Research shows...
It is a common misconception that motherese can delay a child's acquisition of language. However, there is a lot of research that supports the benefits of infant-directed speech.
Kuhl et al. 2008
Kuhl's 2008 paper illustrates the tenets of Native Language Magnet-extended (NLM-e) theory. Summarized, this theory suggests that infants start out with the ability to distinguish between all human phonemes, then through time, infants learn to forget some of these distinctions in order to equip them with the phonological inventory of their native language. This process is facilitated by social factors, including motherese, which exaggerates acoustic cues for phonemes, allowing babies to learn their native phonology easier. The bottom line: exposure leads to neural commitment. And motherese is facilitated exposure. |
NLM-e illustrated (view full size here)
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“The quality and amount of speech directed from the mother to the child is a strong predictor of the child’s later linguistic competencies.”
Huttenlocher, Vasilyeva, Waterfall, Vevea & Hedges, 2010
"Directed, ostensive communication is critical for acquiring social knowledge."
Csibra & Gergely, 2009
Schneidman & Goldin-Meadow 2012
This paper focuses on Mayan infants, who, when compared to United States infants, receive much less linguistic input from their parents and more from listening in on their parents' conversations. "If Mayan children do hear less total speech input, they could face a disadvantage in early language learning," the study says.
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LeMonda et al. 2001
This article provides empirical evidence that mother responsiveness (described as descriptions, play, and imitation), when combined with empathy predicts the timing of language milestones during language acquisition. They conclude that parental interaction can speed up (conversely, the lack of can slow down) the natural growth process.