Prelinguistic Communication and the Transition to Speech

This paper presents arguments for considering the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) as a critical structure in intentional communication. Different facets of intentionality are discussed in relationship to this neural structure. The macrostructural and microstructural characteristics of ACC are proposed to sustain the uniqueness of its architecture, as an overlap region of cognitive, affective and motor components. At the functional level, roles played by this region in communication include social bonding in mammals, control of vocalization in humans, semantic and syntactic processing, and initiation of speech. The involvement of the anterior cingulate cortex in social cognition is suggested where, for infants, joint attention skills are considered both prerequisites of social cognition and prelinguistic communication acts. Since the intentional dimension of gestural communication seems to be connected to a region previously equipped for vocalization, ACC might well be a starting point for linguistic communication.

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Children With Differing Developmental Trajectories of Prelinguistic Communication Skills: Language and Working Memory at Age 5

Journal of Speech Language and Hearing Research ◽

10.1044/2014_jslhr-l-13-0012 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 57 (3) ◽

pp. 1026-1039 ◽

Cited By ~ 5

Author(s):

Sira Määttä ◽

Marja-Leena Laakso ◽

Asko Tolvanen ◽

Timo Ahonen ◽

Tuija Aro

Keyword(s):

At Risk ◽

Working Memory ◽

Language Impairment ◽

Developmental Trajectories ◽

Working Memory Capacity ◽

Risk Groups ◽

Memory Capacity ◽

Individual Level ◽

Prelinguistic Communication

Purpose In this article, the authors examine the developmental continuity from prelinguistic communication to kindergarten age in language and working memory capacity. Method Following work outlining 6 groups of children with different trajectories of early communication development (ECD; Määttä, Laakso, Tolvanen, Ahonen, & Aro, 2012), the authors examined their later development by psychometric assessment. Ninety-one children first assessed at ages 12–21 months completed a battery of language and working memory tests at age 5;3 (years;months). Results Two of the ECD groups previously identified as being at risk for language difficulties continued to show weaker performance at follow-up. Seventy-nine percent of the children with compromised language skills at follow-up were identified on the basis of the ECD groups, but the number of false positives was high. The 2 at-risk groups also differed significantly from the typically developing groups in the measures tapping working memory capacity. Conclusions In line with the dimensional view of language impairment, the accumulation of early delays predicted the amount of later difficulties; however, at the individual level, the prediction had rather low specificity. The results imply a strong link between language and working memory and call for further studies examining the early developmental interaction between language and memory.

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Predicting Language Outcomes for Young Prelinguistic Children With Developmental Delay

Journal of Speech Language and Hearing Research ◽

10.1044/jslhr.4305.1061 ◽

2000 ◽

Vol 43 (5) ◽

pp. 1061-1071 ◽

Cited By ~ 43

Author(s):

Amy M. Calandrella ◽

M. Jeanne Wilcox

Keyword(s):

Developmental Delay ◽

Nonverbal Communication ◽

Receptive Language ◽

Language Outcomes ◽

Communication Behaviors ◽

Intentional Communication ◽

Symbolic Communication ◽

Prelinguistic Communication ◽

Language Outcome ◽

Natural Interactions

The purpose of this study was to examine potential relationships between children's prelinguistic communication behaviors and subsequent (12 months later) expressive and receptive language outcomes. Participants included 25 toddlers with developmental delay and their mothers. The dyads were observed during natural interactions at 6-month intervals over a 12-month period for a total of 3 observation points (O 1 , O 2 , O 3 ). Children's rate of nonverbal behavior that is often perceived as communication by adults was identified at O 1 and O 2 . In the investigation, the children's intentional nonverbal communication acts all included coordinated attention between the communication referent and the adult. The other types of prelinguistic communication behavior, termed gestural indicating behavior and social interaction signals, were produced without coordinated attention to the adult. Receptive and expressive language test scores and spontaneous word productions were analyzed at O 3 and served as outcome measures in regression analyses. Results indicated that rate of intentional nonverbal communication at O 1 was a predictor of spontaneous word productions at O 3 . At O 2 , rate of intentional communication and rate of gestural indicating behavior predicted subsequent language outcomes as measured by the Sequenced Inventory of Communication Development-Revised. The results are consistent with previous findings for intentional nonverbal communication that includes coordinated attention, but additionally demonstrate that prelinguistic behavior lacking coordinated attention also bears a relationship to subsequent language outcome. Discussion of observed patterns focuses on child and adult factors that may motivate the transition from prelinguistic to early symbolic communication.

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Facilitating Prelinguistic Communication Skills in Young Children With Developmental Delay

Journal of Speech Language and Hearing Research ◽

10.1044/jshr.3601.83 ◽

1993 ◽

Vol 36 (1) ◽

pp. 83-97 ◽

Cited By ~ 78

Author(s):

Steven F. Warren ◽

Paul J. Yoder ◽

Gail E. Gazdag ◽

Kyoungran Kim ◽

Hazel A. Jones

Keyword(s):

Communication Skills ◽

Multiple Baseline ◽

Single Subject ◽

Classroom Teachers ◽

Baseline Design ◽

Intervention Approach ◽

Vocal Imitation ◽

Milieu Teaching ◽

Prelinguistic Communication ◽

Stimulus Materials

Very little research has focused on the development and evaluation of intervention strategies designed to facilitate the acquisition of prelinguistic communication skills. We conducted two experiments to determine the effects of a milieu teaching approach on the acquisition and generalization of specific prelinguistic communication skills. In the first experiment, we utilized this intervention approach within a multiple baseline design to teach prelinguistic requesting, commenting, and vocal imitation to a single subject with Down syndrome and language delay. The results indicated that the intervention approach was effective at facilitating the child’s use of these skills within the treatment setting. Therefore, in the second experiment we conducted a more comprehensive analysis of this approach with 4 subjects with mental retardation. Three of these subjects were taught to request, and 1 subject was taught both to request and to comment. The effects were experimentally evaluated with multiple baseline across subjects design. The results indicated that the intervention was effective in eliciting the intervention targets within the training setting for all 4 subjects. All 4 subjects showed evidence of generalization across stimulus materials, setting, teachers, and interaction style. There was also evidence of reciprocal effects on how classroom teachers in the generalization setting interacted with the subjects as a result of changes in the child’s communication behavior.

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