EVANSTON, Ill. — New research from Northwestern University and Harvard University demonstrates that infants as young as 15 months can begin to learn the names of objects they have not seen, through listening to conversations. Even when an object is not visible, infants can use language clues from their environment to form mental representations of the object's name and possibly its function.
According to the study, infants can begin to understand new words by inferring meaning from context. For example, if an infant hears a conversation about kumquats along with familiar fruits like apples and bananas, they might conceive that a kumquat is edible and likely a fruit.
Sandra Waxman, the senior author of the study, explained, "Many people believe that success in word learning requires that the infant ‘map’ a new word to an object that is physically present. But in the natural course of a day, it is very common for us—and for infants—to hear words when the objects to which they refer are not available to our immediate perception." Waxman holds the position of Louis W. Menk Professor of Psychology and directs the Infant and Child Development Center at Northwestern.
The study was conducted with 134 infants, aged 12 and 15 months. Researchers presented words and images of familiar objects, and introduced new words while an image of the unknown object remained hidden. When shown both a novel fruit and an unrelated object, the 15-month-olds were more likely to look at the novel fruit when asked about the introduced word, like a kumquat, indicating they could use context to identify the object.
Waxman noted, "The study shows that even babies who are just beginning to say their first words learn from the language they hear, even if the objects or events being discussed are not present." She added, "Babies take in what they hear, and even if no object is present, they form a mental representation, or ‘gist’ of the new word’s meaning, one that is strong enough for them to use later when its referent object does appear."
This study provides insights into how infants develop the ability to form mental images and understand concepts about objects or events they do not directly perceive. The findings highlight the significant role language plays in early cognitive development and learning. Waxman concludes, "When we hear new words, like 'kumquat' in conversation when there are no kumquats around, we don’t waste the opportunity to home in on its meaning. We now know this is also true about tiny babies."
The research paper, “Semantic priming supports infants’ ability to learn names of unseen objects,” was published by PLOS One.