The Role of Gender in the Acquisition of First Language Vocabulary - Research Proposal Example

The Role of Gender in the Acquisition of First Language Vocabulary [The of the will appear here] [The of the will appear here] Introduction The development of vocabulary and semantic structures varies from child to child even within the same family. This variation can be accounted through a number of factors. One of them is gender variation. Girls between the ages of 2 to 8 acquire semantic structures and vocabulary faster than boys of the same age according to research. One reason behind this could be the time girls spend with their mothers and the rest of the family. For the purpose of this paper, literature available on this topic would be reviewed to reach a conclusive answer regarding whether gender plays a play in language development and acquisition. Key words: Semantics, Vocabulary Development, Gender, Firstborn, Mother-Child Bond, Language Acquistion Literature Review This literature review will focus on answering three pertinent questions by examining research conducted on this specific topic. The questions are: 1) Do female firstborn develop a better vocabulary in their early ages as compared to the male gender? 2) Is age a factor in the vocabulary development amongst different gender in the society? 3) Do children who stay close to their mothers develop better vocabulary? To answer these three questions and for the sake of clarification, the literature review would be divided into four parts. The first part would focus on language development in children in general. This would set the pace for the rest of the paper so as to help readers understand the basics of language and vocabulary development. The review conducted shows that language development is a complex process that is aided by maternal and environmental factors. Other factors also impact vocabulary development but they are not included in the scope of this review. The second part of the literature review focuses on sibling differences in vocabulary. It is generally assumed that firstborns acquire language and semantic structure before later borns. The third part of the review concentrates on answering mother influence on language development. When mothers have a positive and focused interaction with their children, the process of acquiring language and semantic structure is faster. The last part of the review would focus on how gender influences language development and whether girls usually acquire language before boys. Reasons for this difference would also be evaluated. Language Development in Children According to Bornstein and Leach (2004) vocabulary is an important indicator of child‘s intelligence and his early language development. It is vocabulary that parents offer and hear from their children as part of the language development process. On an average basis, a child usually learns 105 words between the ages of 18 to 23 months (Henrinch, et al, 2011). Language Development is a complex process that includes sensory, motor and cognitive development. Sensory development constitutes visual and auditory development; motor development includes development of speech organs while cognitive includes memory development and development of cross-modal mapping of sounds (Chonchaiya et. al, 2013). The vocabulary competence of a child is reflected in his reading, achievement and his cognitive development. This in turn impacts social development. Language Acquisition is a long process. The first indication of language development in children occurs when they start interacting through gestures. Gestures refer to the child’s ability to point at objects and to copy an iconic gesture such as clapping (Ozcaliskan and Golden-Meadow, 2010). Gesture comes before speech and is therefore the first predictor of early development of cognitive skills. Gestures develop much before speech because they are easier to produce when compared with speech. Also gestures do not require strong working memory. The next development occurs when a child begins to combine gestures with speech. These include making flying motions with hands and accompanying this with sounds. The next phase is speech and speech gesture. This is perhaps the last part of development and continues to adulthood (Ozcaliskan and Golden-Meadow, 2010). Sibling Differences in Vocabulary It is widely believed that firstborns have an advantage over later borns in terms of vocabulary development. Firstborn Children attain language milestones more quickly than their later borns. They also tend to have larger vocabularies. This difference has been attributed to the amount of attention that first born children get from their mothers when compared with later borns. However, a research conducted by Bornstein and Leach (2004), claims that this may not be entirely true. Bornstein and Leach conducted an experiment with 55 first born and second born siblings. In this experiment, the researchers used three different approaches to test the hypothesis. They asked the mother for her input through a questionnaire, they observed mother child interaction on their own and also interacted with the children personally. The results indicated that sibling differences in vocabulary are a result of a mother’s wrong perception. The research showed that only in one measure (the mother’s input) did the first born score higher than the second born while in the other two measures no significant difference was observed. Role of Mothers in Vocabulary Development and Language Acquisition Language in children develops due to many factors. These involve the child and his environment. The environment is an important predictor of language development since it occurs in the social context. Karrass et. al. (2002) has focused on the mother infant relationship