Study Of Word Learning Research Articles

Contextual diversity and anchoring: Null effects on learning word forms and opposing effects on learning word meanings.

Words that appear in many contexts/topics are recognised faster than those occurring in fewer contexts. However, contextual diversity benefits are less clear in word learning studies. Mak et al. proposed that diversity benefits might be enhanced if new word meanings are anchored before introducing diversity. In our study, adults (N = 288) learned meanings for eight pseudowords, four experienced in six topics (high diversity) and four in one topic (low diversity). All items were first experienced five times in one topic (anchoring phase), and results were compared to Norman et al. which used a similar paradigm without an anchoring phase. An old-new decision post-test (did you learn this word?) showed null effects of contextual diversity on written form recognition accuracy and response time, mirroring Norman et al. A cloze task involved choosing which pseudoword completed a sentence. For sentences situated in a previously experienced context, accuracy was significantly higher for pseudowords learned in the low diversity condition, whereas for sentences situated in a new context, accuracy was non-significantly higher for pseudowords learned in the high diversity condition. Anchoring modulated these effects. Low diversity item accuracy was unaffected by anchoring. However, for high-diversity items, accuracy in familiar contexts was better in the current experiment (anchoring) than in Norman et al. (non-anchoring), but accuracy in new contexts did not differ between the two experiments. These results suggest that anchoring facilitates meaning use in familiar contexts, but not generalisation to new contexts, nor word recognition in isolation.

More hard words: Learning emotion and mental state adjectives from linguistic context

ABSTRACT How do young children learn the meanings of adjectives that label emotions and mental states, like happy or confident? The concepts behind these words seem easy to grasp, and yet the properties they denote are abstract and lack reliable visual correlates, much as with verbs such as think or know. There is robust evidence that the linguistic context in which mental state verbs appear supports their acquisition. Using a two-pronged approach, we explore whether the same is true for these adjectives. First, we present a comprehensive study of adjectives in child-directed speech (CDS) in CHILDES corpora, revealing that these adjectives have a unique distributional profile based on the semantics of co-occurring words, and the syntactic complements with which they appear, distinguishing them from other adjective types. Second, we present a word learning study with adults using a version of the Human Simulation Paradigm manipulating key variables from the corpus study (subject animacy and syntactic complements), while holding other features (morphosyntactic form and syntactic position of the adjective) constant. Participants’ guesses demonstrate that they recruit these cues to constrain the meaning of novel adjectives to one corresponding to an emotion or mental state. By presenting a thorough comparison of adjective types across key linguistic contexts and providing evidence that such contexts constrain adjective meaning, we systematically extend syntactic bootstrapping to the adjectival domain in a way that goes well beyond previous work, and paints a vibrant picture of what supports the acquisition of adjectives.

Neural effects differ for learning highly iconic versus non-iconic signs in hearing adults.

Little is known about the neural changes that accompany sign language learning by hearing adults. We used ERPs and a word-sign matching task to assess how learning impacted the N400 priming effect (reduced negativity for translations compared to unrelated trials). English monolinguals (N = 32) learned 100 ASL signs - half highly iconic (meaning was guessable), half non-iconic. In contrast to non-iconic signs, little learning was needed for the highly iconic signs as translation accuracy was similar pre- and post-learning. Prior to learning, an N400 priming effect was observed only for iconic signs. After learning, the size of the priming effect increased for non-iconic signs (replicating word learning studies) but decreased for iconic signs. For deaf ASL signers (N = 20), iconicity did not modulate the size of the N400 priming effect. We conclude that the impact of iconicity on lexico-semantic processing is reduced following learning, as signs are integrated into an emerging visual-manual lexicon.

Influences of talker variability, reading ability, and language ability on word learning

Studies show that talker variability is beneficial for learning second language contrasts, though less is known about variability in processing speech in a speaker’s native language. Talker variability benefits have also been found for word learning studies with children, with better performance for children in the high variability condition than those in the low variability condition. Furthermore, it has been shown that individuals with a range of reading and language abilities perform differently on tasks that tap into phonological processes. Therefore, the current study examines how individual differences in reading and language abilities influence word learning and the extent to which talker variability improves performance. One hundred and forty listeners were randomly assigned to three conditions: (1) single talker, (2) multiple talker (randomized), and (3) multiple talker (blocked). Our results showed that individuals with poorer reading or language skills performed worse than individuals with higher reading and language skills. Surprisingly, variability was not beneficial and instead, listeners in the single talker condition performed better than those in the multiple talker conditions. These results suggest that talker variability benefits in word learning may be dependent on other aspects such as the amount of difference between talkers or the task.

