Early Social Communication Scales Research Articles

Social Communication Traits in Typical Hispanic Infants and Toddlers for Use in Autism Screening

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommend that the first Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) screening of development and behavior for all children can be completed as early as 9 months of age. To address this recommendation this study was aimed at describing the gestural and oral receptive and expressive social communicative behavior of typical Puerto Rican Hispanic children, using skills in the Early Social-Communication Scales (ESCS). Twenty Puerto Rican infants and toddlers, 10-14 months of age, were studied. Each participant was examined and observed (using video-audio recordings), by a trained speech-language pathology graduate student and a speech-language pathologist of the FILIUS Center. One clinician elicited while the other observed each child’s responses to the ESCS items. At the end, the recorded sessions were analyzed and discussed by the two observers to assign values to observed abilities on a scale of from 1 to 5 for each skill (1= does not execute; 5=very frequent execution). The strongest indicators of typical social communication in these Hispanic infants and toddlers demonstrate that, at that very early age, infants and toddlers are driven to interact with a stranger when accompanied by their mothers as a confirmation of their empathic dispositions. These strong indicators of social communication in typical Hispanic infants and toddlers can be observed by health professionals to identify difficulties in interaction skills as signs to refer children at-risk of autism.

Effectiveness of a Training Program for Parents of Toddlers with or at Risk of Autism Spectrum Disorder

Purpose: This study aimed to evaluate a hospital-provided hybrid parental support program designed to help parents implement routine interventions for their toddlers under 34 months, with or at risk of autism spectrum disorder (ASD).Methods: An experimental group including 15 pairs of toddlers and their parents received eight weekly sessions, while a control group including nine pairs received no sessions. Toddlers’ joint attention, autism-related behaviors, and adaptive behaviors, as well as parenting stress and parenting efficacy, were compared between baseline and 8 weeks later. Results: The toddlers in the experimental group showed significant improvement in their joint attention scores on the Early Social Communication Scales (<i>P</i><0.01) and the Korean-Childhood Autism Rating Scale scores (<i>P</i><0.01). However, statistically significant differences were not found in the adaptive behavior composite scores of the Korean Vineland Adaptive Behavior Scales-II and total behavior problem scores of the Korean version of the Child Behavior Checklist. Parenting efficacy in the experimental group showed significant improvement (<i>P</i><0.05). Parenting stress increased in the experimental group, but the difference was not significant. Additionally, parents showed a statistically significant between-group difference in parenting efficacy (<i>P</i><0.05). Conclusion: A hospital-provided hybrid program affected the development of toddlers with ASD and parents’ implementation of interventions. It is significant that an online platform was used to provide individualized support for families to continue practicing the interventions and that the effectiveness of this program was demonstrated. This intervention can be considered as an efficient and sustainable alternative system to support toddlers with ASD and their families.

Qualitative and Quantitative Measures of Joint Attention Development in the First Year of Life: A Scoping Review.

Joint attention (JA) is the purposeful coordination of an individual's focus of attention with that of another and begins to develop within the first year of life. Delayed, or atypically developing, JA is an early behavioral sign of many developmental disabilities and so assessing JA in infancy can improve our understanding of trajectories of typical and atypical development. This scoping review identified the most common methods for assessing JA in the first year of life. Methods of JA were divided into qualitative and quantitative categories. Out of an identified 13,898 articles, 106 were selected after a robust search of four databases. Frequent methods used were eye tracking, electroencephalography (EEG), behavioral coding and the Early Social Communication Scale (ECSC). These methods were used to assess JA in typically and atypically developing infants in the first year of life. This study provides a comprehensive review of the past and current state of measurement of JA in the literature, the strengths and limitations of the measures used, and the next steps to consider for researchers interested in investigating JA to strengthen this field going forwards.

Early symptoms of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in 1–8 year old children with sex chromosome trisomies (XXX, XXY, XYY), and the predictive value of joint attention

