Early Lang Test 1

According to ASHA’s definition, which statement BEST describes language?

A complex and dynamic system of conventional symbols used in various modes for thought and communication

What does it mean to say that language is “socially shared”?

Members of a language community share a common linguistic system.

Which of the following is the BEST example of the arbitrary relationship between a word and its referent?

English uses dog, Spanish uses perro, and Mandarin uses gou for the same animal.

A morpheme is BEST defined as:

The smallest unit of language that carries meaning.

What does it mean to say that language is a conventional system?

Members of a language community follow shared, systematic rules for using language.

Which example BEST demonstrates that language is rule governed?

“The cat sat on the mat” follows an acceptable English word order, whereas “Cat the on mat sat” does not.

Describing language as a “representational tool” means that language helps people:

Symbolically represent concepts and organize information for cognitive processing.

According to the ASHA definition presented in class, language is a complex and dynamic system of conventional symbols used:

In various modes for thought and communication.

Why is language considered a complex system?

It consists of several interacting components, including phonology, morphology, syntax, semantics, and pragmatics.

Which example BEST demonstrates that language is dynamic?

New words enter a language while some older words become less commonly used.

Which of the following is an example of a SOCIOLOGICAL factor that may contribute to the formation of a language community?

Cultural identity and social networks

Workers from different regions move to the same city because of employment opportunities and form multilingual communities. This example BEST illustrates which factor in the development of language communities?

Economic factors

Which of the following is the BEST example of multimodal communication?

A teacher speaks, writes on the board, and uses gestures during a lesson

Which statement about modes of language is correct?

Language may be expressed through spoken, written, signed, and visual modes

Which of the following BEST illustrates language functioning as a tool for thought?

Mentally organizing the steps needed to solve a problem

The examples of color categories and different ways for conceptualizing time were included in the slides primarily to illustrate that language may influence:

How people conceptualize and perceive aspects of the world.

According to the example presented in class, how do Aymara speakers conceptualize time?

The past is in front and the future is behind.

Which statement BEST distinguishes speech from language?

Speech involves physical sound production, whereas language involves cognitive processing of structure, meaning, and social use.

Which sequence correctly represents the four basic processes involved in communication?

Formulation

During spoken communication, which statement BEST describes the roles of speech, hearing, and language?

Language helps formulate and comprehend the message, speech helps transmit it, and hearing supports reception of the spoken signal.

What are the three basic purposes of early communication?

To request, reject, and comment

A toddler points to a toy and says, “That!” while reaching for it. This communication primarily serves which purpose?

Request

A child pushes away a cup and says, “No milk.” This communication primarily serves which purpose?

Reject

A toddler points to an airplane in the sky and says, “Plane!” to share interest with a parent. This communication primarily serves which purpose?

Comment

Which communication function involves using language to direct another person’s behavior?

Regulatory

Which communication function involves using language to ask questions and obtain information?

Heuristic

Which communication function involves telling stories, pretending, or role- playing?

Imaginative

What are the three major interrelated domains of language?

Form, content, and use

Which group contains only components of the FORM domain of language?

Phonology, morphology, and syntax

Which linguistic component belongs primarily to the CONTENT domain of language?

Semantics

Which linguistic component belongs primarily to the USE domain of language?

Pragmatics

Phonology refers to the rules governing:

The sounds used to form syllables and words

Morphology refers to the rules governing:

the internal organization of words.

Syntax primarily governs:

The internal organization of sentences

Which example BEST illustrates pragmatics?

Knowing how to take turns during a conversation.

The idea of a sensitive or critical period for language development suggests that:

The first several years of life are especially important for language acquisition.

Universality of language development refers to the idea that:

Children across language communities show relatively similar patterns and timing of language development

Which statement BEST illustrates species specificity of human language?

Human language allows symbols to be combined in novel ways, unlike nonhuman communication systems.

Semanticity, also referred to as displacement in the slides, allows people to:

Represent events that occurred in the past or may occur in the future.

Productivity in language refers to the ability to:

Use a limited set of linguistic units to create an essentially unlimited number of new messages.

What is the typical age range for the “Reflexive” stage of vocalization

Birth to 2 months

Which of the following is considered a “vegetative sound”

Coughing

Reflexive sounds are produced with intentional communicative intent by the infant

Flase

In stage 1, what is the academic term for “soft crying”

Whimpering

Which type of cry is described as “sudden, loud, and high- pitched”

Pain cry

The emergence of “Cooing and Gooing” typically occurs during which stage?

Stage 2: Control of Phonation

What is the primary difference between Cooing and Gooing?

Cooing involves only vowels; going includes back consonants like /k/ and /g/

Why are sounds like /k/ and /g/ easier for infants to produce than /t/ and /f/?

They do not require precise manipulation of the tongue, lips, or teeth

Which exploratory sound is defined as “lip vibrating sounds produced by blowing air through loosely closed lips”?

Raspberries

Marginal babbling is a key characteristic of which stage?

Stage 3: Expansion

What is a defining feature of Canonical Babbling?