Word Learning as a Window to Memory and Rehabilitation Outcomes in Traumatic Brain Injury.

The purpose of this viewpoint is to advocate for increased study of word learning abilities and word learning interventions in traumatic brain injury (TBI). We describe the word learning process and the unique opportunities afforded by studying each component and stage. Building on discussions at the 2022 International Cognitive-Communication Disorders Conference, we describe how word learning may underlie a variety of functional outcomes after TBI, making it a promising target for rehabilitation. Finally, we discuss principles that may guide study in this critical area to advance outcomes after TBI for children and adults. Word learning is a dynamic and iterative process taking place over time and in multiple stages. Thus, studying word learning affords the opportunity to parse the relative contributions of multiple memory systems to different phases and components of the process. However, single-timepoint designs are insufficient to capture the full word learning process, which occurs over time and across contexts. Word learning also presents an opportunity to assess the contributions of behavioral and lifestyle factors (e.g., sleep and exercise) to different memory phases. Understanding these interactions could drive clinical interventions aimed at improving memory through manipulable external behaviors. Word learning is key to success in functional spheres across the life span. The importance of words to daily life remains after TBI, even as the memory systems that support word learning are disrupted. The empirical study of word learning and rehabilitation of word learning deficits in TBI presents a promising new direction in understanding the breadth of neurogenic cognitive-communication disorders and an opportunity to explore a potential driver of functional outcome and impactful rehabilitation target.

How do non-native phonemes impact learning words in a second language? Evidence from eyetracking and EEG in a laboratory word learning study

A classic finding holds that listeners have significant difficulty categorizing and discriminating unfamiliar/nonnative phonemes. In the present study we examined how this influences learning new words in a second language (L2). Adult monolingual English speakers were trained on a pseudo-French vocabulary, by matching images of cartoon “aliens” to auditory CVCV words incorporating French vowels and consonants. Of interest was comparing words incorporating vowels similar to English to those containing highly unfamiliar vowels (here, the French high front rounded vowel [y]). Accuracy, eyetracking and event-related potentials (ERPs, measured with EEG) were then used to assess word recognition post-training. The neurocognitive measures indicated weakened recognition of words containing the novel [y] vowel, compared to words with vowels that more closely resembled those in English. Furthermore, we found that a training regime that emphasized discriminating easily confused vowels (i.e., [u] vs. [y]) during learning yielded somewhat improved recognition, both immediately after training and in a follow-up session. Interestingly, learning words containing the unfamiliar [y] vowel was not accompanied by improved AX discrimination of this vowel. The results have key implications for how we understand the role of phonology in L2 word representations, and for how we approach L2 teaching.

A neurophonetic approach to articulation planning: The case of apraxia of speech

This article addresses the question of whether data from neurological populations can inform basic phonetic research. An approach is reviewed in which speech error data from patients with articulation disorders after a stroke were used to model articulation planning processes.The first section addresses a controversy in cognitive neuroscience about the extent to which data from neurological patients can enrich research in cognitive science at all. It introduces post-stroke apraxia of speech (AOS) as a clinical model of a process termed speech motor planning, suggesting that speech data from patients with AOS can inform phonetic theories about articulatory control.The second section explains how speech error data from patients with AOS were used to develop a measure of articulatory ease that integrates facilitating and complicating factors across different phonological levels, from the articulatory gesture to the phonological word.Section 3 presents previously unpublished data to exemplify how this model can be applied to typical speech, e.g., in studies investigating interactions between lexical and articulatory parameters or in developmental studies of word learning. In a final section, the main line of reasoning is summarized and limitations of this work are discussed.

Morphological cues as an aid to word learning: a cross-situational word learning study

ABSTRACT Learning a language with complex morphology poses a challenge to language learners, especially adults, who may need to acquire unfamiliar grammatical categories. One possible advantage to languages with complex morphology is that the morphology could provide cues to word meaning. The hypothesis that morphology can bootstrap adult word learning is tested across four cross-situational word learning experiments. Adult learners were exposed to words from a novel language with CVCV stems and -CV suffixes. In the Experimental conditions, the suffixes consistently mapped to semantic categories (e.g. [-ke] for fruits). In the Control condition, the suffixes did not provide any consistent semantic information. Participants in the Experimental conditions outperformed participants in the Control conditions, but only when there were sufficient opportunities to infer the morphology in the initial learning phases. These results highlight adults’ ability to rapidly learn novel morphological information, and use this information in word learning.

