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The Time to Talk: The Influence of the Timing of Adult–Child Talk on Children's Event Memory
Author(s) -
McGuigan Fiona,
Salmon Karen
Publication year - 2004
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.1467-8624.2004.00700.x
Subject(s) - recall , psychology , developmental psychology , event (particle physics) , recall test , child development , cognitive psychology , free recall , physics , quantum mechanics
To investigate the influence of the nature and timing of adult–child talk on event recall, this study engaged 63 three‐year‐olds and 65 five‐year‐olds in a staged event and interviewed them 2 weeks later. Children were assigned to 1 of 4 conditions: elaborative pre‐, during‐, and post‐talk, and empty talk (during the event). Children in the elaborative, relative to the empty, talk conditions made fewer errors. Furthermore, post‐talk had the greatest influence on correct recall, although for the 5‐year‐olds, during‐talk was also facilitative. Recall was enhanced to a greater extent by the child's contribution to the talk, relative to that of the adult. The findings contribute to an understanding of the mechanisms by which adult–child conversations influence recall.