Abstract
RAVN, KAREN E., and GELMAN, SUSAN A. Rule Usage in Children's Understanding of Big and Little. CHILD DEVELOPMENT, 1984, 55, 2141-2150. How children interpret dimensional terms (e.g., big, little) is important to theories of semantic development. However, previous studies have yielded inconsistent results. The present study provided a more thorough test of this issue by examining 5 possible rules that children might use to interpret big and little. As shown in previous research, 4and 5-year-olds interpreted big to mean greatest height; also, they interpreted little to mean least height. Contrary to past claims, 3-year-olds used a height rule (for big and little) or a rule based on the most salient dimension (for big only). Increasing consistency in rule usage appeared to be the most significant developmental progression for children between the ages of 3 and 5 with respect to these size terms.
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