It contains true consonant-vowel syllables with adult-like timing

12. The vocalization “ma-ma-ma” is an example of:

Reduplicated babbling

According to Locke, which of these are “preferred sounds” in variegated babbling?

Nasals and stops

How do deaf infants typically babble?

They babble manually using hand movements

What is the age range for Stage 5: Advanced Forms?

9-18 months

“Jargon” is a special type of babbling that includes:

At least two different consonants and vowels with varied stress/intonation

Which of the following is a “complex disyllable”?

“abu”

Jargon is considered “true words” because it sounds like questions or commands.

False

What does the term “Diphthong” refer to in Stage 5?

A combination of two vowel sounds within the same syllable

Which stage involves the “experimentation with loudness and pitch”?

Stage 3: Expansion, and a little bit of Stage 2

What types of vocalizations might you expect to hear from an infant at around 2 months of age? Provide two or three examples.

cooing, vegetative sounds (yawning), groaning

What types of vocalizations might you expect to hear from an infant at around 6 months of age? Describe the major characteristics of these vocalizations.

Marginal babbling is consonant-like and vowel-like sounds resembling speech

What types of vocalizations might you expect to hear from an infant at around 10 months of age? Provide examples when appropriate.

Canonical babbling; adult-like syllables that contain a clear CV structure with rapid and precise articulatory movement.

What types of vocalizations might you expect to hear from an infant at around 12 months of age?

Production of dipthongs, jargon

What types of vocalizations might you expect to hear from an infant at around 18 months of age?

Multisyllabic strings and jargon

Why is it important for speech- language pathologists to understand the stages of early vocal development?

To be able to recognize when a child has delayed vocalizations

An infant produces fewer and less varied vocalizations than expected for their age and has not reached an expected vocal milestone. Does this necessarily mean that the child has a communication disorder? Explain your answer.

No, every child develops at their own pace and the milestones are just guidelines. It is important to watch in case the delay gets worse.

Which of the following are characteristics of prosody?

Frequency, duration, and intensity

____ refers to the prominence placed on particular syllables in multisyllabic words.

Stress

Preference for native language prosodic patterns can help infants isolate words from continuous speech.

True

During the first year of life, infants can initially distinguish among speech sounds from many different languages.

True

The process in which infants increasingly focus on speech-sound differences that are relevant to their language is called:

Perceptual narrowing

Phonotactic regularities refer to:

Rules about permissible combinations of phonemes in a language

How do phonotactic regularities help infants segment words from continuous speech?

It signals where sounds are likely to cluster within a word vs where a word ends or begins

Categorical perception allows listeners to:

Distinguish meaningful differences between phoneme categories while ignoring nonmeaningful variations

The time between the release of a stop consonant and the beginning of vocal cord vibration is called___

VOT

Using /p/ and /b/ as examples, explain how voice onset time helps listeners distinguish between speech sounds.

/p/ has a longer VOT than /b/ which helps differentiate the two

By approximately what age can infants distinguish between purposeful and accidental actions?

4 months

Infants gradually learn to view human actions as goal-directed.

True

Understanding the intentions behind actions supports the development of _____ communication.

Intentional

Which of the following is an example of intentional communication in infancy.

All of the above (vocalizing, gesturing, and pointing)

During the early gesture stage, around 6-9 months, infants commonly begin to:

Reach and grasp for objects

Pointing to an object because the infant wants the adult to provide it is called:

Imperative pointing

Around 10-12 months, infants begin using pointing to share attention and interest with another person

True

Pointing that is used to direct another person’s attention to an object or event is called ____ pointing.

Declarative

What is the difference between imperative pointing and declarative pointing. Give one example of each.

Imperative pointing is used to request something (pointing at a ball while saying “want ball” Declarative pointing is used to direct attention to something (pointing at a picture in a book)

Why is pointing considered an important milestone in early communication and language development?

It predicts later language development, supports social interaction and builds understanding of intentions

Category formation refers to the ability to

Group objects and events according to shared features

The three levels of categories discussed in class are:

Superordinate, basic, and subordinate

In the sequence animal-dog-poodle, “dog” represents the ___ level

basic

In the sequence animal- dog-poodle, “animal” represents the ___ level.

Superordinate

Perceptual categories may be based on similarities in color, shape, texture, and size.

True

Conceptual categories depend more on what objects ____ than simply what they look like.

DO

Which of the following is the best example of perceptual categorization?

Grouping objects because they have similar shapes

Perceptual categories and conceptual categories are formed on exactly the same basis.

False

What is the difference between a perceptual category and a conceptual category.

Perceptual category is based around features like colors, shapes, or textures. Conceptual category focuses on what things do. These are based on cultures or experiences.

Give an example of a superordinate, basic, and subordinate category and explain.

Furniture→ chair→ dining room chair

Infant-directed speech (IDS) is:

Speech adults use with young language learners

Compared with adult-directed speech, infant-directed speech typically has

Higher pitch and more exaggerated pitch contours

IDS typically has a shorter mean length of utterance than adult-directed speech.

True