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The Role of Semantic Context and Memory in the Acquisition of Novel Nouns
Author(s) -
Goodman Judith C.,
McDonough Laraine,
Brown Natasha B.
Publication year - 1998
Publication title -
child development
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 3.103
H-Index - 257
eISSN - 1467-8624
pISSN - 0009-3920
DOI - 10.1111/j.1467-8624.1998.tb06215.x
Subject(s) - referent , noun , psychology , context (archaeology) , object (grammar) , vocabulary , verb , set (abstract data type) , semantics (computer science) , cognitive psychology , vocabulary development , linguistics , verbal learning , cognition , computer science , paleontology , philosophy , biology , programming language , neuroscience
Three studies assessed the ability of 2‐year‐olds to use semantic context to infer the meanings of novel nouns and to retain those meanings a day later. In the first experiment, 24 2‐year‐olds heard novel nouns in sentences that contained semantically constraining verbs (e.g., “Mommy feeds the ferret”). They chose from a set of four novel object pictures to indicate the referent. Children learned a majority of the novel words. However, they occasionally failed to choose the correct object even when they understood the verb. Experiment 2 examined whether this was due to an inability to identify some of the pictures of novel objects. Experiment 3 tested 24 2‐year‐olds' memory for the newly learned nouns following a 24 hr delay and found significant retention. Results are discussed in terms of learning mechanisms that facilitate vocabulary acquisition in young children.