Universal and cultural factors shape body part vocabularies.

Every human has a body. Yet, languages differ in how they divide the body into parts to name them. While universal naming strategies exist, there is also variation in the vocabularies of body parts across languages. In this study, we investigate the similarities and differences in naming two separate body parts with one word, i.e., colexifications. We use a computational approach to create networks of body part vocabularies across languages. The analyses focus on body part networks in large language families, on perceptual features that lead to colexifications of body parts, and on a comparison of network structures in different semantic domains. Our results show that adjacent body parts are colexified frequently. However, preferences for perceptual features such as shape and function lead to variations in body part vocabularies. In addition, body part colexification networks are less varied across language families than networks in the semantic domains of emotion and colour. The study presents the first large-scale comparison of body part vocabularies in 1,028 language varieties and provides important insights into the variability of a universal human domain.

Lexical repertoire of 24 and 30-month-old children speaking Brazilian portuguese: preliminary results. / Repertório lexical de crianças de 24 e 30 meses falantes do português brasileiro: resultados preliminares.

PURPOSE: To check the lexical repertoire of Brazilian Portuguese-speaking children at 24 and 30 months of age and the association between the number of words spoken and the following variables: socioeconomic status, parents' education, presence of siblings in the family, whether or not they attend school, and excessive use of tablets and cell phones. METHODS: 30 parents of children aged 24 months living in the state of São Paulo participated in the study. Using videoconferencing platforms, they underwent a speech-language pathology anamnesis, an interview with social services, and then they completed the "MacArthur Communicative Development Inventory - First Words and Gestures" as soon as their children were 24 and 30 months old. Quantitative and qualitative inferential inductive statistics were applied. RESULTS: the median number of words produced was 283 at 24 months and 401 at 30 months, indicating an increase of around 118 words after six months. The child attending a school environment had a significant relationship with increased vocabulary. CONCLUSION: The study reinforces the fact that vocabulary grows with age and corroborates the fact that children aged 24 months already have a repertoire greater than 50 words. Those who attend school every day produce at least 70 more words than those who do not.

OBJETIVO: Verificar o repertório lexical de crianças falantes do português brasileiro aos 24 e 30 meses e a associação entre a quantidade de palavras faladas e as variáveis: nível socioeconômico, escolaridade dos pais, presença de irmãos no convívio familiar, frequentar ou não escola e uso exacerbado de tablets e celulares pelas crianças. MÉTODO: 30 pais de crianças com 24 meses, residentes no estado de São Paulo participaram do estudo. Por meio de plataformas de videoconferência eles foram submetidos à anamnese fonoaudiológica, entrevista com o serviço social e preencheram o "Inventário MacArthur de Desenvolvimento Comunicativo - Primeiras Palavras e Gestos", quando seus filhos tinham 24 e 30 meses. Foi aplicada estatística indutiva inferencial, quantitativa e qualitativa. RESULTADOS: A mediana das palavras emitidas foi de 283 aos 24 meses e 401 aos 30 meses, indicando aumento em torno de 118 palavras após seis meses. A criança estar frequentando ambiente escolar apresentou relação significativa com o aumento do vocabulário. CONCLUSÃO: O estudo reforça o crescimento do vocabulário conforme o avanço da idade e corrobora o fato de as crianças com 24 meses já possuírem um repertório maior que 50 palavras. Aqueles que frequentam escola diariamente produzem pelo menos 70 palavras a mais dos que não frequentam.

Verb Vocabulary Supports Event Probability Use in Developmental Language Disorder.