Preschoolers Have Difficulty Discriminating Novel Minimal-Pair Words.

The primary aim was to assess whether children have difficulty distinguishing similar-sounding novel words. The secondary aim was to assess what task characteristics might hinder or facilitate perceptual discrimination. Three within-subjects experiments tested ninety-nine 3- to 5-year-old children total. Experiment 1 presented two cartoon characters each saying a novel word. Children were asked to report whether they said the same word or different words. Words were identical (e.g., deev/deev), were dissimilar (deev/vush), differed in onset consonant voicing (deev/teev), or differed in vowel tenseness (deev/div). Experiment 2 added accuracy feedback after each trial to remind children of task instructions. Experiment 3 interspersed many "same" trials containing a repeating standard word to assess the role of bottom-up stimulus support on difference detection. The d' scores were highest for dissimilar words, next highest on different-vowel pairs, and lowest on different-consonant pairs. Performance was better with repeated standard stimuli (Experiment 3) than without (Experiment 1). Benefits for repeated task instructions (Experiment 2) were marginal. Exploratory analyses comparing these results to findings in a word-learning study using the same stimuli suggest an imperfect match to how easily children can learn similar-sounding words. Overall, similar-sounding novel words are challenging for children to discriminate perceptually, although discrimination scores exceeded chance for all levels of similarity. Clinically speaking, same/different tests may be less sensitive to sound discrimination than change/no-change tests. https://doi.org/10.23641/asha.20151848.

Not all is forgotten: Children's associative matrices for features of a word learning episode.

Word learning studies traditionally examine the narrow link between words and objects, indifferent to the rich contextual information surrounding objects. This research examined whether children attend to this contextual information and construct an associative matrix of the words, objects, people, and environmental context during word learning. In Experiment 1, preschool-aged children (age: 3;2-5;11 years) were presented with novel words and objects in an animated storybook. Results revealed that children constructed associations beyond words and objects. Specifically, children attended to and had the strongest associations for features of the environmental context but failed to learn word-object associations. Experiment 2 demonstrated that children (age: 3;0-5;8 years) leveraged strong associations for the person and environmental context to support word-object mapping. This work demonstrates that children are especially sensitive to the word learning context and use associative matrices to support word mapping. Indeed, this research suggests associative matrices of the environment may be foundational for children's vocabulary development.

Event-related potential studies of cross-situational word learning in four-year-old children

Young children learn word-referent links in cross-situational learning paradigms despite uncertainty as to a given word’s correct referent on individual exposures. However, the semantic status of these word-referent links is unknown. Here, we used a novel event-related potential (ERP) testing approach to investigate whether children showed electrophysiological signatures of semantic representations following a typical cross-situational learning paradigm. In Study 1, 20 4-year-old children (mean age: 51.35 months) learned eight new word-object pairs in a cross-situational learning task which included familiar object labeling before training. Then, they completed an ERP task which involved seeing pictures of the novel objects and then hearing words that were either congruent or incongruent with the word-referent association that was trained. Results showed a robust N400 ERP effect, thereby providing evidence for having acquired a semantic representation during the cross-situational learning paradigm. Children also showed good performance on a comprehension test approximately 20 min after training. In a second study, a different sample of 20 4-year-old children (mean age: 52 months) completed the same cross-situational task but without the initial familiar word pretraining. Here, we did not see the N400 effect we saw in Study 1, but children still showed good performance on the delayed comprehension test. We conclude that rapid semantic encoding can occur during cross-situational learning, but that pretraining on the structure of the paradigm may be critical for facilitating that encoding. We speculate on the mechanisms by which pretraining might have effects and discuss the implications of these findings for early word learning.

Second Language Vocabulary Learning through Ecologically Valid Classroom Practice Can Be Indexed by Event‐Related Potentials (ERPs). A Conceptual Replication Study

AbstractPrevious research has suggested that Event‐Related Potentials (ERPs) can index form‐, meaning‐, and use‐related aspects of the second language (L2) vocabulary knowledge, through, respectively, a lexical decision task (LDT, targeting N400), a semantic relatedness task (SEMREL, targeting N400), and a grammatical judgment task (GJT, targeting P600/AN). Yet, those findings were established in the context of either laboratory‐based or longitudinal word learning studies. Therefore, this conceptual replication study investigates whether LDT, SEMREL, and GJT could reveal the aforementioned ERP components in the context of an ecologically valid short‐term intervention representative of L2 classroom practice. Twenty Dutch‐speaking participants performed reading and writing tasks in a computer‐assisted learning environment. Target words were 20 real L2 French verbs. ERPs were recorded immediately after the learning sessions. Results showed N400 for form‐ and meaning‐related knowledge and P600 for grammatical use. We conclude that ERPs can index L2 vocabulary knowledge gained through ecologically valid classroom activities.

