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Adults' social cues facilitate young children's use of signs and symbols
Author(s) -
Leekam Susan R.,
Solomon Tracy L.,
Teoh YeeSan
Publication year - 2010
Publication title -
developmental science
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.801
H-Index - 127
eISSN - 1467-7687
pISSN - 1363-755X
DOI - 10.1111/j.1467-7687.2009.00862.x
Subject(s) - psychology , facial expression , referent , social cue , expression (computer science) , communication , comprehension , symbol (formal) , nonverbal communication , sign (mathematics) , developmental psychology , cognitive psychology , linguistics , mathematical analysis , philosophy , mathematics , computer science , programming language
Three experiments investigated the effect of an adult’s social cues on 2‐ and 3‐year‐old children’s ability to use a sign or symbol to locate a hidden object. Results showed that an adult’s positive, engaging facial expression facilitated children’s ability to identify the correct referent, particularly for 3‐year‐olds. A neutral facial expression and the presence of the adult’s hand also facilitated performance, but to a lesser degree than did an engaging facial expression. The effect of the adult’s social cues was greater for relatively unfamiliar signs and symbols (replica or arrow) than it was for a more familiar sign (pointing finger). These findings indicate that non‐directional social cues such as facial expression help to convey communicative intent and facilitate children’s comprehension of signs and symbols.