Research Database

Characterization of children’s verbal input in a forager-farmer population using long-form audio recordings and diverse input definitions

Topic:

NA

Authors:

Scaff, Casillas, Stieglitz, Cristia

Journal/Publication:

Infancy

Year:

2024
Participant Age Range:
6 –
58 months

Sample Size:

24

Participant Language:

Tsimane

Abstract:

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 speech experienced over the course of a day by young children (N = 24, 6–58 months old, 33% female) in a forager-horticulturalist population of lowland Bolivia. A permissive definition of input (i.e., including overlapping, background, and non-linguistic vocalizations) leads to massive changes in terms of input quantity, including a quadrupling of the estimate for overall input compared to a restrictive definition (only near and clear speech), while who talked to and around a focal child is relatively stable across input definitions. We discuss implications of these results for theoretical and empirical research into language acquisition.

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