ERIC Number: EJ1161669
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2018
Pages: 16
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0300-4430
EISSN: N/A
Age-Related Changes in Preschoolers' Ability to Communicate Using Iconic Gestures in the Absence of Speech
Vasc, Dermina; Miclea, Mircea
Early Child Development and Care, v188 n1 p16-31 2018
Iconic gestures illustrate complex meanings and clarify and enrich the speech they accompany. Little is known, however, about how children use iconic gestures in the absence of speech. In this study, we used a cross-sectional design to investigate how 3-, 4- and 5-year-old children (N = 51) communicate using pantomime iconic gestures. Children were asked to inform a puppet that did not speak their language about how to use different sets of objects. We found that by 5 years of age children are able to communicate using pantomime iconic gestures in a consistent and spontaneous way, without the need to be assisted by an adult. In contrast, 3-year-olds used both pantomime and co-speech gestures to communicate, and overall gestured at a lower level than 4- and 5-year-olds. These results offer us an increased understanding of preschoolers' ability to create iconic gestures in the absence of speech, suggesting that this ability suffers important progresses throughout the preschool years.
Descriptors: Age Differences, Preschool Children, Nonverbal Communication, Case Studies, Puppetry, Language Acquisition, Speech Communication, Child Development, Scaffolding (Teaching Technique), Task Analysis, Foreign Countries, Kindergarten, Statistical Analysis
Routledge. Available from: Taylor & Francis, Ltd. 530 Walnut Street Suite 850, Philadelphia, PA 19106. Tel: 800-354-1420; Tel: 215-625-8900; Fax: 215-207-0050; Web site: http://www.tandf.co.uk/journals
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Kindergarten
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Romania
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A