The predictive value of non-referential beat gestures: early use in parent–child interactions predicts narrative abilities at 5 years of age

A longitudinal study with 45 children (Hispanic, 13%; non-Hispanic, 87%) investigated whether the early production of non-referential beat and flip gestures, as opposed to referential iconic gestures, in parent-child naturalistic interactions from 14 to 58 months old predicts narrative abilities at...

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores: Vilà-Giménez, Ingrid, Dowling, Natalie, Demir-Lira, Ö Ece, Prieto Vives, Pilar, 1965-, Goldin-Meadow, Susan
Tipo de recurso: artículo
Estado:Versión aceptada para publicación
Fecha de publicación:2021
País:España
Institución:Universitat Pompeu Fabra
Repositorio:Repositorio Digital de la UPF
OAI Identifier:oai:repositori.upf.edu:10230/55146
Acceso en línea:http://hdl.handle.net/10230/55146
http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/cdev.13583
Access Level:acceso abierto
Palabra clave:Non-referential beat gestures
Narrative abilities
Pragmatics
Descripción
Sumario:A longitudinal study with 45 children (Hispanic, 13%; non-Hispanic, 87%) investigated whether the early production of non-referential beat and flip gestures, as opposed to referential iconic gestures, in parent-child naturalistic interactions from 14 to 58 months old predicts narrative abilities at age 5. Results revealed that only non-referential beats significantly (p < .01) predicted later narrative productions. The pragmatic functions of the children’s speech that accompany these gestures were also analyzed in a representative sample of 18 parent-child dyads, revealing that beats were typically associated with biased assertions or questions. These findings show that the early use of beats predicts narrative abilities later in development, and suggest that this relation is likely due to the pragmatic– structuring function that beats reflect in early discourse.