Perceptual Connectivity Influences Toddlers’ Attention to Known Objects and Subsequent Label Processing
While recent research suggests that toddlers tend to learn word meanings with many “perceptual” features that are accessible to the toddler’s sensory perception, it is not clear whether and how building a lexicon with perceptual connectivity supports attention to and recognition of word meanings. We...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2021-01-01
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| Series: | Brain Sciences |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/2/163 |
| _version_ | 1797407048186462208 |
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| author | Ryan E. Peters Justin B. Kueser Arielle Borovsky |
| author_facet | Ryan E. Peters Justin B. Kueser Arielle Borovsky |
| author_sort | Ryan E. Peters |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | While recent research suggests that toddlers tend to learn word meanings with many “perceptual” features that are accessible to the toddler’s sensory perception, it is not clear whether and how building a lexicon with perceptual connectivity supports attention to and recognition of word meanings. We explore this question in 24–30-month-olds (<i>N</i> = 60) in relation to other individual differences, including age, vocabulary size, and tendencies to maintain focused attention. Participants’ looking to item pairs with high vs. low perceptual connectivity—defined as the number of words in a child’s lexicon sharing perceptual features with the item—was measured before and after target item labeling. Results revealed pre-labeling attention to known items is biased to both high- and low-connectivity items: first to high, and second, but more robustly, to low-connectivity items. Subsequent object–label processing was also facilitated for high-connectivity items, particularly for children with temperamental tendencies to maintain focused attention. This work provides the first empirical evidence that patterns of shared perceptual features within children’s known vocabularies influence both visual and lexical processing, highlighting the potential for a newfound set of developmental dependencies based on the perceptual/sensory structure of early vocabularies. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-09T03:35:36Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-8158f68a8ec7402aaa59113d83e0879e |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2076-3425 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-09T03:35:36Z |
| publishDate | 2021-01-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Brain Sciences |
| spelling | doaj.art-8158f68a8ec7402aaa59113d83e0879e2023-12-03T14:49:33ZengMDPI AGBrain Sciences2076-34252021-01-0111216310.3390/brainsci11020163Perceptual Connectivity Influences Toddlers’ Attention to Known Objects and Subsequent Label ProcessingRyan E. Peters0Justin B. Kueser1Arielle Borovsky2Department of Psychology, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78712, USADepartment of Speech, Language & Hearing Sciences, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN 47907, USADepartment of Speech, Language & Hearing Sciences, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN 47907, USAWhile recent research suggests that toddlers tend to learn word meanings with many “perceptual” features that are accessible to the toddler’s sensory perception, it is not clear whether and how building a lexicon with perceptual connectivity supports attention to and recognition of word meanings. We explore this question in 24–30-month-olds (<i>N</i> = 60) in relation to other individual differences, including age, vocabulary size, and tendencies to maintain focused attention. Participants’ looking to item pairs with high vs. low perceptual connectivity—defined as the number of words in a child’s lexicon sharing perceptual features with the item—was measured before and after target item labeling. Results revealed pre-labeling attention to known items is biased to both high- and low-connectivity items: first to high, and second, but more robustly, to low-connectivity items. Subsequent object–label processing was also facilitated for high-connectivity items, particularly for children with temperamental tendencies to maintain focused attention. This work provides the first empirical evidence that patterns of shared perceptual features within children’s known vocabularies influence both visual and lexical processing, highlighting the potential for a newfound set of developmental dependencies based on the perceptual/sensory structure of early vocabularies.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/2/163perceptual knowledgeshared featureslanguage developmentlexicosemantic developmentsemantic networksvisual object processing |
| spellingShingle | Ryan E. Peters Justin B. Kueser Arielle Borovsky Perceptual Connectivity Influences Toddlers’ Attention to Known Objects and Subsequent Label Processing Brain Sciences perceptual knowledge shared features language development lexicosemantic development semantic networks visual object processing |
| title | Perceptual Connectivity Influences Toddlers’ Attention to Known Objects and Subsequent Label Processing |
| title_full | Perceptual Connectivity Influences Toddlers’ Attention to Known Objects and Subsequent Label Processing |
| title_fullStr | Perceptual Connectivity Influences Toddlers’ Attention to Known Objects and Subsequent Label Processing |
| title_full_unstemmed | Perceptual Connectivity Influences Toddlers’ Attention to Known Objects and Subsequent Label Processing |
| title_short | Perceptual Connectivity Influences Toddlers’ Attention to Known Objects and Subsequent Label Processing |
| title_sort | perceptual connectivity influences toddlers attention to known objects and subsequent label processing |
| topic | perceptual knowledge shared features language development lexicosemantic development semantic networks visual object processing |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/2/163 |
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