  
Strong Connection ◽  
Face To Face ◽  
Finger Extension ◽  
Acoustic Quality ◽  
Turn Taking ◽  
Taking Condition ◽  
Pointing Gesture

ABSTRACTFourteen full-term, healthy, three-month-old infants were observed during a total of 15 minutes spontaneous face-to-face interaction with their mothers. Facial and manual actions, gaze direction and vocalizations were coded. The infants' cooing vocalizations were categorized into syllabic and vocalic sounds. Index-finger extension occurred frequently in sequence with syllabic sounds, which are speech-like vocalizations, but rarely occurred in sequence with vocalic sounds. No other categories of nonvocal behaviours showed such a relationship. In a subsequent experiment, the infants experienced either conversational turn-taking or random responsiveness from their mothers. In the turn-taking condition, the infants produced a higher ratio of syllabic to vocalic sounds, and a higher frequency of index-finger extension. These results suggest a strong connection between speech and the pointing gesture long before the infant can actually talk.

Nose-pointing

Gesture ◽  
2012 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
pp. 103-129 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kensy Cooperrider ◽  
Rafael Núñez
Keyword(s):  
Papua New Guinea ◽  
Head Movement ◽  
Index Finger ◽  
New Guinea ◽  
Indigenous Language ◽  
Morphological Component ◽  
The Face ◽  
Pointing Gesture

This article describes a previously undocumented deictic facial gesture of Papua New Guinea, which we call nose-pointing. Based on a video corpus of examples produced by speakers of Yupno, an indigenous language of Papua New Guinea’s Finisterre Range, we characterize the gesture’s morphology — which involves an effortful scrunching together of the face, or S-action, in combination with a deictic head movement — and illustrate its use in different interactive contexts. Yupno speakers produce the nose-pointing gesture in alternation with more familiar pointing morphologies, such as index finger and head-pointing, suggesting that the gesture carries a distinctive meaning. Interestingly, the facial morphological component of nose-pointing — the S-action — is also widely used non-deictically by Yupno speakers, and we propose that such uses provide crucial clues to the meaning of nose-pointing. We conclude by highlighting questions for further research, including precisely how nose-pointing relates to non-deictic uses of the S-action and what cultural and communicative pressures might have shaped the gesture.

scholarly journals Gesture Development in Infancy: Effects of Gender but not Bilingualism

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nathalie Erica Germain ◽  
Ana Maria Gonzalez-Barrero ◽  
Krista Byers-Heinlein
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
School Age Children ◽  
Communication Tool ◽  
Language Groups ◽  
Communicative Development ◽  
Language Exposure ◽  
Gesture Development ◽  
Communicative Gestures ◽  
Bilingual School ◽  
Insight Into

Gesture is an important communication tool that provides insight into infants’ early language and cognitive development and predicts later language skills (Iverson & Goldin-Meadow, 2005). While bilingual school-age children have been reported to gesture more than monolinguals (Nicoladis, Pika, & Marentette, 2009), there is a lack of research examining gesture use in infants exposed to more than one language. In this pre-registered study we compared three groups of 14‐month‐old infants (N = 150) learning French and/or English: bilinguals (hearing a second language at least 25% of the time), exposed (hearing a second language 10–24% of the time), and monolinguals (hearing one language 90% of the time or more). Parent-reported use of communicative gestures were gathered via the MacArthur-Bates Communicative Development Inventories (CDI). Results showed that the three language groups produced a similar number of gesture types, suggesting that language exposure did not affect gesture development at this age. However, a gender effect was found, where girls produced more gesture types than boys. Overall, these results suggest that gender, but not language exposure, contributes to differences in gesture development in infancy.

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