Gender and patterns of language development in mother-toddler and father-toddler dyads

The study examined parent, child, and dyadic gender effects in parent reports of words and MLUs. Mothers and fathers from 113 families completed the MacArthur Communicative Development Inventory: Toddlers when the toddlers were 1;7; half completed a follow-up at 2;0. Child gender differences in word...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:First language 2011-02, Vol.31 (1), p.83-108
Main Author: Lovas, Gretchen S.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Children
Daughters
Dyadic interaction
Fathers
Gender differences
Mothers
Native language acquisition
Parent-child relations
Sons
Toddlers
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Summary:The study examined parent, child, and dyadic gender effects in parent reports of words and MLUs. Mothers and fathers from 113 families completed the MacArthur Communicative Development Inventory: Toddlers when the toddlers were 1;7; half completed a follow-up at 2;0. Child gender differences in words and MLUs increased over time and parent gender differences decreased. Dyadic analyses revealed bidirectional influences. At 1;7, dyadic scores for words and MLUs displayed a descending pattern from mother—daughter, to mother—son, to father—daughter, to father—son dyads. At 2;0, the most and fewest words were reported in mother—daughter and mother—son dyads, respectively; and the longest and shortest MLUs in father—daughter and father—son dyads, respectively. The data raise questions about the ‘bridge hypothesis.’ They suggest that fathers are more likely to provide a bridge for daughters than for sons; daughters may play an active role in eliciting this behavior.
ISSN:0142-7237
1740-2344
DOI:10.1177/0142723709359241