Marked pointing facilitates learning part names: A test of lexical constraint versus social pragmatic accounts of word learning.

The empirical study of word learning is driven by a theoretical debate between lexical constraint and social-pragmatic accounts; it has still not been determined which of these two best explains the evidence. We investigated whether the markedness of a pointing accompanying a verbal reference could help to learn a part name. Participants were 35 two-and-a-half-year-olds, 42 four-and-a-half-year-olds, and 38 undergraduate university students in Japan. The experimenter pointed to a novel part (embedded in a novel whole object) with either "marked" pointing, which was touching the part with a small circular motion, or with usual pointing. Touch accompanied by circular motion reliably elicited learning of part names in all age groups. Usual distal pointing without motion reliably elicited learning of whole object names. The pattern of findings rejects a whole-object constraint in early word learning and demonstrates that marked pointing can promote learning novel part names, supporting a social-pragmatic account.

Progressive Reduction of Iconic Gestures Contributes to School-Aged Children's Increased Word Production.

The economic principle of communication, according to which successful communication can be reached by least effort, has been studied for verbal communication. With respect to nonverbal behavior, it implies that forms of iconic gestures change over the course of communication and become reduced in the sense of less pronounced. These changes and their effects on learning are currently unexplored in relevant literature. Addressing this research gap, we conducted a word learning study to test the effects of changing gestures on children’s slow mapping. We applied a within-subject design and tested 51 children, aged 6.7 years (SD = 0.4), who learned unknown words from a story. The storyteller acted on the basis of two conditions: In one condition, in which half of the target words were presented, the story presentation was enhanced with progressively reduced iconic gestures (PRG); in the other condition, half of the target words were accompanied by fully executed iconic gestures (FEG). To ensure a reliable gesture presentation, children were exposed to a recorded person telling a story in both conditions. We tested the slow mapping effects on children’s productive and receptive word knowledge three minutes as well as two to three days after being presented the story. The results suggest that children’s production of the target words, but not their understanding thereof, was enhanced by PRG.

The hidden depths of new word knowledge: Using graded measures of orthographic and semantic learning to measure vocabulary acquisition

We investigated whether the presence of orthography promotes new word learning (orthographic facilitation). In Study 1 (N = 41) and Study 2 (N = 74), children were taught 16 unknown polysyllabic words. Half of the words appeared with orthography present and half without orthography. Learning assessments captured the degree of semantic and orthographic learning; they were administered one week after teaching (Studies 1 and 2), and, unusually, eight months later (Study 1 only). Bayesian analyses indicated that the presence of orthography was associated with more word learning, though this effect was estimated with more certainty for orthographic than semantic learning. Newly learned word knowledge was well retained over time, indicating that our paradigm was sufficient to support long-term learning. Our approach provides an example of how word learning studies can look beyond simple accuracy measures to reveal the cumulative nature of lexical learning.

Caregivers use gesture contingently to support word learning.

Children learn words in environments where there is considerable variability, both in terms of the number of possible referents for novel words, and the availability of cues to support word-referent mappings. How caregivers adapt their gestural cues to referential uncertainty has not yet been explored. We tested a computational model of cross-situational word learning that examined the value of a variable gesture cue during training across conditions of varying referential uncertainty. We found that gesture had a greater benefit for referential uncertainty, but unexpectedly also found that learning was best when there was variability in both the environment (number of referents) and gestural cue use. We demonstrated that these results are reflected behaviourally in an experimental word-learning study involving children aged 18-24-month-olds and their caregivers. Under similar conditions to the computational model, caregivers not only used gesture more when there were more potential referents for novel words, but children also learned best when there was some referential ambiguity for words. Thus, caregivers are sensitive to referential uncertainty in the environment and adapt their gestures accordingly, and children are able to respond to environmental variability to learn more robustly. These results imply that training under variable circumstances may actually benefit learning, rather than hinder it.