PURPOSE: Children with developmental language disorder (DLD) tend to interpret noncanonical sentences like passives using event probability (EP) information regardless of structure (e.g., by interpreting "The dog was chased by the squirrel" as "The dog chased the squirrel"). Verbs are a major source of EP information in adults and children with typical development (TD), who know that "chase" implies an unequal relationship among participants. Individuals with DLD have poor verb knowledge and verb-based sentence processing. Yet, they also appear to rely more on EP information than their peers. This paradox raises two questions: (a) How do children with DLD use verb-based EP information alongside other information in online passive sentence interpretation? (b) How does verb vocabulary knowledge support EP information use? METHOD: We created novel EP biases by showing animations of agents with consistent action tendencies (e.g., clumsy vs. helpful actions). We then used eye tracking to examine how this EP information was used during online passive sentence processing. Participants were 4- to 5-year-old children with DLD (n = 20) and same-age peers with TD (n = 20). RESULTS: In Experiment 1, children with DLD quickly integrated verb-based EP information with morphosyntax close to the verb but failed to do so with distant morphosyntax. In Experiment 2, the quality of children's sentence-specific verb vocabulary knowledge was positively associated with the use of EP information in both groups. CONCLUSION: Depending on the morphosyntactic context, children with DLD and TD used EP information differently, but verb vocabulary knowledge aided its use. SUPPLEMENTAL MATERIAL: https://doi.org/10.23641/asha.25491805.

Retrieval Practice and Word Learning by Children With Developmental Language Disorder: Does Expanding Retrieval Provide Additional Benefit?

PURPOSE: The word learning of preschool-age children with developmental language disorder (DLD) is improved when spaced retrieval practice is incorporated into the learning sessions. In this preregistered study, we compared two types of spacing-an expanding retrieval practice schedule and an equally spaced schedule-to determine if one of these approaches yields better word learning outcomes for the children. METHOD: Fourteen children with DLD aged 4-5 years and 14 same-age children with typical language development (TD) learned eight novel nouns over two sessions. Spacing for half of the novel words was expanded gradually during learning; for the remaining novel words, greater spacing remained at the same level throughout learning. Immediately after the second session and 1 week later, the children's recall of the words was tested. RESULTS: The children with TD recalled more novel words than the children with DLD, although this difference could be accounted for by differences in the children's standardized receptive vocabulary test scores. The two groups were similar in their ability to retain the words over 1 week. Initially, the shorter spacing in the expanding schedule resulted in greater retrieval success than the corresponding (longer spaced) retrieval trials in the equally spaced schedule. These early shorter spaced trials also seemed to benefit retrieval of the trials with greater spacing that immediately followed. However, as the learning period progressed, the accuracy levels for the two conditions converged and were likewise similar during final testing. CONCLUSION: We need a greater understanding of how and when short spacing can be helpful to children's word learning, with the recognition that early gains might give a misleading picture of the benefits that short spacing can provide to longer term retention. SUPPLEMENTAL MATERIAL: https://doi.org/10.23641/asha.25537696.

How children generalize novel nouns: An eye-tracking analysis of their generalization strategies.

Recent research has shown that comparisons of multiple learning stimuli which are associated with the same novel noun favor taxonomic generalization of this noun. These findings contrast with single-stimulus learning in which children follow so-called lexical biases. However, little is known about the underlying search strategies. The present experiment provides an eye-tracking analysis of search strategies during novel word learning in a comparison design. We manipulated both the conceptual distance between the two learning items, i.e., children saw examples which were associated with a noun (e.g., the two learning items were either two bracelets in a "close" comparison condition or a bracelet and a watch in a "far" comparison condition), and the conceptual distance between the learning items and the taxonomically related items in the generalization options (e.g., the taxonomic generalization answer; a pendant, a near generalization item; versus a bow tie, a distant generalization item). We tested 5-, 6- and 8-year-old children's taxonomic (versus perceptual and thematic) generalization of novel names for objects. The search patterns showed that participants first focused on the learning items and then compared them with each of the possible choices. They also spent less time comparing the various options with one another; this search profile remained stable across age groups. Data also revealed that early comparisons, (i.e., reflecting alignment strategies) predicted generalization performance. We discuss four search strategies as well as the effect of age and conceptual distance on these strategies.

Episodic long-term memory formation during slow-wave sleep.

We are unresponsive during slow-wave sleep but continue monitoring external events for survival. Our brain wakens us when danger is imminent. If events are non-threatening, our brain might store them for later consideration to improve decision-making. To test this hypothesis, we examined whether novel vocabulary consisting of simultaneously played pseudowords and translation words are encoded/stored during sleep, and which neural-electrical events facilitate encoding/storage. An algorithm for brain-state-dependent stimulation selectively targeted word pairs to slow-wave peaks or troughs. Retrieval tests were given 12 and 36 hr later. These tests required decisions regarding the semantic category of previously sleep-played pseudowords. The sleep-played vocabulary influenced awake decision-making 36 hr later, if targeted to troughs. The words' linguistic processing raised neural complexity. The words' semantic-associative encoding was supported by increased theta power during the ensuing peak. Fast-spindle power ramped up during a second peak likely aiding consolidation. Hence, new vocabulary played during slow-wave sleep was stored and influenced decision-making days later.

