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A basic cognitive ability is the ability to detect patterns in the environment. A key pattern that could be useful in verb learning concerns correspondences between verbs and events. No prior study of verb + event links has included older toddlers or children learning a language other than English. We observed mother-child dyads across two languages/cultures, to ask: how often do young children hear verbs while seeing relevant events in everyday life? In Study 1, monolingual Spanish-speaking dyads (n = 12, 19–36 months old) in Santiago, Chile and Guatemala City, Guatemala were videotaped in their homes in two 45–60-min sessions. Samples were transcribed by fluent Spanish speakers and coded for verbs with referents that could be seen (e.g., forms of “pintar”/“to paint”). For these action verbs, coders then identified whether a relevant event was present; proportions computed to adjust for different amounts of talk. Children produced verbs with events 30% of the time (ave. prop. verb = .30, SE = .09); parents’ rate was 20% (ave. prop. verb = .20, SE = .05) for a combined rate of 50%. In Study 2, the same procedure was repeated with an English-speaking sample in Austin, Texas (n = 12, 23–36 months old), and similar rates of verb-event co-occurrences in the children’s and parents’ speech were found. Specific verbs spoken by children and parents are reported. In sum, across two languages/cultures, action verbs co-occurred with referents approximately 50% of the time, and many co-occurrences fit the child’s actions. These findings are important to inform new empirical studies and guide current verb theories. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this paper is to investigate the use of interactional pragmatic markers in a multilingual corpus of child language in the Ladin valleys in South Tyrol (Italy). It has been argued that in contact-induced contexts speakers tend to prefer the set of elements of the pragmatically dominant language, in order to reduce the cognitive pressure they are exposed to, in particular in a minority language (cf. Matras 2000). Yet, very little is known about the use of pragmatic markers in child language, even though the pragmatic competence, i. e. the appropriate use of language as well as the proper realization of speech acts in a particular situational context, is one of the key competences children need to acquire during the language acquisition process. The present study was carried out within the sociolinguistic framework of the Ladin valleys, which is characterized by a varied multilingualism on the institutional level and in family contexts. The corpus contains approximately eight hours of spoken data from eight children aged three to six across the three official languages Ladin, German and Italian. This work aims at analysing the micro-functions of interactional pragmatic markers and at investigating how the use of these elements is linked to the linguistic and cognitive development of preschool children. It also contributes to the study of contact-induced phenomena that emerge in a multilingual context. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim Methods Results Conclusions To study the diagnostic stability of developmental language disorders, other neurodevelopmental disorders and interventions received until age 6 years in children who screened positive for language delay, but not for autism, at age 2.5 years.In 2016, in Gothenburg, Sweden, 100 monolingual or multilingual children underwent language assessment at a mean age of 2.9 years. At age 6 years, 85 of these children underwent language assessment. A review of paediatric records was performed after the clinical assessment to obtain information about other neurodevelopmental disorders and interventions received.At age 6 years, 74/85 (87%) of the children had persistent language disorders, and 20/85 (24%) had been diagnosed with at least one additional neurodevelopmental disorder. Five of them had autism. In general, families only attended half of the offered intervention sessions irrespective of intervention type and no difference between monolingual and multilingual families was found.The persistence of language disorder and the presence of later additional neurodevelopmental disorders highlight the importance of longitudinal and multidisciplinary monitoring of children with delayed language development. Further studies and analyses are warranted to investigate the reasons behind the poor attendance rate for interventions offered. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Positive relationships between the home literacy environment and children's language and literacy development are well-established. However, existing literature has overlooked the potential contributions of the home music environment. Initial evidence indicates positive relationships between the home music environment and children's emerging language and literacy skills, yet it remains unclear whether and how children's home music and literacy environments may be related. Furthermore, parents' sense of self-efficacy is known to impact the home environment provided for their children. Despite being linked with the home literacy environment, parental self-efficacy has not been directly investigated in relation to the home music environment. In the present study, 124 caregivers of preschoolers completed a one-time online survey about their children's home music environment, home literacy environment, and parental self-efficacy. Partial correlations and hierarchical regressions reveal that children's amount of music exposure is associated with qualitative (not quantitative) aspects of the home literacy environment, specifically parents' use of interactive techniques during shared reading. Moreover, parental self-efficacy is associated with children's amount of exposure to music. Overall, these findings support the need to further examine how the home music environment may meaningfully contribute to an enriching learning environment, especially to support language and literacy development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of the current study was to expand upon previous research on RECALL, a dialogic reading intervention modified for autistic children aimed at increasing engagement. Children ages 3–6 years (n = 6) with language delays with or without co-occurring autism were tested using a multiple baseline across participants design. During baseline, the interventionist used dialogic reading and asked questions after every page. During intervention, the interventionist used RECALL, including a least to most prompting hierarchy with visual prompt cards. Children were more responsive and produced more meaningful correct responses during the intervention. Response type (linguistic vs. non-linguistic) also changed from baseline to intervention, though the pattern varied across participants. Intervention was not associated with increased responsiveness to adult bids for attention or pauses designed to encourage the child to initiate an interaction, though a few children showed changes in these responses over time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Models used to explain phenomena are necessarily finer grained than the models used to measure them. In language study, the measures used to assess development (e.g., readability indices) rely on models of language that are too coarse grained to be interpreted in a linguistic framework and so do not participate in linguistic accounts of development. This study argues that the constructionist approaches provide a framework for the development of a practical and interpretable measure of developmental complexity because these approaches feature affordances from which a measurement model may be derived: they describe language knowledge as a comprehensive network of enumerable entities that do not require the imputation of external processes, are extensible to early child language, and hold that the drivers of language development are the learning and generalization of constructions. It is argued here that treating schematic constructions as the unit of language knowledge supports a complexity measure that can reflect developmental changes arising from the learning and productive generalization of these units. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

