Hostname: page-component-78c5997874-mlc7c Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-05T08:57:23.811Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Emergence of vocal alternation in mother-infant interchanges*

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  17 February 2009

G. P. Ginsburg  and
Brock K. Kilbourne
G. P. Ginsburg*
Affiliation:
University of Nevada, Reno
Brock K. Kilbourne
Affiliation:
Naval Health Research Center, San Diego
*
Department of Psychology, University of Nevada, Reno, Nevada 89557, USA.
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Microanalyses of unstructured videotaped interactions of three mother-infant dyads revealed dramatic shifts in dyadic vocalization patterns from primarily overlapping to primarily alternating. Maximal overlapping vocalization appeared between 7 and 13 weeks for the different dyads, and subsequent alternation predominance peaked between 12 and 18 weeks. The findings are compared with prior work which had not found alternation predominance and reasons for the difference are suggested. The early emergence of a sequence of predominantly overlapping vocalization followed by predominantly alternating vocalization may be linked to the concomitant development of multimodal sensory-sensory and sensory-motor integration. If so, then the emergent patterns reflect increased potential for co-ordination within the dyad, which may be capitalized upon by the mother and by the infant.

Type
Articles
Information
Journal of Child Language , Volume 15 , Issue 2 , June 1988 , pp. 221 - 235
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1988

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

Footnotes

*

The authors are grateful to B. T. Gardner for reminding us of the work of Daniel Stern and his colleagues and its pertinence to our own research. We also thank J. S. Bruner for providing access at Oxford University to videotapes of Jonathon and Richard, which initiated our interest in this line of research.

References

REFERENCES

Anderson, B. J., Vietze, P. & Dokecki, P. R. (1977). Reciprocity in vocal interactions of mothers and infants. Child Development 48. 1676–81.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Anderson, B. J., Vietze, P., Faulstich, G. & Ashe, M. L. (1978). Observation manual for assessment of behavior sequences between infant and mother: Newborn to 24 months. Catalog of Selected Documents in Psychology 8.Google Scholar
Bateson, M. C. (1975). Mother-infant exchanges: The epigenesis of conversational interaction. In Aaronson, D. & Rieber, R. (eds), Developmental psycholinguistics and communication disorders. New York: New York Academy of Sciences.Google Scholar
Beebe, B., Stern, D. & Jaffe, J. (1979). The kinesic rhythms of mother-infant interactions. In Siegman, A. W. & Feldstein, S. (eds), Of speech and time. Hillsdale NJ: Erlbaum.Google Scholar
Belsky, J., Taylor, D. G. & Rovine, M. (1984). The Pennsylvania Infant and Family Development Project, II: The development of reciprocal interaction in the mother-infant dyad. Child Development 55. 706–17.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Bruner, J. S. (1975). The ontogenesis of speech acts. Journal of Child Language 2. 1–19.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bruner, J. S. (1978). Learning the mother tongue. Human Nature, September, 43–9.Google Scholar
Bruner, J. S. (1983). Child's talk: Learning to use language. New York: Norton.Google Scholar
Cairns, R. B. (1979). Social development: The origin and plasticity of interchanges. San Francisco: Freeman.Google Scholar
Cohen, J. & Cohen, P. (1983). Applied multiple regression correlation analysis for the behavioral sciences. Second edition. Hillsdale NJ: Erlbaum.Google Scholar
Cohn, J. F. & Tronick, E. Z. (1987). Mother-infant face-to-face interaction: The sequence of dyadic states at 3, 6 and 9 months. Developmental Psychology 23. 68–77.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Collis, G. M. (1985). On the origins of turn-taking: alternation and meaning. In Barrett, M. (ed.), Children's single word speech. Chichester: Wiley.Google Scholar
Fogel, A. (1977). Tempo organization in mother-infant face to face interaction. In Schaffer, H. (ed.), Studies in mother-infant interaction. New York: Academic Press.Google Scholar
Jaffe, J. & Anderson, S. W. (1979). Prescript to chapter I: Communication rhythms and the evolution of language. In Siegman, A. W. & Feldstein, S. (eds), Of speech and time. Hillsdale NJ: Erlbaum.Google Scholar
Jasnow, M. & Feldstein, S. (1986). Adult-like temporal characteristics of mother-infant vocal interactions. Child Development 57. 754–61.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Kaye, K. (1977). Towards the origin of dialogue. In Schaffer, H. (ed.), Studies in mother-infant interaction. New York: Academic Press.Google Scholar
Kaye, K. & Fogel, A. (1980). The temporal structure of face-to-face between mothers and infants. Developmental Psychology 16. 454–64.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kendon, A. (1979). Some theoretical and methodological aspects of the use of film in the study of social interaction. In Ginsburg, G. P. (ed.), Emerging strategies in social psychological research. Chichester: Wiley.Google Scholar
Lester, B. M., Hoffman, J. & Brazelton, T. B. (1985). The rhythmic structure of mother-infant interaction in term and preterm infants. Child Development 56. 15–27.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Lewis, M. & Cherry, L. (1977). Social behavior and language acquisition. In Lewis, M. & Rosenblum, L. (eds), Interaction, conversation, and the development of language. New York: Wiley.Google Scholar
Newson, J. (1977). An intersubjective approach to the systematic description of mother-infant interaction. In Schaffer, H. R. (ed.), Studies in mother-infant interaction. New York: Academic Press.Google Scholar
Owens, R. E. Jr., (1984). Language development: An introduction. Columbus OH: Merrill.Google Scholar
Schaffer, H. R. (1977). Early interactive development. In Schaffer, H. R. (ed.), Studies in mother-infant interaction. New York: Academic Press.Google Scholar
Schaffer, H. R., Hepburn, A. & Collis, G. M. (1983). Verbal and nonverbal aspects of mothers' directives. Journal of Child Language 10. 337–55.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Stern, D. N., Jaffe, J., Beebe, B. & Bennett, S. L. (1975). Vocalizing in unison and in alternation: Two modes of communication within the mother-infant dyad. In Aaronson, D. & Rieber, R. (eds), Developmental psycholinguistics and communication disorders. New York: New York Academy of Sciences.Google Scholar