The objective of the present study is to investigate the impact of Sex Chromosome Trisomy (SCT; XXX, XXY, XYY) on the early appearance of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) symptoms, and the predictive value of Joint Attention for symptoms of ASD. SCTs are specific genetic conditions that may serve as naturalistic ‘at risk’ models of neurodevelopment, as they are associated with increased risk for neurobehavioral vulnerabilities. A group of 82 children with SCT (aged 1–8 years) was included at baseline of this longitudinal study. Joint Attention was measured at baseline with structured behavior observations according to the Early Social Communication Scales. ASD symptoms were assessed with the Modified Checklist for Autism in Toddlers questionnaire and Autism Diagnostic Interview-Revised in a 1-year follow-up. Recruitment and assessment took place in the Netherlands and in the United States. The results demonstrate that ASD symptoms were substantially higher in children with SCT compared to the general population, with 22% of our cohort at clinical risk for ASD, especially in the domain of social interaction and communication. Second, a predictive value of Joint Attention was found for ASD symptoms at 1-year follow-up. In this cohort, no differences were found between karyotype-subtypes. In conclusion, from a very early age, SCT can be associated with an increased risk for vulnerabilities in adaptive social functioning. These findings show a neurodevelopmental impact of the extra X or Y chromosome on social adaptive development associated with risk for ASD already from early childhood onward. These findings advocate for close monitoring and early (preventive) support, aimed to optimize social development of young children with SCT.

Early impact of X- and Y-chromosome variations (XXX, XXY, XYY) on social communication and social emotional development in 1-2-year-old children.

Sex chromosome trisomies (SCTs) are characterized by an extra X‐ or Y‐chromosome (XXX, XXY, XYY). The present study aims to investigate early signs of social communication and social emotional development in very young children with SCT. Thirty‐four children with SCT (aged 12–24 months) were included in this study, as well as 31 age‐matched controls. Social communication was measured with structured behavior observations according to the Early Social Communication Scales, and social emotional developmental level with the Bayley Social Emotional parental questionnaire. Recruitment and assessment took place in the Netherlands and in the United States. On average, 12–24‐month old children with SCT showed difficulties with early social communication, more so in responding to others as compared to initiating social communications. During social interactions, children with SCT made less frequent eye contact, compared to controls. Also, difficulties in acquiring social emotional milestones were found in 1‐year old children with SCT, with 44% of the children having social emotional vulnerabilities in the borderline or extremely low range, compared to typically developing children. In this cohort, no significant predictive effects of karyotype‐subtype (XXX, XXY, XYY) were found. Already from a very early age, SCT can be associated with increased risk for vulnerabilities in adaptive social functioning. These findings suggest that SCT impact the maturation of the social brain already from an early age, and stress the importance of early monitoring and (preventive) support early social development in young children with SCT.

Latin American early childhood education and social vulnerability links to toddlers’ executive function and early communication (La educación temprana en Latinoamérica y las relaciones de la vulnerabilidad social con las funciones ejecutivas y la comunicación temprana en la primera infancia)

ABSTRACT Several studies have analysed the impact of attending early childhood education centres on communication, regulatory skills and social-emotional development. These educational institutions have increased in presence annually, partially due to the access of women to the labour market. It has been found that infant education may modulate development in vulnerable contexts (typically associated with negative cognitive outcomes), although the results are contradictory. We presented a study that evaluated Latin American dyads of mothers–infants aged 18 to 24 months regarding the influence of infant education and social vulnerability on Executive Functions (EF) and Communication Skills (CS). To address these goals, toddlers completed several EF tasks and the Early Social Communication Scales. Parents completed the Socioeconomic Level Scale from INDEC. Results revealed that social vulnerability was associated with both EF and CS, daycare attendance was positively related to CS and finally, the contribution of daycare varied by SES on EF. These findings highlight the importance of considering infant education and socioeconomic status to generate equal opportunities from the first months of life.

Visual and Hearing Sensitivity Affect Robot-Based Training for Children Diagnosed With Autism Spectrum Disorder.

In this paper, we investigate the impact of sensory sensitivity during robot-assisted training for children diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). Indeed, user-adaptation for robot-based therapies could help users to focus on the training, and thus improve the benefits of the interactions. Children diagnosed with ASD often suffer from sensory sensitivity, and can show hyper or hypo-reactivity to sensory events, such as reacting strongly or not at all to sounds, movements, or touch. Considering it during robot therapies may improve the overall interaction. In the present study, thirty-four children diagnosed with ASD underwent a joint attention training with the robot Cozmo. The eight session training was embedded in the standard therapy. The children were screened for their sensory sensitivity with the Sensory Profile Checklist Revised. Their social skills were screened before and after the training with the Early Social Communication Scale. We recorded their performance and the amount of feedback they were receiving from the therapist through animations of happy and sad emotions played on the robot. Our results showed that visual and hearing sensitivity influenced the improvements of the skill to initiate joint attention. Also, the therapists of individuals with a high sensitivity to hearing chose to play fewer animations of the robot during the training phase of the robot activity. The animations did not include sounds, but the robot was producing motor noise. These results are supporting the idea that sensory sensitivity of children diagnosed with ASD should be screened prior to engaging the children in robot-assisted therapy.