AbstractObjectiveDesignMain Outcome MeasuresResultConclusionChildren with nonsyndromic cleft palate with or without cleft lip are at risk of speech production and language delays. In typical development, a strong relationship exists between speech and expressive language development. However, the understanding of this relationship in children with nonsyndromic cleft palate with or without cleft lip is incomplete. The objective of this study was to determine the average correlation between consonant inventory and two expressive language skills in children with NSCP ± L.The study used a random effects meta-analyses design. Articles were included by searching PubMed, APA PsycINFO, and ERIC.Correlations between consonant inventory and (1) expressive vocabulary and (2) mean length of utterance.Based on eight studies representing 187 children with nonsyndromic cleft palate with or without cleft lip, consonant inventory was positively correlated with expressive vocabulary size (k = 8, z = 0.74, SE = .16, p < .001, [0.424, 1.052]). Using data from four studies, representing 83 children with nonsyndromic cleft palate with or without cleft lip, consonant inventory had a positive nonsignificant correlation with mean length of utterance (k = 4, z = 0.513, SE = 0.293, p = .081, [−0.063, 1.088]).Results support a connection between consonant inventory and expressive vocabulary size in children with nonsyndromic cleft palate with or without cleft lip across four languages. Small consonant inventories are often associated with expressive language delays. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Mental health issues in adulthood often start in childhood, so it's important to identify these issues early and find ways to manage them. To our knowledge, no study was found that evaluated the long-term effects of language nursing intervention on mental health in children with poor language skills. This study, therefore, aimed to evaluate the long-term impact of a language nursing intervention on the mental health of children with poor language skills. Methods: We estimated poor language skills prevalence in 3-4-year-old children who were planning to enter kindergartens in Hunan, China. After selecting these children, we divided them into two experimental and control groups. The experimental group received a nursing intervention related to language skills for eight months. After eight months, the language skills of both groups were re-evaluated. Then, in the follow-up evaluation, the mental health of these children was evaluated at the ages of 9–10 years. Univariate and multivariate regression models adjusted with sampling weights were used to estimate the correlation of mental health and risk factors. Results: The language skills of the experimental group increased significantly compared to before the protocol (from 87.4±10.87 to 98.08±7.13; p = 0.001). At the end of the eight-month nursing intervention, the language skills of the experimental group were significantly higher than the control group (98.08±7.13 in experimental group and 87.51±9.59 in control group; p = 0.001). In multivariate analysis, single-parent family and not participating in the nursing protocol related to language skills at the age of 3–4 years were related to high symptoms of depression, anxiety and stress symptoms (single-parent family: for depression symptoms, OR = 1.28, 95% CI = 0.88–1.42; for stress symptoms, OR = 1.31, 95% CI = 0.79–2.74 and for anxiety symptoms, OR = 1.42, 95% CI = 0.97–2.44; not participating in the nursing protocol related to language skills at the age of 3–4 years: for depression symptoms, OR = 2.98, 95% CI = 1.80–5.19; for stress symptoms, OR = 1.88, 95% CI = 1.23–2.01 and for anxiety symptoms, OR = 2.67, 95% CI = 1.51–3.77; p<0.05). Conclusion: The current study showed the effectiveness of this intervention on both language skills and mental health of children with poor language skills. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Many parents have concerns about raising their children with multiple languages. However, there is a paucity of previous research regarding parental concerns about multilingual child-rearing, particularly in multilingual societies. We address this gap with a corpus-assisted discourse study of parental concerns regarding multilingual child-rearing in Quebec, Canada. We created two corpora comprising 641 parents’ responses to an open-ended survey question regarding their main concerns about raising multilingual infants/toddlers (English corpus: 12,502 words, French corpus: 9,360 words). We examined frequencies, collocations, concordance lines, and longer segments to investigate the nature and strength of different concerns. Our results revealed that two previously-attested concern types – cognition concerns and exposure-fluency concerns – were most prominent. The results also provided more nuanced insights into the nature of these concerns. Moreover, the results revealed two additional concern types: concerns regarding trilingual/heritage language transmission and concerns about the effect of multilingualism on children’s identity and social/emotional well-being. These had not previously been attested. Our research makes a theoretical contribution by advancing knowledge about parental concerns and how they can contribute to the study of family language policies. Additionally, our findings may serve as the basis for improving support for multilingual families. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As identity research in a globalised world progresses, so does our understanding of the need for nuanced research methodologies, to capture the complexities of multilingual identities. In this paper, we systematically explore the entanglements surrounding dual or mixed identity, supported by the analysis of 132 identity narratives from multilingual young people (11–18 years old) with Chinese heritage. Applying a poststructural lens and drawing on Dörnyei’s motivational self system, Norton’s investment theory, and Little’s conceptualisation of emotional and pragmatic reasons for heritage language maintenance, we strengthen the field of multilingual identity research by introducing a framework that corresponds to the complexities of participants’ lived experiences as heritage language speakers and learners, while honouring their preferences for self-expression. Crucially, the framework has been co-produced with a group of young co-researchers (aged 11–16 years old), ensuring that young people’s views and experiences are respected in the way we research and interpret identities in the heritage language context. In introducing the framework, we provide data examples in the form of relevant quotes for each aspect introduced, highlighting links to existing identity theories and situating the framework as a vital tool within heritage language and multilingual identity research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Early writing is a critical factor in children's literacy development and academic success. This study observed and analyzed videos from twenty-eight teachers working in prekindergarten, kindergarten, and first-grade classrooms in under-resourced schools. The coding process focused on categorizing the type (language- and code-based) and demand (low- and high-demand) of strategies that teachers used to support children's development of the foundational skills for early writing. We use the Not So Simple View of Writing as a framework to outline which writing-related skills (specifically, vocabulary and literacy) are important to explore. Multilevel models explored unique links between teachers' (N = 28) supports for various early writing-related component skills, as well as children's (N = 324) vocabulary and early literacy outcomes. The findings demonstrated that, regardless of grade level, teachers tended to emphasize code-based skills over language-based ones as children composed. Multilevel models showed that the vocabulary and literacy skills of children improved in classrooms where teachers provided higher levels of both high-demand language- and code-based writing support. The findings indicate that teachers' support for children's translation and transcription processes during composing may result in reciprocal and mutually beneficial effects on the foundational component skills of writing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With increased attention on the school belonging experiences of young people from refugee backgrounds, there is limited understanding of how parents construct and respond to their children's experiences. Given the important role that parents play in their children's education, this study explored the perspectives of three mothers