Development of Speech and Language in Infancy: An Action-Based, Multisensory, Selective-Attention Perspective

Lewkowicz, D. .

The acquisition of speech and language in infancy is a remarkable achievement. Traditionally, this achievement has been viewed by most as the product of a relatively passive process that consists of infant acquisition of specific perceptual skills which then help them process auditory speech information. In this talk, I will suggest a novel theoretical approach in which infants are seen as active participants in their own development and in which communication is considered to be a multisensory affair involving social partners who can usually be heard as well as seen talking. I will argue for this approach by pointing out that as infants acquire new perceptual and behavioral skills, they also encounter new challenges that they must solve to advance developmentally. To support this argument, I will review evidence from infant studies of (1) motor development, (2) selective attention to people?s faces and to different aspects of talking faces, and (3) the development of multisensory processing mechanisms. Based on this evidence, I will suggest that consideration of the interaction of these three seemingly separate behavioral domains can provide new insights into the acquisition of speech and language in infancy and beyond.