The Contribution of Willingness to Communicate to L2 Learners' Depth of Vocabulary Knowledge: An Empirical Study.

The issues of depth vocabulary knowledge and Willingness to Communicate (henceforth, WTC) are among the most important issues in second language learning. The present study set out to empirically look into the contribution of WTC to depth of vocabulary knowledge in L2 learning. To this end, 88 English L2 learners, divided into two groups in terms of their WTC, were given two depth vocabulary tests. The Word Association Test (WAT) was first administered to make a comparison between the depth vocabulary knowledge of the two WTC groups. Then, to triangulate the results, the Word Part Levels Test (WPLT) was administered to check whether the obtained results confirmed those of WAT. Analyzing data through independent t-test and MANOVA indicated that learners with higher levels of WTC had deeper vocabulary knowledge than those with lower levels of WTC on the WAT. Further, the triangulation results evinced that although the two groups did not differ significantly on the form-section and meaning-section of the WPLT, they significantly differed on the use-section of the test. The relevant pedagogical implications of the study are discussed.

Receptive and expressive vocabulary performance in 2- to 5-year-olds in care: The role of different care types and temperament.

The detrimental role of institutionalization in children's development has prompted the introduction of alternative care types designed to offer more personalized care. The current study aimed to test whether children in alternative care types (care villages, care homes, and foster care) performed better on vocabulary than those in institutions. The role of temperament, specifically perceptual sensitivity and frustration, and the interaction between temperament and care types on vocabulary performance were also explored. The study involved 285 2- to 5-year-old children from different care types, and they were assessed through receptive and expressive vocabulary tests and temperament scales. The results of the linear mixed model revealed that children in alternative care types exhibited significantly higher vocabulary scores compared with those in institutions. Moreover, perceptual sensitivity showed a positive association with receptive and expressive vocabulary skills and seemed to act as a protective factor by mitigating the lower vocabulary scores in institutions. Frustration moderated vocabulary outcomes differently for children in institutions and foster care, aligning with the diathesis-stress model and vantage sensitivity theory, respectively. The findings emphasize the positive role of alternative care types in vocabulary performance and the importance of children's temperamental traits in this process.

The Predictability of Naturalistic Evaluation of All-Day Recordings for Speech and Language Development.

OBJECTIVES: The study aimed to investigate the predictive potential of language environment and vocal development status measures obtained through integrated analysis of Language ENvironment Analysis (LENA) recordings during the prelinguistic stage for subsequent speech and language development in Korean-acquiring children. Specifically, this study explored whether measures from both LENA-automated analysis and human coding at 6-8 months and 12-14 months of age predict vocabulary and phonological development at 18-20 months. METHOD: One-day home recordings from 20 children were collected using a LENA recorder at 6-8 months, 12-14 months, and 18-20 months. Both LENA-automated measures and measures from human coding were obtained from recordings at 6-8 months and 12-14 months. The number of different words, consonant inventory, and utterance structure inventory were identified from recordings of 18-20 months. Correlation and multiple regression analyses were performed to investigate whether measures related to early language environment and child vocalization at 6-8 months and 12-14 months were predictive of vocabulary and phonological measures at 18-20 months. RESULTS: The results showed that the two main LENA-automated measures, conversational turn count (CTC) and child vocalization count, were positively correlated with all vocabulary and phonological measures at 18-20 months. Multiple regression analysis revealed that CTC during the prelinguistic stages was the most significant predictor of a number of different words, consonant inventory, and utterance structure inventory at 18-20 months. Also, adult word count in LENA-automated measures, child-directed speech ratio, and canonical babbling ratio measured by human coding significantly predicted some vocabulary and phonological measures at 18-20 months. CONCLUSION: This study highlights the multifaceted nature of language acquisition and collectively emphasizes the value of considering both quantitative and qualitative aspects of language input to understand early language development in children.

