Labeling, word mapping and categorization in monolingual and bilingual infants
In order to find the referents of words, infants rely on constrains that guide their interpretations. Currently, little is known about how language environment influences referent identification. Comparisons between bilinguals and monolinguals offer a unique window into this interaction. The aim of...
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| Tipo de recurso: | tesis doctoral |
| Estado: | Versión publicada |
| Fecha de publicación: | 2017 |
| País: | España |
| Institución: | CBUC, CESCA |
| Repositorio: | TDR. Tesis Doctorales en Red |
| OAI Identifier: | oai:www.tdx.cat:10803/403647 |
| Acceso en línea: | http://hdl.handle.net/10803/403647 |
| Access Level: | acceso abierto |
| Palabra clave: | Categorization Bilingualism Infant development Executive functions Word learning Categorització Bilingüisme Desenvolupament infantil Funcions executives Aprenentatge de paraules 81 |
| Sumario: | In order to find the referents of words, infants rely on constrains that guide their interpretations. Currently, little is known about how language environment influences referent identification. Comparisons between bilinguals and monolinguals offer a unique window into this interaction. The aim of this dissertation is to explore how bilinguals and monolinguals acquire words for categories at different ages as well as their use of disambiguation strategies. Specifically, we asked whether bilinguals' early advantage in executive function, together with the need to learn in noisier contexts, may translate into different word learning strategies. In Experiments 1-4, we tested 8-, 15-, and 19-month-old infants with a fast categorization task. We also explored if recently acquired knowledge can be used to boost the learning of other information. In Experiments 5-6, we tested 18- and 19-month-old infants with a familiarization/preferential-looking task on their ability to acquire categories. We asked whether different linguistic experiences may lead bilinguals and monolinguals to form different category representations. Our findings suggest a much more complex picture of the influence of linguistic experience on referent identification than currently acknowledged. |
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