Multidimensional Development and Adaptive Behavioral Functioning in Younger and Older Children With Rett Syndrome.

The purpose of this study was to examine clinical severity, multidimensional development, and adaptive behavioral functioning in younger and older children with Rett syndrome (RTT) in the pseudostationary stage (stage III). Fourteen younger (≤10years of age) and 15 older (11-18years of age) children with confirmed stage III RTT (assigned to young-RTT and old-RTT groups, respectively) participated in this study. Clinical severity was determined using the Clinical Severity Score (CSS) scale for RTT. The children's cognitive, language, motor, and sociocommunicative development was assessed using the Mullen Scales of Early Learning (MSEL) and the Early Social Communication Scale (ESCS). Their adaptive behavioral and daily functional skills were assessed using the Vineland Adaptive Behavior Scales-Chinese version (VABS-C) and Pediatric Evaluation of Disability Inventory-Chinese version (PEDI-C). Compared with the young-RTT group, the old-RTT group had higher severity of scoliosis on the CSS scale, poorer fine motor scores on the MSEL, reduced eye contact, reduced alternating eye gaze, and reduced turn-taking during social interaction on the ESCS. However, none of the VABS-C or PEDI-C subscale scores differed significantly between the groups. Higher CSSs were significantly correlated with lower scores in several subscales of MSEL, ESCS, VABS-C, and PEDI-C, especially for gross motor, mobility, and socialization functioning in all children with RTT. Age-related differences in fine motor and sociocommunicative skills were observed between the young-RTT and old-RTT group, as measured using standardized assessments. Greater severity of RTT was correlated with poor motor, sociocommunicative, adaptive behavioral, and daily functional skills in stage III RTT. Practitioners should be aware of clinical severity and the differences of developmental and adaptive behavioral functioning between younger and older children in the pseudostationary stage of RTT to provide specific age-related treatments. With an understanding of severity and differences of developmental and adaptive behavioral functioning between younger and older children, clinical professionals can provide specific age-related treatments.

Follow the white robot: Efficacy of robot-assistive training for children with autism spectrum disorder

BackgroundSocially assistive robots have the potential to become a powerful therapeutic tool for individuals affected by Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). However, to date, only a few studies explored the efficacy of robot-assisted training embedded in structured clinical protocols. The current study aimed at investigating the beneficial effects of introducing a toy robot, as a new tool for clinicians, in the treatment plan carried out by an Italian healthcare institution. MethodIn collaboration with the healthcare professionals of Piccolo Cottolengo Genovese di Don Orione, we designed a robot-mediated activity aimed at improving social skills in children with ASD. Twenty-four children with ASD (Age = 5.79 ± 1.02, 5 females) completed the activities with the robot in a cross-over design, during a period of ten weeks. Their social skills were assessed before and after the robot intervention activities, using the Early Social Communication Scale (ESCS). ResultsResults showed that the combination of robot-assisted training with standard therapy was more effective than the standard therapy alone, in terms of improvement of social skills. Specifically, after the robot-assisted training, children with ASD improved in their ability to generate and respond to behavioral requests, and in their tendency to initiate and maintain social interaction with the adult. ConclusionsOur results support the idea that robot-assisted interventions can be combined with the standard treatment plan to improve clinical outcomes.

Communicative Function of Pointing and Expressive Vocabulary Acquisition

Abstract There is evidence of a strong association between the pointing gesture and early vocabulary acquisition. This study examined the extent to which this association is moderated by the communicative function of children’s pointing. A total of 35 children participated in the study. Their use of the pointing gesture and their expressive vocabulary were assessed at 13 and 18 months using the Early Social Communication Scales and the MacArthur-Bates Communicative Development Inventory, respectively. The results of multiple linear regression analyses indicated that variations in the frequency of declarative pointing at 13 months significantly contributed to variations in vocabulary size at both 13 and 18 months, independently of variations in maternal education. In contrast, variations in the frequency of imperative pointing did not concurrently or longitudinally correlate with children’s vocabulary sizes. These results suggest that the relation between pointing and early vocabulary acquisition is moderated by the communicative function of the pointing gesture.

Initiation and response of joint attention bids in autism spectrum disorder children depend on the visibility of the target.

