Abstract
The interaction of the infant and its mother reflects a finely tuned and potentially meaning-laden system wherein each allows the other to act. The infant-maternal vocalization data would seem to parallel that of two adults. Vocalization–vocalization pairing is the most common interaction; however, smiling, looking at and fret/cry are instrumental in eliciting and reinforcing a member's vocalization. The communication matrix makes clear that a vocalization can be the response of or the elicitor of behaviors other than a vocalization; any model used to study the interactive quality of the vocalization between members of a dyad would need to consider it. The inclusion of all behaviors in any interactive model results in a complex picture. Linguistic competency grows out of the communication matrix and the study of language development must emphasize the issue of function rather than structure. It is believed that context is the prime carrier variable for shared meaning. A complex conditional probability matrix would go a long way in telling the important measures of a communication system, which can predict subsequent vocalization measures.
Published Version
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