Pupils Dilate More to Harder Vocabulary Words than Easier Ones.

Understanding cognitive effort expended during assessments is essential to improving efficiency, accuracy, and accessibility within these assessments. Pupil dilation is commonly used as a psychophysiological measure of cognitive effort, yet research on its relationship with effort expended specifically during language processing is limited. The present study adds to and expands on this literature by investigating the relationships among pupil dilation, trial difficulty, and accuracy during a vocabulary test. Participants (n = 63, Mage = 19.25) completed a subset of trials from the Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test while seated at an eye-tracker monitor. During each trial, four colored images were presented on the monitor while a word was presented via audio recording. Participants verbally indicated which image they thought represented the target word. Words were categorized into Easy, Medium, and Hard difficulty. Pupil dilation during the Medium and Hard trials was significantly greater than during the Easy trials, though the Medium and Hard trials did not significantly differ from each other. Pupil dilation in comparison to trial accuracy presented a more complex pattern, with comparisons between accurate and inaccurate trials differing depending on the timing of the stimulus presentation. These results present further evidence that pupil dilation increases with cognitive effort associated with vocabulary tests, providing insights that could help refine vocabulary assessments and other related tests of language processing.

Song lyrics have become simpler and more repetitive over the last five decades.

Music is ubiquitous in our everyday lives, and lyrics play an integral role when we listen to music. The complex relationships between lyrical content, its temporal evolution over the last decades, and genre-specific variations, however, are yet to be fully understood. In this work, we investigate the dynamics of English lyrics of Western, popular music over five decades and five genres, using a wide set of lyrics descriptors, including lyrical complexity, structure, emotion, and popularity. We find that pop music lyrics have become simpler and easier to comprehend over time: not only does the lexical complexity of lyrics decrease (for instance, captured by vocabulary richness or readability of lyrics), but we also observe that the structural complexity (for instance, the repetitiveness of lyrics) has decreased. In addition, we confirm previous analyses showing that the emotion described by lyrics has become more negative and that lyrics have become more personal over the last five decades. Finally, a comparison of lyrics view counts and listening counts shows that when it comes to the listeners' interest in lyrics, for instance, rock fans mostly enjoy lyrics from older songs; country fans are more interested in new songs' lyrics.

Lexical skills and gesture use: A comparison between expressive and receptive/expressive late talkers.

BACKGROUND: Studies on late talkers (LTs) highlighted their heterogeneity and the relevance of describing different communicative profiles. AIMS: To examine lexical skills and gesture use in expressive (E-LTs) vs. receptive-expressive (R/E-LTs) LTs through a structured task. METHODS AND PROCEDURES: Forty-six 30-month-old screened LTs were distinguished into E-LTs (n= 35) and R/E-LTs (n= 11) according to their receptive skills. Lexical skills and gesture use were assessed with a Picture Naming Game by coding answer accuracy (correct, incorrect, no response), modality of expression (spoken, spoken-gestural, gestural), type of gestures (deictic, representational), and spoken-gestural answers' semantic relationship (complementary, equivalent, supplementary). OUTCOMES AND RESULTS: R/E-LTs showed lower scores than E-LTs for noun and predicate comprehension with fewer correct answers, and production with fewer correct and incorrect answers, and more no responses. R/E-LTs also exhibited lower scores in spoken answers, representational gestures, and equivalent spoken-gestural answers for noun production and in all spoken and gestural answers for predicate production. CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS: Findings highlighted more impaired receptive and expressive lexical skills and lower gesture use in R/E-LTs compared to E-LTs, underlying the relevance of assessing both lexical and gestural skills through a structured task, besides parental questionnaires and developmental scales, to describe LTs' communicative profiles.

Electroencephalography Spectral-power Volatility Predicts Problem-solving Outcomes.

