Research Database

Despite the importance of classroom language interactions for children’s school readiness skills and the school readiness gaps faced by Spanish-speaking emergent bilinguals (EBs), the field knows little about their classroom language interactions in early

Infants are immersed in a world of sounds from the moment their auditory system becomes functional, and experience with the auditory world shapes how their brain processes sounds in their environment. Across cultures, speech and music are two dominant aud

Caregiver-child interactions are commonly used to examine children’s language learning environment. However, few studies consider interaction configurations beyond dyadic interactions or explore the conceptual complexity of caregiver talk. Thus, we examin

We present an exploratory cross-linguistic analysis of the quantity of target-child-directed speech and adult-directed speech in North American English (US & Canadian), United Kingdom English, Argentinian Spanish, Tseltal (Tenejapa, Mayan), and Yélî Dnye

There is little systematically collected quantitative empirical data on how much linguistic input children in small-scale societies encounter, with some estimates suggesting low levels of directed speech. We report on an ecologically-valid analysis of spe

This study investigated language input (adult word count, AWC; conversational turn count, CTC; response types; high-, mid-, and low-level) and language outcomes (receptive, expressive) in children aged 2–5 years with hearing loss (CwHL) and those with nor

Non-random exploration of infant speech-like vocalizations (e.g., squeals, growls, and vowel-like sounds or “vocants”) is pivotal in speech development. This type of vocal exploration, often noticed when infants produce particular vocal types in clusters,

Previous studies underscore the importance of social interactions for child language development— particularly interactions characterized by maternal sensitivity, infant-directed speech (IDS), and conversational turn-taking (CT) in one-on-one contexts. Al

Recent advances in audiological early intervention and hearing technologies have significantly improved access to spoken language for children with hearing loss (CwHL), but many CwHL require additional support to match the language development of their pe

Background/Objectives: This study aimed to investigate whether day-long recordings with Language Environment Analysis (LENA) can be utilized in a hospital-based Auditory Verbal Therapy (AVT) program in Denmark for children with hearing loss and to conduct

Introduction: Previous studies underscore the importance of speech input, particularly infant-directed speech (IDS) during one-on-one (1:1) parent–infant interaction, for child language development. We hypothesize that infants’ attention to speech input,

A growing body of research suggests that young children’s early speech and language exposure is associated with later language development (including delays and diagnoses), school readiness, and academic performance. The last decade has seen increasing us

Researchers recommend collecting repeated or prolonged natural language samples to supplement direct assessments and anecdotal reports in language studies for autistic children. Several studies have used the Language Environment Analysis® (LENA) system to

Introduction: There is substantial diversity within and between contexts globally in caregiving practices and family composition, which may have implications for the early interaction’s infants engage in. We draw on data from the Brain Imaging for Global

Some theories of language development propose that children learn more effectively when exposed to speech that is directed to them (target child directed speech, tCDS) than when exposed to speech that is directed to others (other-directed speech, ODS). Du

Mothers and fathers modify prosodic characteristics of child-directed speech relative to adult-directed speech. Evidence suggests that mothers and fathers may differ in how they use child-directed speech as communicative partners. Thus, fathers create com

This study focuses on parental use of parentese: the acoustically exaggerated, clear, and higher-pitched speech produced by adults across cultures when they address infants. While previous research shows that parentese enhances language learning and proce

Language is a universal human ability, acquired readily by young children, who otherwise struggle with many basics of survival. And yet, language ability is variable across individuals. Naturalistic and experimental observations suggest that children’s li

A wide variety of language skills has been shown to be compromised in children from low socioeconomic status (SES). However, few studies have investigated the effect of SES on language development in infants. The aim of this study is two-fold: to investig

The home language environment is a significant correlate of early childhood development outcomes; however, less is known about this mechanism in rural and peri-urban China where rates of developmental delay are as high as 52%. This study examines associat