Response to joint attention (RJA) and initiation of joint attention (IJA) are impaired in pre-schoolers with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Children's response to joint attention may depend on the presence of the target in the child's field of vision or on the type of deictic index (head and eye orientation, pointing and verbalisations) used by the adult to initiate joint attention. This study deals with 50 ASD children aged from 2 years 8 months to 11 years 7 months, with a communicative level comparable to children under 31 months of age, according to the French version of the Early Social Communication Scales (ECSP, by its French acronym). We compared the aforementioned ASD children with 50 typically developing (TD) children, aged 9 to 30 months who had no communication disorders according to the ECSP. During the ECSP test, we analysed joint attention behaviours on three posters present or absent from the children's visual field. We did not observe any difference in the number of IJAs between groups, but ASD children were less responsive than TD children were. Our results showed a developmental progression in the responses of children with ASD if several deictic cues were used by an adult simultaneously (looking and pointing, or looking and verbalising to indicate a target), whether the referent was present or absent from the child's visual field. In addition, we observed developmental progression when the referent was behind the child and the adult only used their gaze to refer to it. Thus, we argue that the type of cues used affects ASD children's response behaviours during joint attention towards a referent that may be present or absent from their visual field.Implications: Regarding the social and the sensory difficulties of children with ASD, many therapeutic approaches focus their intervention methods on non-verbal communication skills and joint attention. This fundamental research makes it possible to identify the most appropriate type of deictic index for children with ASD with developmental delay, depending on the presence or absence of the referent in the child's visual field.

What are the benefits of having a village? Effects of allomaternal care on communicative skills in early infancy

This study investigates whether exposure to allomaternal care (AMC—care for infants from individuals other than the mother) improves rates of communicative behaviors during late infancy by providing more opportunities to practice communicating with varied caregivers. Data were collected from 102 typically-developing infants aged 13–18 months and their mothers. AMC variables were collected using a current care questionnaire, structured 14-day diary, and longitudinal interview. Communicative behaviors were assessed through post hoc microcoding of in-lab administrations of the Early Social Communication Scales (ESCS), as well as additional microcoding of the Bayley III Screening Cognitive Subtest. Demographic covariates were also included. For each communicative behavior, backward model selection was used to determine the best fitting linear regression model. Results suggested that rates of turn-taking decreased with Household AMC (p < 0.008), but increased with two or more siblings present at home (p < 0.01). Conversely, rates of spontaneous giving increased with Household AMC (p < 0.003) regardless of the presence of siblings. Notably, exposure to more AMC was neither helpful nor harmful for many of the tested communicative behaviors, although the number of siblings present was significantly related to rates of following commands, as well as pointing and reaching. Ultimately, this study suggests that household level experiences with AMC, rather than formalized care, impact the development of some communicative behaviors during late infancy.

Regulation During the Second Year: Executive Function and Emotion Regulation Links to Joint Attention, Temperament, and Social Vulnerability in a Latin American Sample

Although a growing body of work has established developing regulatory abilities during the second year of life, more work is needed to better understand factors that influence this emerging control. The purpose of the present study was to examine regulation capacities in executive functions (i.e., EF or cognitive control) and emotion regulation (i.e., ER or control focused on modulating negative and sustaining positive emotions) in a Latin American sample, with a focus on how joint attention, social vulnerability, and temperament contribute to performance. Sixty Latin American dyads of mothers and children aged 18 to 24 months completed several EF tasks, a Still-Face Paradigm (SFP) to examine ER (Weinberg et al., 2008), and the Early Social Communication Scale to measure joint attention (Mundy et al., 2003). Parents completed the Early Childhood Behavior Questionnaire Very Short Form to measure temperament (ECBQ-VS, Putnam et al., 2010) and the Social Economic Level Scale (SES) from INDEC (2000). Results revealed the typical responses expected for toddlers of this age in these EF tasks and in the SFP. Also, we found associations between EF and ER and between non-verbal communication related to monitoring infants’ attention to objects (i.e., responding to joint attention) and initiation of pointing (e.g., pointing and showing of an object while the child alternates his gaze to an adult) with EF. Regarding social factors, family differences and type of housing contribute to regulation. For temperament, effortful control was associated with both regulatory capacities. Finally, only age predicted EF. These results suggest that many patterns regarding the development of these abilities are duplicated in the first months of life in a Latin American sample while further highlighting the importance of considering how the environment and the individual characteristics of infants may associate to these regulatory abilities, which is particularly relevant to developing public policies to promote their optimal development.

Brief Report: Feasibility and Preliminary Efficacy of a Behavioral Intervention for Minimally Verbal Girls with Autism Spectrum Disorder.

