Neighborhood Density and Word Frequency Predict Vocabulary Size in Toddlers
Purpose: To document the lexical characteristics of neighborhood density (ND) and word frequency (WF) in the lexicons of a large sample of English-speaking toddlers. Method: Parents of 222 British-English–speaking children aged 27(±3) months completed a British adaptation of the MacArthur–Bates Comm...
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| Format: | Journal Article |
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American Speech-Language-Hearing Association
2010
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| Online Access: | http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/42324 |
| _version_ | 1848756388497457152 |
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| author | Stokes, Stephanie |
| author_facet | Stokes, Stephanie |
| author_sort | Stokes, Stephanie |
| building | Curtin Institutional Repository |
| collection | Online Access |
| description | Purpose: To document the lexical characteristics of neighborhood density (ND) and word frequency (WF) in the lexicons of a large sample of English-speaking toddlers. Method: Parents of 222 British-English–speaking children aged 27(±3) months completed a British adaptation of the MacArthur–Bates Communicative Development Inventory: Words and Sentences (MCDI; Klee & Harrison, 2001). Child words were coded for ND and WF, and the relationships among vocabulary, ND, and WF were examined. A cut-point of –1 SD below the mean on the MCDI classified children into one of two groups: low or high vocabulary size. Group differences on ND and WF were examined using nonparametric statistics. Results: In a hierarchical regression, ND and WF accounted for 47% and 14% of unique variance in MCDI scores, respectively. Low-vocabulary children scored significantly higher on ND and significantly lower on WF than did high-vocabulary children, but there was more variability in ND and WF for children at the lowest points of the vocabulary continuum. Conclusion: Children at the lowest points of a continuum of vocabulary size may be extracting statistical properties of the input language in a manner quite different from their more able age peers. |
| first_indexed | 2025-11-14T09:11:24Z |
| format | Journal Article |
| id | curtin-20.500.11937-42324 |
| institution | Curtin University Malaysia |
| institution_category | Local University |
| last_indexed | 2025-11-14T09:11:24Z |
| publishDate | 2010 |
| publisher | American Speech-Language-Hearing Association |
| recordtype | eprints |
| repository_type | Digital Repository |
| spelling | curtin-20.500.11937-423242017-09-13T16:01:01Z Neighborhood Density and Word Frequency Predict Vocabulary Size in Toddlers Stokes, Stephanie late talkers word frequency vocabulary development neighborhood density Purpose: To document the lexical characteristics of neighborhood density (ND) and word frequency (WF) in the lexicons of a large sample of English-speaking toddlers. Method: Parents of 222 British-English–speaking children aged 27(±3) months completed a British adaptation of the MacArthur–Bates Communicative Development Inventory: Words and Sentences (MCDI; Klee & Harrison, 2001). Child words were coded for ND and WF, and the relationships among vocabulary, ND, and WF were examined. A cut-point of –1 SD below the mean on the MCDI classified children into one of two groups: low or high vocabulary size. Group differences on ND and WF were examined using nonparametric statistics. Results: In a hierarchical regression, ND and WF accounted for 47% and 14% of unique variance in MCDI scores, respectively. Low-vocabulary children scored significantly higher on ND and significantly lower on WF than did high-vocabulary children, but there was more variability in ND and WF for children at the lowest points of the vocabulary continuum. Conclusion: Children at the lowest points of a continuum of vocabulary size may be extracting statistical properties of the input language in a manner quite different from their more able age peers. 2010 Journal Article http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/42324 10.1044/1092-4388(2009/08-0254) American Speech-Language-Hearing Association restricted |
| spellingShingle | late talkers word frequency vocabulary development neighborhood density Stokes, Stephanie Neighborhood Density and Word Frequency Predict Vocabulary Size in Toddlers |
| title | Neighborhood Density and Word Frequency Predict Vocabulary Size in Toddlers |
| title_full | Neighborhood Density and Word Frequency Predict Vocabulary Size in Toddlers |
| title_fullStr | Neighborhood Density and Word Frequency Predict Vocabulary Size in Toddlers |
| title_full_unstemmed | Neighborhood Density and Word Frequency Predict Vocabulary Size in Toddlers |
| title_short | Neighborhood Density and Word Frequency Predict Vocabulary Size in Toddlers |
| title_sort | neighborhood density and word frequency predict vocabulary size in toddlers |
| topic | late talkers word frequency vocabulary development neighborhood density |
| url | http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/42324 |