as a principal factor for vocabulary development. This is because mothers are usually the first and constant source of interaction with the social environment and thus language. Early language acquisition, for instance, is improved when the mother infant bond is strong. Mothers interact with their children though activities such as object labeling and infant directed speech to facilitate language acquisition. When mothers continuously repeat these activities, they child begins to identify with the language. For example, when a mother repeatedly labels an object as a ball, the child begins to match the object with the word and thus starts acquiring vocabulary. With increase in the level of interaction between the mother and infant, the child’s semantic development improves. This interaction should be attentive so as to provide the child with more cognitive resources. These interactions include ‘affirmations, imitations or expansion, descriptions, questions, and play or exploratory prompts (Karrass, et. al. 2002). When mothers are aware of this impact, they become more attentive towards the child and work on stimulating their child. This then has a positive impact on the child’s cognitive and semantic development. Research on the topic indicates the home literacy environment plays a significant role in shaping the semantic structure and vocabulary development of a child. The educational background of the mother has an impact on the child’s vocabulary. Children of women from high educational level have higher vocabulary and better object identification when compared with children of women having low education (Hammer, Farkas and Maczuga, 2010). Most research on this topic suggests that mothers’ role towards their children is the main reason behind difference in language development. Mother’s interact differently with girls and boys. A research by Barnet et. al (2012) suggests that mother’s positive parenting behavior has a direct impact on language development. This parenting behavior is impacted to some extent by the child’s behavior. When the child’s behavior is positive, the interaction between mother and child improves thus fostering way for improving language development. Since the behavior of girls varies from boys, this could be one reason behind the difference in interaction of the mothers. This, in turn, impacts language development. Gender Differences in Semantic Structure and Vocabulary Development Research conducted on this topic shows a consistent pattern of gender variation in acquiring vocabulary and semantic structure. The pace of vocabulary development process is skewed in the direction of girls and specifically those who enjoy attention and maternal encouragement (Karrass, et. al. 2002). Girls are found to acquire language skills faster than boys and this difference continues to increase till three years of age (Eriksson, et. al. 2012). In one study by Hammer, Farkas and Macguza (2010), it was found that while letter-word identification was higher in girls as compared to boys of the same age, differences in reading outcomes were not found. Also the study concluded that boys are three times more likely than girls to have speech language impairment. Research on this topic puts different claims with regard to gender variation in language acquisition. Karrass et al. (2002) raise an important point with respect to the difference. They attribute the difference in development to the fact that maternal interaction differs between girls and boys which could be one reason for the difference in development time. Their research concludes that mothers of boys at the age of 0;4 show adequate verbal encouragement but this tends to decline at the age 0;8. This, however, improves significantly at age 1; 0. In contrast, mothers of girls do not decrease their verbal encouragement during the age 0; 8. Also verbal encouragement with girls tend to increase at age 1; 0 when compared with boys. The researchers attribute the decline in attention to the fact that boys at age 0; 8 are more active when compared to girls. Therefore, mother shift towards motor development. Hulle, Goldsmith and Lemery (2004), in their study, claim that genetics plays a small but significant role in language development. Girls’ cognitive abilities develop more rapidly during 14-20 months while boys’ abilities develop during 20-24 months. Vocabulary spurts in the early childhood phase can be linked with heredity while later progress occurs as a result of the social environment. The research conducted by Henrich et. al (2011) also state that gender has an impact on language development. Other factors that impact language development according to the study include maternal educational level, child ethnicity, birth weight, gestational age, maternal age, parenting stress, marital status, and even family income. The child ethnicity factor was also pointed out by another research conducted by Hammer, Farkas and Maczuga (2010). This research also added another factor and that of the socio economic status of the child’s family. Dabasinskiene (2012) attribute the difference to gender stereotypes imposed on boys and girls. Often during play, boys are given trucks and cars while girls are offered dolls. These trucks and cars do not elicit any conversation other than teaching sounds to the boys such as those of honking and crashing. The dolls given to girls, on the other hand, provide the grounds for verbal conversation such as asking questions and enacting scenes. Dabasinskiene further adds the mothers’ interaction differs between girls and boys because of perceived stereotypes. For instance, mothers of girls have higher level of verbal communication, tend to ask questions more and use long sentences when compared with mothers of boys. Boys’ mothers issue short