from newly arrived refugee backgrounds, as they responded to drawings created by their children about their schooling experiences in an Australian primary school. Employing an arts-based approach, data were collected from students' drawings and semi-structured interviews. The findings revealed that the mothers viewed language as a mediator in children's belonging experiences. English language proficiency bridged opportunities for their children's academic and social success, with translation support providing opportunities for both the children and the mothers to actively participate in the school community. Additionally, mothers felt that peers from the same language and cultural backgrounds contributed to their children's sense of belonging while 'local' peers amplified difference. The study found the mothers often focused on what their children lacked or how they were different when discussing barriers to belonging, suggesting there is a need, particularly within schools, to shift focus from what these students' lack to what they contribute to their school communities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: We examine the content, context, and management of literacy learning opportunities in a large, diverse sample in the US and whether these opportunities were differentiated by children's oral language and decoding skill levels. Method: A total of 1,404 children in 153 preschool-through-third-grade classrooms were observed for several multi-hour observations of their literacy time. Children were administered assessments of code-focused and meaning-focused skills before each observation. Results: Code-focused instruction was most common in kindergarten and was appropriately differentiated only in this grade. Significantly more meaning-focused instruction was observed in 1st–3rd grades than in earlier grades and there was limited evidence of differentiation of this type of instruction. Conclusion: Kindergarten is a focus year for learning to read and children who do not make sufficient progress may face challenges due to limited, undifferentiated learning opportunities in subsequent grades. Meaning-focused instruction time is emphasized in later grades, which is a missed opportunity for younger learners. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: We examined whether the relations between home literacy environment (HLE), children's independent reading, and emergent literacy and reading skills are confounded by parents' reading skills (a genetic proxy). Method: One hundred eighty-nine Chinese children (Mage = 74.26 months, 40% female) were followed from kindergarten to Grade 2 and were assessed on emergent literacy skills (pinyin knowledge, phonological awareness, and vocabulary) and word reading in kindergarten and on reading comprehension in Grade 2. Their parents (both mothers and fathers) were also assessed on reading (word reading and reading comprehension) and completed questionnaires on HLE (code-related activities, meaning-related activities, and access to literacy resources) in kindergarten and their children's independent reading in Grade 2. Results: Results of structural equation modeling showed that access to literacy resources was associated with children's vocabulary, and code-related activities indirectly predicted reading comprehension through pinyin knowledge after controlling for parents' reading skills. Parents' reading skills indirectly predicted children's reading comprehension through children's independent reading. Conclusion: Code-related activities and access to literacy resources may have a true effect on children's reading development over and above the effect of parents' reading skills as a proxy for genetic transmission. The children of parents with better reading skills may engage in more independent reading, which may be related to their better reading comprehension. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Studies from high‐income populations have shown that stimulating, supportive communicative input from parents promote children's cognitive and language development. However, fewer studies have identified specific features of input supporting the healthy development of children growing up in low‐ or middle‐income countries. The current study proposes and tests a multi‐dimensional framework for understanding whether and how caregiver communicative input mediates the associations between socio‐economic conditions and early development. We also examine how caregiver conceptual scaffolding and autonomy support uniquely and synergistically explain variation in child outcomes. Participants were 71 Bangladeshi families with five‐year‐olds who were exposed to a range of biological and psychosocial hazards from birth. Caregiver‐child interactions during snack sharing and semi‐structured play were coded for caregiver conceptual scaffolding, autonomy support, and child engagement. Findings indicate that the two dimensions of input were correlated, suggesting that caregivers who provided richer conceptual scaffolds were simultaneously more supportive of children's autonomy. Notably, conceptual scaffolding and autonomy support each mediated associations between maternal education and child verbal intelligence quotient (IQ) scores. Further, caregivers who supported greater autonomy in their children had children who participated in conversations more actively, and these children in turn had higher performance IQ scores. When considered simultaneously, conceptual scaffolding was associated with verbal IQ over and above autonomy support, whereas autonomy support related to child engagement, controlling for conceptual scaffolding. These findings shed new light on how environmental factors may support early development, contributing to the design of family‐centered, culturally authentic interventions. A video abstract of this article can be viewed at https://youtu.be/9v%5f8sIv7ako Research Highlights: Studies from high‐income countries have identified factors mitigating the impacts of socio‐economic risks on development. Such research is scarce in low‐ and middle‐income countries.The present study conceptualized and evaluated caregiver communicative input in Bangladeshi families along two interrelated yet distinct dimensions: conceptual scaffolding and autonomy support.Conceptual scaffolding and autonomy support individually mediated associations between maternal education and child verbal IQ, shedding light on protective factors in families living in poverty.Parents providing richer conceptual scaffolds were simultaneously more supportive of children's autonomy. However, the two dimensions each related to cognition and language through unique pathways. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study contributes to research on the doctoral experience of international students who are parents, and for whom the temporary experience of living elsewhere is both a challenge and a resource for all members of the family. The study investigated how a group of these students positioned themselves to their children's English and home language during their study abroad. A group of 12 international doctoral students from one Australian university and one primary school teacher took part in the study. The doctoral students were from a number of non-anglophone countries. Membership Categorisation Analysis was used to examine the identity categories invoked during focus group discussions. The categories bilingual, student, parent, tutor and spouse, the category devices family, study, nationality/language, time and location, and the attributes responsibility and inadequacy that emerged in the analysis, suggest that language issues are important considerations for international students with families, and need focused attention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Spanish is the second most common language among US children aged 5–17, with 26.8% speaking it at home. To foster cultural understanding and promote positive relationships, it's crucial to introduce young children to different languages and cultures. Preschool language education can cultivate respect and empathy, building more inclusive communities. Culturally responsive education equips children with skills to value diversity, creating a harmonious cultural climate. This article highlights the importance of learning another language (e.g., Spanish) and introduces Language Learning Circles (LCC) for preschoolers. Research indicates ages 3–6 are optimal for language acquisition, emphasizing the need for early exposure to enhance