What am I supposed to be looking at? Controls and measures in inter-modal preferential looking

Intermodal preferential looking (IMPL) is widely used in experimental studies of infant development, especially language development. Control measures vary, and it is not clear how these affect findings. We examined effects of parental awareness of stimuli. Infants (17–19 months) looked at paired pictures, one name-known and one name-unknown, each assigned target status in 50 % of trials. Infants looked longer at a name-known than a name-unknown target, regardless of parents’ awareness. When parents were aware, looking to a name-unknown target increased over a paired name-known non-target. There is evidence that infants’ looking at pictures in this paradigm is not due to direct matching of targets to novel names, but is influenced by additional cues present, in a way that could alter the conclusions of studies of infant word learning and other aspects of infant learning. Implications of these findings are discussed, emphasising replicability and theoretical conclusions drawn from studies using this method.

Growing up with interfering neighbours: the influence of time of learning and vocabulary knowledge on written word learning in children.

Evidence suggests that new vocabulary undergoes a period of strengthening and integration offline, particularly during sleep. Practical questions remain, however, including whether learning closer to bedtime can optimize consolidation, and whether such an effect varies with vocabulary ability. To examine this, children aged 8–12-years-old (n 59) were trained on written novel forms (e.g. BANARA) in either the morning (long delay) or the evening (short delay). Immediately after training and the next day, lexical competition (a marker of integration) was assessed via speeded semantic decisions to neighbouring existing words (e.g. BANANA); explicit memory was measured via recognition and recall tasks. There were no main effects indicating performance changes across sleep for any task, counter to studies of spoken word learning. However, a significant interaction was found, such that children with poorer vocabulary showed stronger lexical competition on the day after learning if there was a short delay between learning and sleep. Furthermore, while poorer vocabulary was associated with slower novel word recognition speed before and after sleep for the long delay group, this association was only present before sleep for the short delay group. Thus, weak vocabulary knowledge compromises novel word acquisition, and when there is a longer period of post-learning wake, this disadvantage remains after a consolidation opportunity. However, when sleep occurs soon after learning, consolidation processes can compensate for weaker encoding and permit lexical integration. These data provide preliminary suggestion that children with poorer vocabulary may benefit from learning new words closer to bedtime.

The Influence of Language Context on Repetitive Speech Use in Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder.

Purpose Although repetitive speech is a hallmark characteristic of autism spectrum disorder (ASD), the contributing factors that influence repetitive speech use remain unknown. The purpose of this exploratory study was to determine if the language context impacts the amount and type of repetitive speech produced by children with ASD. Method As part of a broader word-learning study, 11 school-age children with ASD participated in two different language contexts: storytelling and play. Previously collected language samples were transcribed and coded for four types of repetitive speech: immediate echolalia, delayed echolalia, verbal stereotypy, and vocal stereotypy. The rates and proportions of repetitive speech were compared across the two language contexts using Wilcoxon signed-ranks tests. Individual characteristics were further explored using Spearman correlations. Results The children produced lower rates of repetitive speech during the storytelling context than the play-based context. Only immediate echolalia differed between the two contexts based on rate and approached significance based on proportion, with more immediate echolalia produced in the play-based context than in the storytelling context. There were no significant correlations between repetitive speech and measures of social responsiveness, expressive or receptive vocabulary, or nonverbal intelligence. Conclusions The children with ASD produced less immediate echolalia in the storytelling context than in the play-based context. Immediate echolalia use was not related to social skills, vocabulary, or nonverbal IQ scores. These findings offer valuable insights into better understanding repetitive speech use in children with ASD.

Comparing the merits of word writing and retrieval practice for L2 vocabulary learning

Previous research has indicated that in the case of contextual word learning, repeatedly writing a word down, i.e. engaging in a structural elaboration activity, results in better knowledge of both word form and word meaning than engaging in a semantic elaboration activity. Focusing on word form and word meaning at the same time may be an even more efficient strategy for acquiring L2 word form and word meaning, and creating form-meaning mappings. Therefore, the present decontextualized word-learning study contrasted word writing with retrieval practice, which prompts the learners to process both the form and meaning of a new L2 item in the same learning activity. 179 native Dutch-speaking EFL-learners acquired fifteen English words in one of three conditions: a word writing condition, a retrieval practice condition and a control condition in which the participants looked at the English-Dutch word pairs. Form and meaning recall tests were administered immediately after the learning procedure and one week later in order to gauge the participants’ knowledge of the target vocabulary. The results indicate that retrieval practice results in better immediate and delayed form recall than both word writing and the control condition.