KANSEI to an Interval in Guessing Word Meanings

- Examination of Discrepant Labeling Situation -

Abstract

Young children's sensitivity (KANSEI) to an interval (“MA”) in learning word meaning task was tested. In the experiment, one-, two-, and three-year-olds and adults conducted a discrepant labeling task, and movements of their line-of-regard were examined. Discrepant labeling paradigm is an experimental situation in which the experimenter presents two novel objects and looks at one of these objects and says a novel name of it when the child is looking at and focusing on the other object. Here, the labeled object and the object the child is attending are discrepant. The results showed that there was a substantial ratio of children who did not look at the experimenter's face and directly looked at the intended object. 3-year-olds responded more accurately in the test when they directly looked at the other object without checking the experimenter's face. The result was interpreted that 3-year-olds already began to use pragmatic information of an interval to interpret adults' words without checking adults' eye-gaze.