learning, and cultural appreciation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Oral language abilities have been reported to be related to reading development. This relationship seems to be determined by orthographic systems and reading development. Children with developmental language disorder (DLD) show reading difficulties, although most studies focus on reading comprehension. The present study has two main objectives: to examine the reading performance of a group of Spanish-speaking children with DLD compared to a chronologically age-matched group of typically developing children (TD); and to study the relationship between oral language abilities and reading performance using network analysis. They were administered five standardized tests to obtain measures about oral language abilities and reading performance. Results showed that children with DLD were less accurate and slower in reading than TD children. Meanwhile, the network analyses suggest strong and stable connections between reading and oral production in the DLD group. This finding confirms the importance of language abilities for reading acquisition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Biallelic SUFU variants have originally been linked to Joubert syndrome, comprising cerebellar abnormalities, dysmorphism, and polydactyly. In contrast, heterozygous truncating variants have recently been associated with developmental delay and ocular motor apraxia, but only a limited number of patients have been reported. Here, we aim to delineate further the mild end of the phenotypic spectrum related to SUFU haploinsufficiency. Nine individuals (from three unrelated families) harboring truncating SUFU variants were investigated, including two previously reported individuals (from one family). We provide results from a comprehensive assessment comprising neuroimaging, neuropsychology, video-oculography, and genetic testing. We identified three inherited or de novo truncating variants in SUFU (NM_016169.4): c.895C>T p.(Arg299∗), c.71dup p.(Ala25Glyfs∗23), and c.71del p.(Pro24Argfs∗72). The phenotypic expression showed high variability both between and within families. Clinical features include motor developmental delay (seven of nine), axial hypotonia (five of nine), ocular motor apraxia (three of nine), and cerebellar signs (three of nine). Four of the six reported children had macrocephaly. Neuropsychological and developmental assessments revealed mildly delayed language development in the youngest children, whereas general cognition was normal in all variant carriers. Subtle but characteristic SUFU -related neuroimaging abnormalities (including superior cerebellar dysplasia, abnormalities of the superior cerebellar peduncles, rostrally displaced fastigium, and vermis hypoplasia) were observed in seven of nine individuals. Our data shed further light on the mild but recognizable features of SUFU haploinsufficiency and underline its marked phenotypic variability, even within families. Notably, neurodevelopmental and behavioral abnormalities are mild compared with Joubert syndrome and seem to be well compensated over time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Children acquiring language must learn a variety of words mapping on to different kinds of concepts. Typically, word learning accounts focus on how children strategically acquire words for entities (nouns) and events (verbs). Often underrepresented are word for properties (adjectives). While adjectives, like verbs, may trail behind many nouns in early production, and may not always be required to refer or express truth‐conditional meaning, they are essential for distinguishing among entities and events in the world, and communicating clearly in disciplines such as language arts and science. Moreover, nearly every language has the grammatical category of adjectives. It is therefore critical to know what challenges children face in acquiring adjectives, and what supports their acquisition. Here, I outline three main aspects that, together, render the process of learning adjectives both vexing and linguistically intriguing. First, there is cross‐linguistic variation in how languages around the world treat words for properties. Second, the syntactic position of adjectives varies across and within languages, and is often correlated with subtle differences in meaning. Third, within the category of adjectives, a wide range of meanings may be encoded. I review findings across these areas that document children's successes and challenges with these aspects of adjective distribution and meaning. To counter these challenges, I end by covering three effective and empirically documented strategies for adjective learning, which rely on attending to key information in both the linguistic and extralinguistic context. I close with a brief discussion of prospects for future research on this topic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research, following a sequential mixed-methods design, delves into metacognitive control in problem solving among 5- to 6-year-olds, using two floor-robot environments. In an initial qualitative phase, 82 pupils participated in tasks in which they directed a floor robot to one of two targets, with the closer target requiring more cognitive effort due to the turns involved. The results of this phase revealed that younger students often rationalised their decisions based on reasons unrelated to the difficulty of the task, highlighting limitations in children's language and abstract thinking skills and leading to the need for a second quantitative study. In this subsequent stage, involving 117 students, a computerised floor-robot simulator was used. The simulator executed the students' planned movements and provided feedback on their validity. Each participant had three attempts per problem, with the option to change their target each time. The simulator stored the information pertaining to the chosen resolution path, design of the plan, and re-evaluation of decision making based on the results and feedback received. This study aims to describe the criteria upon which students base their metacognitive control processes in decision making within problem-solving programming tasks. Additionally, through a comparative analysis focusing on age and gender, this research aims to assess the relationship between metacognitive processes and success in problem-solving programming tasks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The development of key linguistic abilities is essential for young children and their academic success at school, in particular for children with a migration background who are at a greater risk of developing language deficits. Here, family interactions can provide valuable opportunities to support children's linguistic learning within the Home Literacy Environment (HLE). Although the importance of the HLE for children's language acquisition has often been investigated, research has not focused on specific facets of the HLE and other influencing factors that may be associated with early linguistic abilities such as television exposure (TE). A sample of 190 preschool children (Mage= 63.58 months, SDage = 4.42) was used to analyse the associations of the facets of the HLE and TE with children's early linguistic abilities, namely phonological awareness (PA), vocabulary, and letter knowledge. In particular, this study aims to understand the role of the HLE facets and TE as potential mediators between migration background and children's early linguistic abilities, when controlling for socioeconomical status (SES), children's sex and age. The findings indicate that the association between migration background and children's early linguistic abilities was fully mediated by all four facets of the HLE and by TE. Consequently, these mediators may be good targets for intervention and the support of preschool children's linguistic development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the beginning stages of language acquisition, children primarily learn language from their parents or main caregivers. Studies have shown that adults use a specific way of speaking when talking to young children, called child-directed speech (CDS). This type of speech has distinct characteristics across different aspects of language. Additionally, older siblings also communicate with their younger brothers and sisters. Studies suggest that even three- and four-year-olds change how they talk when interacting with younger children, like their siblings. Studies have shown that children's speech patterns resemble those of adults, whether they grow up in monolingual or bilingual environments. However, research on bilingual language acquisition often focuses on how siblings influence the language development of younger children. In this study, we explore how children adapt their language in bilingual settings and focus on the older sibling. Specifically, we compare the speech of an older sibling, who speaks both German and Russian, when talking to their younger sibling and when talking to their parents. The study revealed the following: The girl demonstrated linguistic adaptations typical of child-directed speech in both Russian and German when interacting with her younger brother. However, these adaptations were not consistent across all linguistic categories analyzed, revealing some differences between the two languages. Notably, Katharina did not exhibit more child-directed speech features in one language over the other. Adaptive behavior was present in both Russian and German in categories such as MLU, MLU5, question constructions, and imperatives. In Russian, adaptation was also evident in coordinate constructions but not subordinate constructions, while the opposite pattern was observed in German. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Many families use video chat to sustain relationships between children and distanced family members, such as grandparents. However, little is known about the nature of these interactions. Could grandparent-grandchild video chat provide not only opportunities for meaningful social interaction but act as a source of high-quality linguistic experiences? High-quality language experiences that include question-asking and distancing prompts has shown to support children's language and subsequent academic success. The current study asks whether grandparents and grandchildren produce high-quality language (e.g. questions and distancing prompts) with each other as they engage with media (watching a video and series of pictures) through video chat. Forty-three grandparents (23% male) and their grandchildren between the ages of 48- to 72-months (grandchildren 42% male, 91% White) participated in a one-time video chat session with both these activities. Results revealed that grandparents were eager conversational participants, primarily using statements and questions when interacting with their grandchildren instead of directing grandchildren's behavior and attention. Grandparents facilitated dialogic interactions using distancing prompts 26% of the time and tended to open these bouts through question-asking. Findings suggest that including videos and pictures during video chat may promote rich interactions between grandparents and grandchildren. Impact Summary: Prior State of Knowledge: Many families use video chat to develop and maintain relationships between children and their grandparents. However, little is known about the linguistic input that occurs during grandparent-grandchild video chat interactions. Novel Contributions: Results revealed grandparents primarily used statements and questions when interacting with their grandchildren over video chat. Additionally, grandparents and grandchildren engaged in dialogic interactions about 26% of the time. Practical Implications: Findings have potential implications for supporting children's language skills by encouraging them to connect with distant loved ones. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Inferential language is an essential aspect of narrative storytelling. It offers not only details about events such as cause and effect and character cognition (e.g. intentions, actions, and reactions) but other evaluative and descriptive language. Previous studies have shown that children with developmental language disorder (DLD, previously also termed as Specific Language Impairment, SLI) exhibit weakness in narrative development, and such weakness is suggested to be unlikely to be resolved over time. However, studies that have focused on the inferential language use in narratives of adolescents with DLD are almost non-existent, and it is unclear whether inferential language use by adolescents with DLD would remain problematic or achieve close-to-normal performance. To address this issue, we compared the use of inferential language in the oral narratives 19 adolescents with DLD (Mean age = 14.3; SD = 0.64) and 19 adolescents with typical language development (TLD; Mean age = 14.0; SD = 0.50). Each transcribed narrative was coded for inferences across character actions/attempts, internal states, causality, character dialogue and other inferences. Results indicated that the two groups performed similarly in all measures except for assigning possessive expressions. Our results suggest that adolescents with DLD may approximate their typical language development (TLD) peers in terms of the inferential language use in oral narratives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Framed by family language policy (FLP), in conjunction with the Douglas Fir Group's ecological transdisciplinary framework for second language acquisition, this multiple case study investigates the FLPs of two Hmong–American families in relation to a Hmong–English dual‐language program (DLP) where their children are enrolled. Interviews, artifacts, and family‐recorded interactions were utilized to get a full understanding of what factors at the different levels of interaction shaped their FLP. The findings reveal that both sets of parents perceived the relationship between the home and school as a partnership for their children's heritage language development, with the school taking on the onus for Hmong literacy. This resulted in both families’ more secondary role and, thus, home language practices that merely supplement the school content. Importantly, while both sets of parents held similar beliefs regarding the role of the DLP in heritage language maintenance, it was their beliefs in the value of Hmong that led to the different FLPs between the families. The article concludes with limitations and implications for schools interested in wanting to better serve their heritage language learners and families. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Children with language disorders face different challenges in their daily school routines. Accessing tools and having resources promoting a well-structured and inclusive environment is necessary to ensure a pleasant and successful passage through primary school. The current article seeks to highlight stimulating ideas, creating a foundation for involving everyone caring for and educating students with language disorders, particularly children with special needs. Moreover, experts need to prioritize educational initiatives aimed at language disorders, particularly emphasizing early detection, prevention, and specialized care. Balancing the need for students to get adequate attention while avoiding unequal treatment can be as difficult as dealing with a two-sided coin. Moreover, it is crucial to acknowledge that academic research should prioritize finding the best ways to support students with special needs who have language impairments. All professionals working with these students, such as speech therapists, psychopedagogical experts, and general therapists, need to focus on developing interventions and options to aid in their growth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Many studies have shown that input in more than one language influences children's phonemic development. In this study, we examined the neural processes supporting perception of Voice Onset Time (VOT) in bilingual Italian-German children and their monolingual German peers. While German contrasts short-lag and long-lag, Italian contrasts short-lag and voicing lead. We examined whether bilinguals' phonetic/phonological systems for the two languages develop independently or whether they influence each other, and what role language input plays in the formation of phonetic/phonological categories. Forty five-year-old children (16 monolingual German, 24 bilingual Italian-German) were tested in an oddball design expected to elicit a neural Mismatch Response (MMR). The stimuli were bilabial stop VOT contrasts with the short-lag stop, common to both languages, as the standard. Four deviant VOTs were selected: 92 ms and 36 ms lag for German; 112 ms and 36 ms voicing lead for Italian. Bilingual children's language background was assessed using a caregiver questionnaire. Italian-German bilingual 5-year-old children and German monolingual controls showed similar MMRs to German long-lag and Italian voicing lead VOT, except for the 36 ms long-lag deviant; this acoustically difficult distinction did not elicit a robust negative MMR in the bilingual children. The lack of a difference between the bilinguals and monolinguals for voicing lead suggests that the amount of input in Italian for the bilinguals was not sufficient to lead to an advantage compared to the monolingual German children. Alternatively, the finding could indicate that voicing lead is easier to discriminate than voicing lag. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigated phonological whole-word measures in bilingual Arabic-English speakers to explore how the target approximations influence children’s phonological development. To this end, fifteen bilingual Arabic-English speakers and nine monolingual Arabic-speaking children aged 36–48 months (mean = 42) participated in a parent–child conversation. The study calculated four measures: the phonological mean length of utterance (PMLU), the proportion of whole-word proximity (PWP), the proportion of whole-word correctness (PWC), and the percentage consonant accuracy (PCC). The findings revealed significant differences in each measure between bilinguals and monolinguals. It seems that bilinguals’ lower scores resulted from a decreased rate of language exposure, but not because of slow language acquisition and development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article contributes new knowledge about how, prior to formal education, young children can develop ‘translingual practice' – dispositions, assumptions, and strategies for achieving shared understandings despite interlocutors’ linguistic differences. It engages with linguistic perspectives from the Global South to explore translingual practice in ‘Dovubaravi', a small, rural, Indo-Fijian community in Fiji. Eleven young Dovubaravi children, their mothers and extended families participated across two years. Qualitative ethnographic data included semi-structured conversations with mothers about their goals for their children’s language learning, photograph elicitation, audio- and video-recordings of naturalistic interactions, and field notes. The findings indicate the mothers hope their children will become adept translingual practitioners, and that Dovubaravi speakers demonstrate translingual dispositions, assumptions, and strategies in familial interactions with and around young children. The article draws on language socialisation theory to explain how young Dovubaravi children develop their translingual practice by observing and actively participating in routine familial interactions with translingual features. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim Method Results Interpretation We assessed whether behavioural and emotional problems of 5‐ to 6‐year‐old preschool children born very preterm (<32 weeks' gestation) are associated with an immigrant background and linguistic distance of their first language to the host country's official language, German.This is an observational longitudinal cohort study. Data are from the national multicentre German Neonatal Network cohort, including all very preterm births from 2009 onwards. A total of 3220 (n = 1570 female) children were followed up at preschool age; 629 (n = 324 female) of these had an immigrant background. Behavioural and emotional problems were assessed using the parent‐reported Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ).Mixed‐effects models showed that immigrant status alone was not associated with children's behavioural and emotional problems. However, a higher linguistic distance of the children's first language to German was associated with higher SDQ total problem scores (coefficient = 0.008, 95% confidence interval 0.002, 0.015), after adjusting for known confounders.Language barriers in the form of linguistic distance between the first language of children born very preterm and countries' official languages are associated with increased risk for behavioural and emotional problems. More research is needed on how language barriers affect long‐term developmental outcomes of immigrant children born very preterm. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Vocabulary skills is a key ability for children's cognitive and social development. Although numerous studies demonstrated a positive correlation between SES and children\s vocabulary, the results regarding the extent of, and potential variations in, this relationship remain inconclusive. Therefore, this meta-analysis aimed to explore (a) the overall correlation between SES and children's vocabulary; (b) the moderation effects of age, measurement of SES, and types of vocabulary on this relationship; (c) the relationship between subdimensions of SES (SES index, education, income, and occupation) and subdimensions of vocabulary (receptive vocabulary and expressive vocabulary). 89 studies with 96 independent samples and 244 effect sizes (n = 36589) were included in this meta-analysis. The results showed that there was a moderate correlation between SES and children's vocabulary (r = 0.26, 95%CI [0.22, 0.29]). The measurements of SES, but neither age or types of vocabulary, moderated this relation. The four SES subdimensions were all similarly correlated to two subdimensions of vocabulary. There findings emphasized the significant effect of SES in the children's vocabulary and the necessity of effective intervention to promote the equal development for all children. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this pilot study was to assess the feasibility, benefits, and acceptability of a telehealth Pivotal Response Treatment (PRT) parent training program. Autistic children (N = 21; 2–6 years) with language delay and their parents participated in the 12-week program. Parent-report measures and parent–child home videos were used to assess changes in parent PRT treatment adherence and child language. Changes in child affect were used to assess intervention acceptability. At the end of the program, treatment adherence improved, and children made more intelligible utterances. Child communication skills as measured by parent-report on several standardized questionnaires also improved. This study demonstrates the benefits of telehealth parent training for improving child language and parent PRT implementation. Our findings also provide preliminary evidence of PRT acceptability. Randomized controlled trials are an important next step to evaluate the impact of telehealth parent training as a tool for overcoming barriers to accessing intervention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

AbstractThis study investigated the effects of a shared reading and guided play vocabulary intervention on the science vocabulary acquisition of children who were at risk for oral language difficulties. Fifty-five children from five preschool programs participated in a 15-day science vocabulary intervention. Children randomly assigned to the treatment group (n = 29) received explicit science vocabulary instruction through shared readings of informational science books and follow-up scientific investigations. Children in the business-as-usual group (n = 26) received typical instruction from their classroom teacher. Vocabulary knowledge was measured at pre- and posttest using two standardized vocabulary assessments and one researcher-developed science vocabulary test. Results of the researcher-developed test showed that the treatment group significantly outperformed the BAU group on explicitly taught science vocabulary words (p < 0.001). No significant differences were found between the two groups on measures of general vocabulary knowledge. Limitations and practical implications of this study are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The global rise in developmental delays underscores the critical need for a thorough understanding and timely interventions during early childhood. Addressing this issue, the Chinese Baby Connectome Project (CBCP)'s behavior branch is dedicated to examining language acquisition, social-emotional development, and environmental factors affecting Chinese children. The research framework is built around three primary objectives: developing a 0–6 Child Development Assessment Toolkit, implementing an Intelligent Coding System, and investigating environmental influence. Methods: Utilizing an accelerated longitudinal design, the CBCP aims to enlist a minimum of 1000 typically developing Chinese children aged 0–6. The