The Nature and Origins of Ambient Language Influence on Infant Vocal Production and Early Words
Abstract
Phonological structure may be seen as emerging in ontogeny from the combined effects of performance constraints rooted in the neuromotor and perceptual systems, individual lexical development and the influence of the particular ambient language. We review here the nature and origins of the earliest ambient language influences. Global effects within the first year of life include both (1) loss of early appearing phonetic gestures not supported by the ambient language and (2) positive effects, reflecting infant attention to prosody and to cues available in the visual as well as the auditory modality. In the course of early lexical development more specific effects become manifest as individual children pursue less common phonetic paths to which the ambient language provides ‘sufficient exposure’.
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By 1 year of age, infants' spontaneous utterances reflect their imitation of ambient language patterns.
“By 1 year of age infants' spontaneous utterances reflect their imitation of ambient language patterns (91, 92).”
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- Authors
- Vihman, M. M., & de Boysson-Bardies, B.
- Affiliations
- Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (FR)
- Southeastern Louisiana University , Hammond, La., USA b Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique , Paris , France
- ORCID
- Vihman, Marilyn May
- Venue
- Phonetica
- Publisher
- Walter de Gruyter GmbH
- Published
- 1994-01-01
- Volume
- 51
- Issue
- 1-3
- Pages
- 159-169
- ISSN
- 0031-8388 (ISSN-L)
- 1423-0321
- OpenAlex
- W2071103622
- Cited by
- 58
- References
- 0
- Citations by year
- 2026: 2 · 2025: 2 · 2024: 1 · 2022: 1 · 2021: 2 · 2020: 3 · 2019: 2 · 2018: 1 · 2017: 3 · 2016: 2 · 2015: 1 · 2014: 2 · 2013: 3
- FWCI
- 2.53
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Phonetica (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Experimental and Cognitive Psychology › Phonetics and Phonology Research
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Developmental and Educational Psychology › Language Development and Disorders
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Developmental and Educational Psychology › Reading and Literacy Development
- Keywords
- phonological development, early lexical development, prosody, infant attention, visual cues, perceptual constraints, first words
- MeSH terms
- Child Language, Humans, Infant, Language Development, Phonetics, Speech, Speech Production Measurement, Verbal Behavior, Verbal Learning
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