Hostname: page-component-7b9c58cd5d-9klzr Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2025-03-15T07:48:43.364Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Phonological development from babbling to speech: Common tendencies and individual differences

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  28 November 2008

Marilyn May Vihman ,
Charles A. Ferguson  and
Mary Elbert
Marilyn May Vihman*
Affiliation:
Stanford University
Charles A. Ferguson
Affiliation:
Stanford University
Mary Elbert
Affiliation:
Indiana University
*
Marilyn M. Vihman, Department of Linguistics, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Taking as a point of departure Locke's biological model for the origins of phonological development, this study encompasses analyses of phonetic tendencies, consonant use in babbling and early words, and phonological word-selection patterns. Data from 10 children aged 9 to 16 months are drawn from four lexically defined points covering the period from no word use to a cumulative vocabulary of 50 words. Individual differences are found to prevail from the start in all three domains analyzed, with some increase in uniformity across subjects with increasing knowledge of language. Furthermore, the phonological processes typical of development from age 1 to 3 or 4 years are found to be rooted in the phonetic tendencies of the prelinguistic period.

Type
Articles
Information
Applied Psycholinguistics , Volume 7 , Issue 1 , March 1986 , pp. 3 - 40
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1986

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

REFERENCES

Atkinson, K., MacWhinney, B., & Stoel, C. (1968). An experiment on the recognition of babbling. In Language behavior research laboratory working paper #14. Berkeley: University of California.Google Scholar
Bates, E., Benigni, L., Bretherton, I., Camaioni, L., & Volterra, V. (1979). Cognition and communication from 9 to 13 months: Correlational findings. In Bates, E., The emergence of symbols: Cognition and communication in infancy. New York: Academic Press.Google Scholar
Berman, R. A. (1977). Natural phonological processes at the one-word stage. Lingua 43, 1–21.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Brown, R. (1973). A first language: The early stages. Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bush, C. N., Edwards, M. L., Luckau, J., Stoel, C., Macken, M. A., & Peterson, J. (1973). On specifying a system for transcribing consonants in child language: A working paper with examples from American English and Mexican Spanish. Stanford University: Department of Linguistics.Google Scholar
Cruttenden, A. (1970). A phonetic study of babbling. British Journal of Disorders of Communication, 5, 110–117.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
de Boysson-Bardies, B., Sagart, L., & Bacri, N. (1981). Phonetic analysis of late babbling: A case study of a French child. Journal of Child Language, 8, 511–524.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
de Boysson-Bardies, B., Bacri, N., Sagart, L., & Poizat, M. (1981). Timing in late babbling. Journal of Child Language, 8, 525–539.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
de Boysson-Bardies, B., Sagart, L., & Durand, C. (1984). Discernible differences in the babbling of infants according to target language. Journal of Child Language, 11, 1–15.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Dinnsen, D. A., & Elbert, M. (1984). On the relationship between phonology and learning. In Elbert, M., Dinnsen, D. A., & Weismer, G. (Eds.), Phonological theory and the misarticulating child. ASHA Monographs, 22. Rockville, Md.: ASHA.Google Scholar
Dodd, B. J. (1972). Comparison of babbling patterns in normal and Down-Syndrome infants. Journal of Mental Deficiency Research, 16, 35–40.Google ScholarPubMed
Dore, J., Franklin, M. B., Miller, R. T., & Ramer, A. L. H. 1976. Transitional phenomena in early language acquisition. Journal of Child Language, 3, 13–28.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Elbers, L., & Ton, J. (1985). Play pen monologues: The interplay of words and babbles in the first words period. Journal of Child Language, 12, 551–565.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ervin-Tripp, S. (1966). Language development. In Hoffman, L. W. & Hoffman, M. L. (Eds.), Review of child development research. Vol. 2. New York: Russell Sage Foundation.Google Scholar
Ferguson, C. A. (1978a). Fricatives in child language acquisition. In Honsa, V. & Hardman-Bautista, M. H. (Eds.), Papers on linguistics and child language. The Hague: Mouton.Google Scholar
Ferguson, C. A. (1978b). Learning to pronounce: The earliest stages of phonological development in the child. In Minifie, F. D. & Floyd, L. L. (Eds.), Communicative and cognitive abilities: Early behavioral assessment. Baltimore, Md.: University Park Press.Google Scholar
Ferguson, C. A. (1983). Reduplication in child phonology. Journal of Child Language, 10, 239–243.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Ferguson, C. A. (1986). Discovering sound units and constructing sound systems: It's child play. In Perkell, J. S. & Klatt, D. H. (Eds.), Invariance and variability of speech processes. Hillsdale, N.J.: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.Google Scholar