Temporal variability is a fundamental property of brain processes and is functionally important to human cognition. This study examined how fluctuations in neural oscillatory activity are related to problem-solving performance as one example of how temporal variability affects high-level cognition. We used volatility to assess step-by-step fluctuations of EEG spectral power while individuals attempted to solve word-association puzzles. Inspired by recent results with hidden-state modeling, we tested the hypothesis that spectral-power volatility is directly associated with problem-solving outcomes. As predicted, volatility was lower during trials solved with insight compared with those solved analytically. Moreover, volatility during prestimulus preparation for problem-solving predicted solving outcomes, including solving success and solving time. These novel findings were replicated in a separate data set from an anagram-solving task, suggesting that less-rapid transitions between neural oscillatory synchronization and desynchronization predict better solving performance and are conducive to solving with insight for these types of problems. Thus, volatility can be a valuable index of cognition-related brain dynamics.

Do focused interests support word learning? A study with autistic and nonautistic children.

Although focused interests are often associated with a diagnosis of autism, they are common in nonautistic individuals as well. Previous studies have explored how these interests impact cognitive, social, and language development. While some research has suggested that strong interests can detract from learning (particularly for autistic children), newer research has indicated that they can be advantageous. In this pre-registered study, we asked whether focused interests support word learning in 44 autistic children and a vocabulary-matched sample of 44 nonautistic children (mean ages 58 and 34 months respectively). In a word-learning task administered over Zoom, children were exposed to an action labeled by a novel word. The action was either depicted by their focused interest or by a neutral image; stimuli were personalized for each child. At test, they were asked to identify the referent of the novel word, and their eye gaze was evaluated as a measure of learning. The preregistered analyses revealed an effect of focused interests, and post-hoc analyses clarified that autistic children learned the novel word in both the focused interest and neutral conditions, while nonautistic children only showed evidence of learning in the neutral condition. These results suggest that focused interests are not disruptive for vocabulary learning in autism, and thus they could be utilized in programming that supports early language learning in this population.

Linguistic, concept and symbolic composition in adults with minimal receptive vocabulary.

In this paper, we examine some basic linguistic abilities in a small sample of adults with minimal receptive vocabulary, whose receptive mental verbal age ranges from 1;2 to 3;10. In particular, we examine whether the participants in our study understand noun phrases consisting of a noun modified by an adjective. We use stimuli that they can recognise by name. Except for one participant, we find that, while all of them understand the noun and adjective in isolation, none seems to understand these noun phrases, which means that they seem to not do linguistic composition. In order to test whether the difficulty is linguistic or conceptual, we ran two other studies, one on concept composition, and the other on iconic symbolic composition (composition of pictograms). Results suggest that linguistic composition is particularly difficult in this population, and that vocabulary breadth may not predict compositional abilities.

Spoken verb learning in children with language disorder.

The current study examined spoken verb learning in elementary school children with language disorder (LD). We aimed to replicate verb learning deficits reported in younger children with LD and to examine whether verb instrumentality, a semantic factor reflecting whether an action requires an instrument (e.g., "to chop" is an instrumental verb), influenced verb learning. The possible facilitating effect of orthographic cues presented during training was also evaluated. In an exploratory analysis, we investigated whether language and reading skills mediated verb learning performance. General language skills and verb learning were assessed in Dutch children with LD and age-matched typically developing controls (n = 25 per group) aged 8 to 12 years (M = 9;9 [years;months], SD = 1;3). Using video animations, children learned 20 nonwords depicting actions comprising 10 instrumental and 10 noninstrumental verbs. Half of the items were trained with orthographic information present. Verb learning was assessed using an animation-word matching and animation naming task. Linear mixed-effects models showed a main effect of group for all verb learning measures, demonstrating that children with LD learned fewer words and at a slower rate than the control group. No effect of verb instrumentality, presence of orthographic information, or the included mediators was found. Our results emphasize the importance of continued vocabulary instruction in elementary school to strengthen verb encoding. Given that our findings are inconsistent with the overall literature showing an orthographic facilitation effect, future studies should investigate whether participants pay attention to the written word form in learning contexts with moving stimuli.

Effects of word length and frequency on word identification in second- and fifth-grade children as a function of language skills.