data collected in this branch constitutes parental questionnaires, behavioral assessments, and observational experiments to capture their developmental milestones and environmental influences holistically. The parental questionnaires will gauge children's developmental levels in language and social-emotional domains, alongside parental mental well-being, life events, parenting stress, parenting styles, and family relationships. Behavioral assessments will involve neurofunctional developmental evaluations using tools such as the Griffiths Development Scales and Wechsler Preschool and Primary Scale of Intelligence. Additionally, the assessments will encompass measuring children's executive functions (e.g., Head-Toe-Knee-Shoulder), social cognitive abilities (e.g., theory of mind), and language development (e.g., Early Chinese Vocabulary Test). A series of behavior observation. experiments will be conducted targeting children of different age groups, focusing primarily on aspects such as behavioral inhibition, compliance, self-control, and social-emotional regulation. To achieve the objectives, established international questionnaires will be adapted to suit local contexts and devise customized metrics for evaluating children's language and social-emotional development; deep learning algorithms will be developed in the observational experiments to enable automated behavioral analysis; and statistical models will be built to factor in various environmental variables to comprehensively outline developmental trajectories and relationships. Discussion: This study's integration of diverse assessments and AI technology will offer a detailed analysis of early childhood development in China, particularly in the realms of language acquisition and social-emotional skills. The development of a comprehensive assessment toolkit and coding system will enhance our ability to understand and support the development of Chinese children, contributing significantly to the field of early childhood development research. Trial registration: This study was registered with clinicaltrials.gov NCT05040542 on September 10, 2021. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The home language environment is a significant correlate of early childhood development outcomes; however, less is known about this mechanism in rural and peri-urban China where rates of developmental delay are as high as 52%. This study examines associations between the home language environment and child development in a sample of 158 children (58% boys) aged 18–24 months (Mage = 21.5) from rural and peri-urban households in Western China. Results show a significant association between adult-child conversation count and language development, suggesting the home language environment may be a mechanism for child development in rural and peri-urban China. 22.5% of the sample were at risk of language delay. Mother's employment and child's age were significant factors in the home language environment. RESEARCH HIGHLIGHTS: This research investigates the links between the home language environment and ECD in rural and peri-urban communities in China. This study shows significant positive associations between measures of the home language environment and language development outcomes, as well as with overall ECD outcomes. Adult-child conversations were more important for language development outcomes than was the number of adult words spoken. Female-initiated conversations were more important than child-initiated conversations for language development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

AbstractAppropriate vocabulary selection for augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) intervention is crucial to support communication and language development in children with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD). Core vocabulary lists are commonly used to guide this process, and there is a need for language-specific consideration. This paper aimed to develop a wordlist for selecting the core vocabulary for AAC intervention for young Hebrew-speaking children with IDD. Five children (age 3;5–8;4) were audio-recorded in naturalistic interactions with an interviewer and family members. Using Levy’s clinical corpus in the Child Language Data Exchange System (CHILDES) and Child Phonology Analyzer (CPA) tools and preestablished codes, wordlists with usage frequencies were extracted and coded for lexeme, lexical categories and functions or content. The percentages of the 20, 50, 100, and 200 most frequent lexemes were calculated for each child and for the five children combined. The top 200 most frequently used lexemes constituted 85% of the composite lexicon. A comparison was made between this study list and a previous list derived from language samples of typically developing (TD). Lexemes representing function words dominated, albeit with a slight preference for content words in children with IDD. Among the content words, children with IDD used more adverbs, while children with TD used more verbs. Implications for AAC core vocabulary are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We provide a commentary on current debates about the definition of dyslexia. We agree with others that dyslexia is best thought of as a dimensional disorder with the best established causal risk factor being a deficit in phonological processing. Dyslexia is particularly common in children from families with a history of dyslexia and in children with preschool language difficulties. We argue that definitions may differ depending upon their purpose. Traditional discrepancy definitions may be useful for research purposes, but when considering the provision of educational services discrepancy definitions are not useful since all children with reading difficulties require reading intervention regardless of their level of IQ. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Access to books and a rich language environment at home are important for children's language development. In this study we explored self-reported reading practices in families in Norway (N = 1001) to gain insight into the reading habits parents have with their young children, and the factors that best explain book reading in Norwegian homes. By investigating relationships between how many books parents reported reading with their child last week, demographic factors, and orientational variables, we found that book reading is better explained by orientational factors – such as children's interest in books and having reading routines in the home – than by demographic factors (such as parents' educational level). The proportion of parents reporting reading no books, or only one book with their child in the last week was unexpectedly large (33%). The implication of these findings for the culture of reading in Norwegian homes is discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Picturebooks can play an important function in the development of language by promoting language acquisition and enriching the overall language development of the child. Reading picturebooks to children builds a number of developmental domains and fosters significant learning outcomes for future achievements. In this study, children's ability to acquire language through picturebooks was tested to determine if more exposure to picturebooks related to higher vocabulary language development. Participants for this study were anonymous parents of children 16–30 months of age (N = 60), who agreed to answer questions on a survey distributed via social media. The survey included demographic information, specific questions related to shared picturebook reading in the home, and the MacArthur-Bates Communicative Development Inventory, and the information gathered was used to determine the relationship between the shared reading of picturebooks to language development. Results showed that children who are exposed to a higher amount of time being read to by parents had higher language abilities than children who had less exposure to picturebook reading. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Research has established cognate facilitation effects as a robust finding in bilingual adults and children. Recent studies suggest that cognate facilitation also occurs in highly proficient trilingual adults and can even accumulate across languages. The evidence for multilingual children is scarce and inconclusive. This study examines whether and in which direction cognate effects arise in 35 ten-year-old unbalanced trilingual children, who, in addition to their L1 Italian, acquired L2 German and L3 English in a three-way immersion class in the multilingual region of South Tyrol in Italy. We manipulated cognate status, comparing naming accuracy and latencies in both the L1 and the L3 across double, triple, and non-cognates. The results reveal cognate facilitation effects in naming accuracy, but not in naming speed, for all cognate conditions relative to non-cognates. Furthermore, cognate facilitation was restricted to the L3, replicating previously attested asymmetric effects in unbalanced speakers. In sum, the results indicate that cognate facilitation may boost lexical learning in unbalanced trilingual children who acquire the L2 and the L3 in mainly instructed settings. We discuss these findings in relation to the potential role of language proximity, the L2 status factor, and implications for lexical learning in diverse multilingual environments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Lernen und Lernstörungen is the property of Hogrefe AG and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This article presents the results of an RCT assessing the impact of a Shared Book Reading (SBR) intervention that targeted children aged 4 attending kindergarten. We selected a large, random sample of families living in the city of Paris and provided parents of treated classes with free books for children, information on the benefits of book reading and tips for effective reading practices. We measured book reading frequency and children's vocabulary before and after this intervention among treated and control children, and we found evidence of positive treatment effects on book reading frequency and on one of our two measures of receptive vocabulary. Moreover, we measured treatment impacts on this vocabulary measure at a 6-month follow-up and found that they were persistent. This light-touch intervention was particularly beneficial to male children, to children from families with low levels of education and from the most disadvantaged schools. Children from bilingual families benefited as much as their native counterparts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To provide an in-depth examination of whether pragmatic, expressive, receptive, and narrative language are associated with the social and academic functioning of children with ADHD. Method: Children with ADHD (n = 46) and neurotypical comparison (NC) children (n = 40) aged 7 to 11 years completed tasks measuring expressive, receptive, and narrative language, while parents rated pragmatic language and social- and academic functioning. Results: Children with ADHD differed significantly from NC children on pragmatic language, expressive language, receptive language, and narrative coherence. An examination of indirect effects revealed that a significant proportion of the association between ADHD and social functioning was shared with pragmatic language, while a significant proportion of the association between ADHD and academic difficulties was shared with pragmatic language as well as with expressive language. Conclusion: This preliminary study supports the clinical relevance of language in relation to the academic- and social functioning of children with ADHD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recent studies have shown that children with developmental language disorder (DLD) often face challenges in emotion recognition (ER) skills, which impacts their social and behavioural outcomes. This study aims to evaluate the effectiveness of a flexible online intervention in meeting the individual needs of children with DLD, focusing on ER skills. The study also sought to explore the impact of the ER intervention on the emotional well-being of children with DLD. A longitudinal mixed-method design was conducted with 10 children with DLD, employing a weekly assessment and comprehensive pre- and post-assessments to pinpoint specific ER challenges and changes. Weekly phone calls (WPC) were also used to follow-up on participants’ progress and understanding of changes in ER skills. Individual analysis revealed that varied use of intervention phases and degrees of improvement were identified as families were flexible in this program. The intervention results highlighted significant improvements in basic vocal ER skills and emotional problems among children with DLD. Clinical implications include integrating targeted ER interventions into DLD intervention programs and identifying specific areas of difficulty for individualised support. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pragmatic impairment has become a critical aspect of language development in autistic children and has gained significant academic attention over the past two decades. This study leverages bibliometric methods to conduct an exhaustive analysis of literature derived from Web of Science database. Utilizing CiteSpace software, we construct a knowledge map to dissect the academic hotspots in research related to pragmatic impairment in autistic children. This enables us to delineate the evolutionary trajectory of this research domain, analyze the prevailing research dimensions, and anticipate potential future dimensions. Our findings indicate that research hotspots in this field over the past two decades predominantly concentrate on assessing and diagnosing pragmatic impairment in autistic children, intervention strategies, and theory of mind. The research scope on pragmatic impairment in autistic children has progressively broadened and deepened. Research has evolved from initial descriptions and interpretations of autism to exploring the theory of mind in high-functioning, school-aged children. The current emphasis is on examining the specific skills that these children possess. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is robust evidence that infants' gestures and vocalisations and caregivers' contingent responses predict later child vocabulary. Recent studies suggest that dyadic combinations of infants' behaviors and caregivers' responses are more robust predictors of children's vocabularies than these behaviors separately. Previous studies have not yet systematically compared different types of dyadic combinations. This study aimed to compare the predictive value of (a) frequencies of infants' behaviors (vocalisations, points, and shows + gives) regardless of caregivers' responses, (b) frequencies of infants' behaviors that elicited verbal responses, (c) frequencies of infants' behaviors that elicited multimodal responses, and (d) frequencies of infants' behaviors that did not elicit any responses from caregivers. We examined 114 caregiver‐infant dyads at 9–11 months and children's concurrent and longitudinal vocabulary outcomes at 2–4 years. We found that infants' points elicited a large proportion of verbal responses from caregivers which were related to children's later receptive vocabularies. We also found that only shows + gives that elicited caregivers' responses related to infants' concurrent gesture repertoires. In contrast, infants' behaviors that did not elicit responses negatively related to child vocabulary. The results highlight the importance of examining dyadic combinations of infants' behaviors and caregivers' responses during interactions when examining relations to children's vocabulary development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bilingual children's total vocabulary in each of their languages is often smaller than that of monolinguals. In their seminal study, Bialystok et al. (2010. ‘Receptive vocabulary differences in monolingual and bilingual children.’ Bilingualism: Language and Cognition 13 (4): 525–531) divided children's vocabulary into ‘home’ and ‘school’ words and found no differences in bilinguals’ knowledge of ‘school’ words compared to monolinguals. In Study 1, we asked 292 parents and teachers to categorize words into ‘home’ or ‘school’ contexts, and in Study 2, we analyzed the vocabulary of 220 Polish-English bilingual and monolingual (English and Polish) children aged 4.5–7. The results show that bilinguals knew fewer ‘home’ and ‘school’ words than monolinguals in each language. However, bilinguals were likely to be exposed to these words either at home or at school, whereas monolinguals would hear them in both contexts. For a small subset of English words that bilinguals heard in both contexts, bilinguals showed similar performance to monolinguals. Our results provide evidence for exposure effects in vocabulary acquisition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]