Ferguson, C. A., & Farwell, C. B. (1975). Words and sounds in early language acquisition. Language, 15, 419–439.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ferguson, C. A., & Gamica, O. K. (1975). Theories of phonological development. In Lenneberg, E. H. & Lenneberg, E. (Eds.), Foundations of language development. New York: Academic Press.Google Scholar
Greenberg, J. H. (1978). Some generalizations concerning initial and final consonant clusters. In Greenberg, J. H. (Ed.), Universals of human language. Vol. 2: Phonology. Stanford, Calif.: Stanford University Press.Google Scholar
Greenlee, M. (1974). Interacting processes in the child's acquisition of stop-liquid clusters. Papers and Reports on Child Language Development, 7, 85–100.Google Scholar
Grunwell, P. (1981). The development of phonology. First Language, 2, 161–191.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Holmgren, K., Lindblom, B., Aurelius, G., Jailing, B., Zetterström, R. (1986). On the phonetics of infant vocalization. In Lindblom, B. & Zetterstr¨m, R. (Eds.), Precursors of early speech. Basingstroke, Hampshire, England: MacMillan.Google Scholar
Ingram, D. (1974). Phonological rules in young children. Journal of Child Language, 1, 49–64.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ingram, D., Christensen, L., Veach, S., & Webster, B. (1980). The acquisition of word-initial fricatives and affricates in English by children between 2 and 6 years. In Yeni-Komshian, G. H., Kavanagh, J. F., & Ferguson, C. A. (Eds.), Child phonology. Vol. 1: Production. New York: Academic Press.Google Scholar
Jakobson, R. (1968). Child language, aphasia, and phonological universals. A. R. Keiler (Tr.). (Original title Kindersprache, Aphasie und allgemeine Lautgesetze. [1941].) The Hague: Mouton.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Koopmans-van Beinum, F. J., & Van der Stell, J. M. (1986). Early stages in the development of speech movements. In Lindblom, B. & Zetterstrom, R. (Eds.), Precursors of early speech. Basingstroke, Hampshire, England: MacMillan.Google Scholar
Labov, W., & Labov, T. (1978). The phonetics of cat and mama. Language, 54, 816–852.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Leonard, L. B., Newhoff, M., & Mesalam, L. (1980). Individual differences in early child phonology. Applied Psycholinguistics, 1, 7–30.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lindblom, B. (1986). On the origin and purpose of discreteness and invariance in sound patterns. In Perkell, J. S. & Klatt, D. H. (Eds.), Invariance and variability of speech processes. Hillsdale, N.J.: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.Google Scholar
Locke, J. L. (1983). Phonological acquisition and change. New York: Academic Press.Google Scholar
Macken, M. A., & Ferguson, C. A. (1983). Cognitive aspects of phonological development: Model, evidence and issues. In Nelson, K. E. (Eds.), Children's language. Vol. 4. Hillsdale, N.J.: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.Google Scholar
Maddieson, I. (1984). Patterns of sounds. Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Menn, L. (1978). Pattern, control and contrast in beginning speech: A case study in the development of word form and word function. Bloomington, Ind.: Indiana University Linguistics Club.Google Scholar
Menn, L. (1983). Development of articulatory, phonetic, and phonological capabilities. In Butterworth, B. (Ed.), Language production. Vol. 2. London: Academic Press.Google Scholar
Menyuk, P., & Menn, L. (1979). Early strategies for the perception and production of words and sounds. In Fletcher, P. & Garman, M. (Eds.), Language acquisition: Studies in first language development, Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press.Google Scholar
Miller, R., & Vihman, M. M. (In preparation) A note on babbling: A comparison between solitary play and mother-child interaction settings.Google Scholar
Mills, A. E. (in press.) The development of phonology in the blind child. To appear in Dodd, B. & Campbell, R. (Eds.), Hearing by eye: experimental studies in the psychology of lip reading. Hillsdale, N.J.: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.Google Scholar
Mines, M. A., Hanson, B. F., & Shoup, J. E. (1978). Frequency of occurrence of phonemes in conversational English. Language and Speech, 21, 221–241.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Mulford, R. (1986). First words of the blind child. To appear in Smith, M. D. & Locke, J. L. (Eds.), The emergent lexicon: The child's development of a linguistic vocabulary. New York: Academic Press.Google Scholar
Nettelbladt, U. (1983). Developmental studies of dysphonology in children. Travaux de l'Institut de Linguistique de Lund, 19.Google Scholar
Ochs, E., & Schieffelin, B. B. (1985). Language acquisition and socialization: Three developmental stories and their implications. In Shweder, R. & LeVine, R. (Eds.), Culture and its acquisition. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.Google Scholar
Oller, D. K. (1980). The emergence of the sounds of speech in infancy. In Yeni-Komshian, G. H., Kavanagh, J. F., & Ferguson, C. A. (Eds.), Child phonology. Vol. 1: Production. New York: Academic Press.Google Scholar
Oller, D. K. (1986). Metaphonology and infant vocalizations. In Lindblom, B. & Zetterström, R. (Eds.), Precursors of early speech, Basingstoke, Hampshire, England: MacMillan.Google Scholar