We report the feasibility and preliminary efficacy of a structured behavioral intervention with a sample of minimally verbal girls with autism spectrum disorder between the ages of 2 and 6 years old. Ten participants with no functional vocal behavior were randomized to a 4-week behavioral intervention or waitlist control group. Caregivers reported child communicative repertoires at pre- and post-randomization assessments. Social communication was also assessed at these time points using the Early Social Communication Scales. All feasibility benchmarks were met and findings of preliminary efficacy showed large effect sizes within groups. The current findings suggest the feasibility of recruiting and retaining samples of young, minimally verbal girls with autism spectrum disorder in randomized clinical trials.

Otizm Spektrum Bozukluğu Olan Çocuklar İçin Erken Sosyal İletişim ve Etkileşim Ölçeği (ESİE) Geçerlik ve Güvenirlik Çalışması

Difficulties in nonverbal social communication and interaction skills are one of the diagnostic criteria and distinctive features of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). In this study, it was aimed to examine the psychometric properties of the Early Social Communication and Interaction (ESCI) scale, which was developed to assess nonverbal social communication and social interaction skills. Participants of the study consisted of 111 children with ASD aged 28.0-98.0 months. The ESCI scale was individually administered to the children, and interaction behaviors were analyzed by encoding them via video recordings. The validity of the scale was assessed by content and construct validity; reliability was assessed with internal Consistency-Cronbach Alpha and inter-observer reliability. As a result of the principal components analysis to examine the construct validity, the ESCI scale was found to have a one-factor structure which accounts for 72.51% of the variance. It has been determined that the factor loadings of the six measurements in the scale change between .72 and .90. It was found that the scores obtained from the measurements and the average of the total scores increased as the language level became complicated and the internal correlation coefficients between the measurements were significant and changed between .47 and .82. The Cronbach Alpha values for the reliability of the ESCI scale were found to be .87 in total and found to vary between .70 and .93 for the measurements. Findings show that nonverbal social communication and social interaction skills of children with ASD can be assessed with ESCI scale valid and reliable.

Coordination is key: Joint attention and vocalisation in infant siblings of children with Autism Spectrum Disorder.

Research indicates that social communicative behaviours develop atypically during the second year in Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). This study evaluated whether these behaviours also differed in the extent to which they were coordinated across modalities. To measure joint attention behaviours (e.g., gaze shifts, gestures), vocalisations and their coordination among a cohort of infants with an older sibling with ASD (heightened risk-HR). This prospective longitudinal study examined 50 HR infants at 14, 18 and 24 months. The Early Social Communication Scales (ESCS)-a structured toy-play task that assesses infant joint attention behaviour-was administered to infants at each age point in the home. Infants' joint attention behaviours, vocalisations and instances where they overlapped were coded from videos. At 36 months, nine infants received an ASD diagnosis (HR-ASD), 15 had a significant language delay (HR-LD) and 26 were classified no diagnosis (HR-ND). Findings revealed that HR-ASD infants produced fewer advanced joint attention behaviours, and their vocalisations were less frequent and less advanced than HR-LD and HR-ND infants. Notably, HR-ASD infants also coordinated these behaviours together less frequently than their HR peers. Differences in the coordination of early communicative behaviours may have negative cascading effects on social and language development for infants who develop ASD. Current intervention practices may be complemented by efforts to increase the coordinated quality of communicative behaviours.

Concurrent Validity and Reliability for the Communication Complexity Scale.

The Communication Complexity Scale (CCS; Brady et al., 2012) was created to fill a void in measures of expressive communication skills in individuals who communicate primarily with presymbolic or early symbolic means. CCS scores reflect expressive communication observed during interactive communication contexts. Two studies were completed to examine the reliability and validity of the revised CCS scores. Participants in both studies had minimal verbal skills (i.e., produced less than 20 functional words). Study 1 examined interobserver agreement, test-retest reliability, and concurrent validity for 239 participants with intellectual disabilities between the ages of 3-66 years, assessed with the protocol developed at the University of Kansas (KU CCS). CCS scores were compared with scores from the Vineland Adaptive Behavior Scales-Second Edition (Sparrow, Cicchetti, & Balla, 2005) and the Communication Matrix (Rowland & Fried-Oken, 2010). Study 2 examined the reliability and concurrent validity for CCS scores derived from 110 children (chronological age = 3-9) with autism from diverse backgrounds. These children were assessed with the Early Social Communication Scale (Mundy et al., 2003). CCS scores were compared with rates of communication derived from the Early Social Communication Scale. CCS scores were moderately correlated with scores from existing measures of early communication. In addition, CCS scores from different raters were reliable, and test-retest scores were highly similar. These findings support the validity and reliability of the CCS when used with individuals across a wide range of ages and with various types of disabilities. The CCS can be used in research and clinical practice to describe extant communication levels in individuals with minimal verbal skills.

