How Children Across The Globe Learn To Use Prosody In Language
Researchers are diving deep into the fascinating realm of how children learn to use prosody, the rhythm, stress, and intonation of speech, to highlight new information, a concept known as 'focus'. This study, part of a completed VIDI project, explored how kids aged 4 to 11 acquire this skill in languages like Korean, Swedish, Mandarin Chinese, and Dutch, working alongside international collaborators.
The research team, led by experts, hypothesized that the clearer the connection between prosody and focus in a language, the quicker children would master this skill. They tested this by observing how children learning Stockholm Swedish, Seoul Korean, and Dutch, differ in their use of prosody compared to adults. Interestingly, they found that Swedish and Korean children typically mastered prosodic focus by ages four to five, while Dutch children did so by ages ten to eleven. This supported the idea that transparency in form-meaning mapping accelerates learning.
In an ongoing VICI project, the team, including collaborators from Indonesia, Sweden, and Germany, is examining how innate and learned mechanisms contribute to early prosodic development, even before birth and during the first three years of life. They are particularly interested in the 'Effort Code', which suggests that infants use a wider pitch range (variation between high and low tones) as a result of exerting more effort in speech, indicating engagement and emphasis.
To test this theory, the researchers studied Dutch and Indonesian infants between three to seven months old. Given that Dutch speakers use pitch variation to signal new information, unlike their Indonesian counterparts, the researchers anticipated that both groups would initially show a larger pitch range when interacting with new toys versus familiar ones. As the children grow, it is expected that Dutch infants will continue this trend, while Indonesian infants may rely less on pitch variation. With data collection complete, the team is eager to delve into the analysis phase.