Oller, D. K., Eilers, R. E. (1982). Similarity of babbling in Spanish- and English-learning babies. Journal of Child Language, 9, 565–577.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Oller, D. K., Eilers, R. E., Bull, D. H., & Carney, A. E. (1985). Pre-speech vocalizations of a deaf infant: A comparison with normal metaphonological development. Journal of Speech and Hearing Research, 28, 47–63.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Oller, D. K., Wieman, L. A., Doyle, W. J., & Ross, C. (1976). Infant babbling and speech. Journal of Child Language, 3, 1–11.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Schwartz, R., & Leonard, L. (1982). Do children pick and choose? An examination of phonological selection and avoidance in early lexical acquisition. Journal of Child Language, 9, 319–336.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Schwartz, R., Leonard, L. B., Wilcox, M. J., & Folger, K. (1980). Again and again: Reduplication in child phonology. Journal of Child Language, 7, 75–88.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Shibamoto, J. S., & Olmsted, D. L. (1978). Lexical and syllabic patterns in phonological acquisition. Journal of Child Language, 5, 417–456.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Smith, B. L. (1982). Some observations concerning pre-meaningful vocalizations of hearing-impaired infants. Journal of Speech and Hearing Disorders, 47, 439–442.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Smith, B. L. & Oller, D. K. (1981). A comparative study of pre-meaningful vocalizations produced by normally developing and Down's Syndrome infants. Journal of Speech and Hearing Disorders, 46, 46–51.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Smith, B. L., & Stoel-Gammon, C. (1983). A longitudinal study of the development of stop consonant production in normal and Down's Syndrome children. Journal of Speech and Hearing Disorders, 48, 114–118.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Smith, N. V. (1973). The acquisition of phonology: A case study. Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press.Google Scholar
Stampe, D. (1969). The acquisition of phonetic representation. Paper presented at the Fifth Regional Meeting of the CLS, Chicago, Illinois.Google Scholar
Stark, R. E. (1980). Stages of speech development in the first year of life. In Yeni-Komshian, G. H., Kavanagh, J. F., & Ferguson, C. A. (Eds.), Child phonology, Vol. 1: Production. New York: Academic Press.Google Scholar
Stoel-Gammon, C., & Cooper, J. A. (1984). Patterns of early lexical and phonological development. Journal of Child Language, 11, 247–271.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Studdert-Kennedy, M. (1986). Sources of variability in early speech development. In Perkell, J. S. & Klatt, D. H. (Eds.), Invariance and variability of speech processes. Hillsdale, N.J.: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.Google Scholar
Thevenin, D. M., Eilers, R. E., Oller, D. K., & La Voie, L. (1985). Where's the drift in babbling drift? A cross-linguistic study. Applied Psycholinguistics, 6, 3–15.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Thomas, A., Chess, S., Birch, H. G., Hertzig, M., & Korn, S. (1963). Behavioral individuality in early childhood. New York: New York University Press.Google Scholar
Uz^giris, I. C., & Hunt, McV. (1975). Assessment in infancy: Ordinal scales of psychological development. Urbana, Ill.: University of Illinois Press.Google Scholar
Vihman, M. M. (1976). From pre-speech to speech: On early phonology. Papers and Reports on Child Language Development, 12, 230–243.Google Scholar
Vihman, M. M. (1978). Consonant harmony: Its scope and function in child language. In Greenberg, J. H. (Ed.), Universals of human language. Vol. 2: Phonology. Stanford, Calif.: Stanford University Press.Google Scholar
Vihman, M. M. (1981). Phonology and the development of the lexicon: Evidence from children's errors. Journal of Child Language, 8, 239–264.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Vihman, M. M. (1984). Individual differences in phonological development: Age one and age three. Paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association. San Francisco.Google Scholar
Vihman, M. M. (1986). Individual differences in babbling and early speech: predicting to age three. In Lindblom, B. & Zetterström, R. (Eds.), Precursors of early speech. Basingstoke, Hampshire, England: Macmillan.Google Scholar
Vihman, M. M., Macken, M. A., Miller, R., Simmons, H., & Miller, J. (1985). From babbling to speech: A reassessment of the continuity issue. Language, 61, 395–443.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Vihman, M. M., and Miller, R. (1986) Words and babble at the threshold of lexical acquisition. To appear in Smith, M. D. & Locke, J. L. (Eds.), The emergent lexicon: The child's development of a linguistic vocabulary. New York: Academic Press.Google Scholar
Waterson, N. (1971). Child phonology: A prosodie view. Journal of Linguistics, 7, 179–211.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Woods, D., & Stockman, I. (1982). A feature hierarchy of nonlinguistic consonant articulations. In Johnson, C. E. & Thew, C. L. (Eds.), Proceedings of the Second International Congress for the Study of Child Language, Vol. 1. Washington, D.C.: University Press of America.Google Scholar