commands, ask confirmations and use shorter sentences. Another difference in the way that girls and boys acquire language is the way they acquire diminutives. Girls tend to use more diminutives in their speech when compared to boys for the reason that mothers use of diminutives while addressing girls is higher when compared to those of boys (Dabasinskiene, 2012). Ozcaliskan and Golden-Meadow (2010), in their research, focus on the development of semantic structure. While their research reinstates the previous research with regard to gender difference in language development, they take the research further by analyzing whether girls produce gesture and speech combination before boys. The research concludes that girls’ semantic structure also develops faster than that of boys. Gesture and speech combination is acquired much before the speech and speech combination. Furthermore, Ozcaliskan and Golden-Meadow challenge previously stated views on why gender impacts language development. They reject the claim that boys’ mother talk differently than girls’ mother. However, the research builds on the view that boy’s motor abilities develop differently than that of girls. The research takes a step further by presenting findings that boys outperform in gross motor skills while girls outperform in fine motor skill development. Fine motor skills include actions such as imitating brushing teeth. This then gives girls an advantage over boys in the way that girls develop gestures faster than boys. Since gestures are the first step towards language development, girls start achieving language milestones quicker than boys. In a recent research by Chonchaiya et. al (2013), this difference of language acquisition was studied by analyzing the human auditory system and more specifically the auditory cortex. Beginning from the third trimester to the second birthday of a child, brainstem input to the auditory cortex remains at peak. This time also corresponds with the language development of a child. Also the auditory cortex plays a vital role in organizing and processing information. Therefore a study of auditory system will provide a good insight towards language development differences. The study concluded that difference between girls and boys with respect to language development is present because of low level rapid auditory processing capabilities. Findings The findings of the research reveal that gender plays a significant role in language development. Every article reviewed presents the finding that language development pace is faster in girls when compared to boys of the same age. However, because language acquisition is a complex process, it is difficult to evaluate as to what contributes to the difference. Through the review of articles, four factors lead to this difference. Language acquisition is first expressed through gestures. Later speech and gestures are used in combination. Speech and speech combination is the last part of the process. Girls when compared with boys acquire gestures before boys and this then sets the pace for faster language acquisition. Girls acquire gestures before boys because they excel in fine motor skills while boys excel in gross motor skills. It is fine motor skills such as brushing teeth, imitating actions (Ozcaliskan and Golden-Meadow, 2010). Furthermore genetically girls are differently programmed than boys and this contributes to the difference in language acquisition (Hulle, Goldsmith and Lemery, 2004). More specifically low level of rapid auditory processing capabilities in boys leads to slower pace of language acquisition in boys (Chonchaiya, et. al, 2012). Another reason for the source of difference is how mothers interact with their children. While mothers perceive that their first born acquire language faster than later borns, this is not entirely true. The difference can be attributed to the attention mothers give to their first born. Because mothers are more attentive towards their first born, they are able to observe first words and gestures more quickly than in their later borns (Bornstein and Leach, 2004). However, positive and focused attention of the mothers towards their children does play a positive role in early language acquisition (Barnet, et al 2012; Hammer, Farkas and Maczuga, 2010). The third group of researchers proposes that difference in language acquisition occurs are a result of stereotypes imposed on children. Stereotypes impact language development in two important ways. Firstly mothers talk differently with boys and girls. When taking with girls, mothers use longer sentences, ask questions and use diminutives. While talking with boys, mothers use shorter sentences and use directives more often. The use of long sentences and questions develop more vocabulary and expressive language in girls when compared to boys. Also the toys parents give to children contributes to their language development. Boys are usually given trucks and cars while girls are given dolls to play with. Dolls provide room for conversation building while trucks and cars usually lead to short sentences and phrases such as honking noises etc. (Dabasinskiene, 2012). To sum up, the review has been able to provide answers for the three questions developed in the beginning. Language acquisition development pace is skewed in the direction of girls rather than boys; but it does not favor firstborns over later borns. Children who stay close to their mothers do develop better vocabulary provided that the interaction is positive and immerse. Method The articles consulted in this review paper have been retrieved through online databases, chiefly Ebscohost.com. While searching for the articles, the keywords used to extract the articles included language acquisition, vocabulary development, gender, mother-child interaction, first born and later born. Also phrases were employed while searching for the articles. Common phrases were ‘language acquisition and gender differences’; ‘first born and later born differences in acquiring language’ and ‘impact of mother-child relationship in language development.’ While selecting the articles, it was kept in mind that recent research be selected. This was important to make the review up to date and discard research that is considered obsolete. While language acquisition is impacted by many factors, most factors such as genetic differences and social environment other than the mother-child interaction were considered to be out of scope. To make the review relevant, the search was limited to gender differences, sibling difference and mother child interaction. However, the study was not limited to one country. Rather research from different countries was considered to make the review global instead of local. Once the articles were downloaded from the databases, the next step was to review the content of the articles. A total of 24 articles were downloaded. From this, 13 were finalized. Those discarded were deleted because they were either irrelevant or outdated. This decision was made after reviewing the executive summary of the articles and checking the date of publication. Some were deleted after reading the entire article because while they were irrelevant or outdated, they provided background knowledge on the subject. Once the articles were finalized, the next step was to read them. I read the articles twice. For the first time, I only tried to understand what the researcher was trying to prove through his hypothesis. In the next reading, points were extracted that would help form the review. In the beginning, I found it difficult to compile the information extracted. However, when I divided the review into four parts, it became easier to write the review. Also the division helped in providing structure to the review. Implementation The review of literature consults a good number of peer reviewed articles and therefore the findings developed at the end of the review and conclusive and provides ground for better language development in children. It is imperative that mothers develop a strong bond with their children so as to improve the process of language acquisition. They need to give their children focused attention. For this, they need to spend quality time with their children. Activities that specifically improve language development include asking more questions from the child; playing with toys that provide room for longer conversations and play acting. The review also provides room for further research on this topic. It raises important questions such as measures to conduct research. Right now research on this topic is limited to mother’s input of their children. This, however, can be biased at times. Therefore new measures should be explored and used in combination with mother’s feedback on their children. One reason for the difference in language development in both genders has been to different genetic makeup. Research on this topic is still in its preliminary stages and should be explored further. Discussion It is evident that gender does play a role in determining the pace of vocabulary and semantic structure development. This is because of a number of reasons including gender stereotyping, genetic programming, motor skill development etc. However, one specific reason for this difference has not been accurately defined. This may be because language development is a complex process; one that requires different skills to be developed. Therefore different reasons contribute to the pace of language development. However, research on this topic unanimously states that mother-child interaction plays a vital role in language development. The positive attitude of both the child and the mother contributes to language development. References Barnetta, M. et al (2012) Bidirectional Associations Among Sensitive Parenting, Language Development, and Social Competence, Infant and Child Development, 21, p. 374–393 (2012) Bornstein, M., Leach, D. and Haynes, M. (2004) Vocabulary competence in first- and secondborn siblings of the same chronological age , Journal of Child Language, 31, p. 855-873 Chonchaiya, W. et. al. (2013) Developmental trends in auditory processing can provide early predictions of language acquisition in young infants, Developmental Science, 16, 2, p. 159–172 Dabasinskiene, I. (2012) Gender Differences in Language Acquisition: a case study of Lithuanian Diminutives, Journal of Baltic Studies, Vol. 43, No. 2, June 2012, pp. 177–196 Eriksson, et al. 2012, Differences between girls and boys in emerging language skills: Evidence from 10 language communities, British Journal of Developmental Psychology, 30, p. 326–343 Hammer, C., Farkas, G. and Maczuga, S. (2010) The Language and Literacy Development of Head Start Children: A Study Using the Family and Child Experiences Survey Database, Journal of Language, speech, and hearing services 70 in schools , Vol. 41, p. 70–83 Henrich, et. al, (2011) Examining Continuity of Early Expressive Vocabulary Development: The Generation R Study, Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research, Vol. 54, p. 854–869 Hulle, C., Goldsmith, H. and Lemery, K. (2004) Genetic, Environmental, and Gender Effects on Individual Differences in Toddler Expressive Language, Journal of Speech Language and Hearing, Vol. 47, p. 904-912 Karrass, J. et. al. (2002) Processes in language acquisition: the roles of gender, attention, and maternal encouragement of attention over time, Journal of Child Language, 29, p. 519-543 Ozcaliskan, S. and Golden-Meadow, S. (2010) Sex differences in language first appear in gesture, Developmental Science, 13, 5, p. 752–760 Read More