Generic talk use by preschool children

Abstract

The frequency and type of generic talk produced by typically developing preschool children was studied to support intervention decisions for children who use augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) systems. Generic talk requires little knowledge about communication partners (person or topic) to prompt interactions. Ten children ranging from 4:0 to 5:2 years participated in the study. They were intelligible speakers with normal language development. Communication samples were collected at preschool and home. No statistical differences were observed in generic talk use at home and school. Nearly half of all utterances produced across the two settings were classified as generic talk. The unique utterances to preschool children were categorized as confirmation/negation, comments, environmental control, and continuers. On the basis of these results, AAC specialists are encouraged to consider the inclusion of generic talk in AAC devices for young children.