Abstract
This study examines maternal talk and uses of the pointing gesture during interaction with young children in order to uncover the relationship between maternal and child pointing and talk. Forty- five low-income mother-child dyads were videotaped in their homes at child age 14 months. Results indicate that: (a) mothers and children who talk more point more during interaction, (b) the majority of pointing gestures are used to direct the hearer's attention, (c) mothers who communicate more with their children view their children as understanding more, (d) more educated mothers point more in the context of discussing a joint focus of attention and for conversation-directing purposes. Findings are discussed in terms of the relationship between maternal communi cative characteristics and child pointing and talk.
Highlights
Communication through gestures is common between adult caregivers and young children
The aim of this study was twofold: first to describe the uses of the pointing gesture in a low-income sample of mother-child dyads, and second to investigate whether specific maternal uses of the pointing gesture relate to child uses of gesture and/or child lexical development
Results are presented on the amount of maternal and child pointing and talk and the communicative intent of maternal and child pointing gestures
Summary
Communication through gestures is common between adult caregivers and young children. Mothers who communicate more referentially rather than expressively have children with these same tendencies (Hampson & Nelson, 1993) These findings in the realm of verbal communication urge study of the prevalence, determinants, and consequences of individual differences in maternal uses of nonverbal communication during mother-child interaction. When the total amount of maternal verbal production was partialed out, these relationships were no longer significant suggesting that the relationship was reflective of the overall communicativeness of the mother This result builds on findings in the verbal realm that mothers who talk more have children who talk more, by suggesting that the phenomenon is a more general one, where mothers who communicate more (verbally and nonverbally) have children who communicate more
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