Mother-Infant and Extra-Dyadic Interactions with a New Social Partner: Developmental Trajectories of Early Social Abilities during Play.

Mother–infant interactions during feeding and play are pivotal experiences in the development of infants’ early social abilities (Stern, 1985, 1995; Biringen, 2000). Stern indicated distinctive characteristics of mother–infant interactions, respectively, during feeding and play, suggesting to evaluate both to better describe the complexity of such early affective and social experiences (Stern, 1996). Moreover, during the first years of life, infants acquire cognitive and social skills that allow them to interact with new social partners in extra-dyadic interactions. However, the relations between mother–child interactions and infants’ social skills in extra-dyadic interactions are still unknown. We investigated longitudinally the relations between mother–child interactions during feeding and play and child’s pre-verbal communicative abilities in extra-dyadic interactions during play. 20 dyads were evaluated at T1 (infants aged between 9–22 months) and 6 months later, at T2. The interdyadic differences in mother–infant interactions during feeding and play were evaluated, respectively, with the “Feeding Scale” (Chatoor et al., 1997) and with the “Play Scale” (Chatoor, 2006) and the socio-communicative abilities of children with a new social partner during play were evaluated with the “Early Social Communication Scales” (Mundy et al., 2003). We distinguished the dyads into two categories: dyads with functional interactions (high dyadic reciprocity, low dyadic conflict) and dyads with dysfunctional interactions (lower dyadic reciprocity, higher dyadic conflict). At T1, infants belonging to dyads with dysfunctional interactions were significantly lower in “Initiating Joint Attention” and in “Responding to Joint Attention” in interaction with a new social partner compared to the infants belonging to dyads with functional interactions. At T2, infants belonging to dyads with dysfunctional interactions were significantly lower in “Initiating Social Interactions” with a new social partner compared to the infants belonging to dyads with functional interactions. There were significant correlations between the quality of mother–infant interactions during feeding and infants’ social abilities in interaction with a stranger both at T1 and at T2. This study showed a stable relation over time between mother–child interactions and child’s social communicative skills in extra-dyadic interactions.

Infants’ behavioral styles in joint attention situations and parents’ socio-economic status

In this study the eco-cultural model of parenting (Keller, H. (2007). Cultures of infancy. Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum) was applied to the study of joint attention behavior of children from families with different socio-economic status (SES). It was hypothesized that infants’ early communication styles would differ with SES reflecting more independent or interdependent interactions with their caregivers. It was also hypothesized that infants would use the same types of behaviors whether they have declarative or imperative communication goals. The Early Social Communication Scales (ESCS, Mundy et al., 2003) was administered to 103 typically developing infants of 12 months (approximately half of them siblings of children with autism). A factor analysis, yielding four behavioral factors, namely pointing, eye contact, actions and following points, confirmed the hypothesis that infants use behaviors consistently across situations independent of their communicative intent. MANOVAs (comprising parental education and income) revealed that higher SES infants showed actions more frequently in the ESCS whereas lower SES infants followed experimenter's points more frequently. The results are discussed in the context of presumably differing socialization goals for infants and the divergent contribution of parental education and income that seem to have additive contribution to some factors (actions, following points) but divergent contributions to others (pointing, eye contact).

The Nature of Child-Adult Interaction. From Turn-Taking to Understanding Pointing and Use of Pointing Gestures

Abstract Analyses of interactions between an adult and a one-year-old child are often connected with studying early communicative competences, e.g. the child’s participation in turn-taking sequences, in joint attention, and use of pointing gestures. Infants’ communicative behaviors were studied using a structured observational measure - the Early Social Communication Scales (Mundy et al., 2003) in a study of 358 12-month-old children. An exploratory factor analysis revealed: (i) a distinction between the categories of initiation and response among the behaviors displayed, (ii) simple and complex behavior categories occurring; (iii) the presence within one factor of behaviors fulfilling various functions (e.g. requesting and sharing interest). An analysis of the results showed that communicative competences can be classified according to their level and ignoring their function, and made it possible to suggest modifications to the way in which behaviors are coded on the ESCS and to complement the procedure of studying early communicative competences.