The purpose of the current study was to examine the combined effect of word length and lexical frequency in a lexical decision task in second- and fifth-grade children with varying language skills. The participants, 47 second graders and 55 fifth graders, performed a lexical decision task in which word length and lexical frequency were manipulated orthogonally so that 32 words were short and frequent (e.g., fleur [flower]), 32 words were short and rare (e.g., navet [turnip]), 32 words were long and frequent (e.g., escalier [staircase]), and 32 words were long and rare (e.g., boussole [compass]). Language skills (phonological awareness, reading, vocabulary, and rapid automatized naming skills) were measured using standard language tests. The results showed that word length and, to a lesser extent, lexical frequency influence the speed and accuracy of word identification in different ways, depending on the children's educational level. Furthermore, language skills were found to influence the effects of word length and frequency, differently in second- and fifth-grade children. The results are interpreted within the dual-route model of visual word recognition. The role of language skills in the implementation of these processes is also discussed.

Chinese English language learners' vocabulary retention: Investigating the effectiveness of neuro/metacognitive and socio-cultural strategies.

BACKGROUND: The acquisition of a rich vocabulary is foundational to language proficiency. In the pedagogical pursuit of effective vocabulary teaching, educators explore diverse methodologies. Researchers investigated the impact of different neurocognitive, metacognitive, and socio-cultural strategies on enhancing vocabulary learning, particularly among Chinese English Language Learners. OBJECTIVES: The study aims to determine the effectiveness of techniques derived from these theories compared to traditional teaching methods in enhancing vocabulary recall and recognition among English language learners. METHODOLOGY: A quasi-experimental pre-test/post-test design was employed for the experimental and control groups, comprising 90 Chinese EFL learners selected from educational institutions in 2022-2023. The experimental group (n = 45) received instruction involving visual imagery, multisensory rotation, circle rotation, and mind mapping over eight sessions, while the control group (n = 45) received traditional teaching methods. FINDINGS: Statistical analysis, utilizing covariance and analysis of variance with SPSS software version 22, revealed significant improvements in recall and vocabulary recognition within and between the experimental and control groups. CONCLUSIONS: The results indicate that incorporating techniques based on Neuro-Cognitive, Multimedia, Socio-Cultural, and Metacognitive theories positively influences vocabulary recall and recognition. This suggests the efficacy of these innovative methods in enhancing English language learning, highlighting their potential for broader integration into EFL instruction.

The effect of planning time on vocabulary acquisition in a task-based environment: the mediating roles of working memory and field (in)dependence.

This research investigated the impact of planning time, working memory (WM), and cognitive styles on language learning outcomes within the framework of Task-Based Language Teaching (TBLT). Drawing on a diverse sample of language learners, the study employed a pretest-posttest control group quasi-experiment to examine the effects of providing pre-task planning time on language performance. Participants engaged in communicative tasks, with a focus on vocabulary acquisition and task complexity, while their cognitive processes were assessed through measures of WM and cognitive styles. The findings revealed significant interactions between planning time and cognitive styles, particularly field dependence, influencing language production and proficiency such that learners with planning time outperformed learners without planning time; high-WM learners outperformed their low-WM peers, and field independent learners outstripped their field-dependent counterparts. Moreover, the study contributes to the broader understanding of the nuanced relationship between planning time, WM, and cognitive styles in the context of TBLT. The implications of these findings for language teachers, materials developers, syllabus designers, curriculum developers, and policymakers are discussed, offering insights into the design of effective language learning environments. Despite certain limitations, the study provides a foundation for further research exploring cross-cultural variations, longitudinal effects, and the integration of technology in language education, with the aim of advancing pedagogical practices tailored to diverse learner profiles.

Shared structure of fundamental human experience revealed by polysemy network of basic vocabularies across languages.

How are concepts related to fundamental human experiences organized within the human mind? Our insights are drawn from a semantic network created using the Cross-Linguistic Database of Polysemous Basic Vocabulary, which focuses on a broad range of senses extracted from dictionary entries. The database covers 60 basic vocabularies in 61 languages, providing 11,841 senses from 3736 entries, revealing cross-linguistic semantic connections through automatically generated weighted semantic maps. The network comprises 2941 nodes connected by 3573 edges. The nodes representing body parts, motions, and features closely related to human experience occupy wide fields or serve as crucial bridges across semantic domains in the network. The polysemous network of basic vocabularies across languages represents a shared cognitive network of fundamental human experiences, as these semantic connections should be conceived as generally independent of any specific language and are driven by universal characteristics of the real world as perceived by the human mind. The database holds the potential to contribute to research aimed at unraveling the nature of cognitive proximity.