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Use of pointing in parent-child interactions by hearing children of deaf and hearing parents: A follow-up from 1- to 3-years of age

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  21 June 2023

Laura KANTO Open the ORCID record for Laura KANTO [Opens in a new window] ,
Minna LAAKSO Open the ORCID record for Minna LAAKSO [Opens in a new window]  and
Kerttu HUTTUNEN Open the ORCID record for Kerttu HUTTUNEN [Opens in a new window]
Laura KANTO*
Affiliation:
Department of Language and Communication studies, University of Jyväskylä Niilo Mäki Institute, Jyväskylä
Minna LAAKSO
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology and Logopedics, University of Helsinki
Kerttu HUTTUNEN
Affiliation:
Faculty of Humanities/Research Unit of Logopedics, University of Oulu Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, University Hospital of Oulu Medical Research Center Oulu
*
*Corresponding author. Laura Kanto, Department of Language and Communication studies, University of Jyväskylä. Email: laura.kanto@jyu.fi
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Abstract

Pointing plays a significant role in communication and language development. However, in spoken languages pointing has been viewed as a non-verbal gesture, whereas in sign languages, pointing is regarded to represent a linguistic unit of language. This study compared the use of pointing between seven bilingual hearing children of deaf parents (Kids of Deaf Adults [KODAs]) interacting with their deaf parents and five hearing children interacting with their hearing parents. Data were collected in 6-month intervals from the age of 1;0 to 3;0. Pointing frequency among the deaf parents and KODAs was significantly higher than among the hearing parents and their children. In signing dyads pointing frequency remained stable, whereas in spoken dyads it decreased during the follow-up. These findings suggested that pointing is a fundamental element of parent-child interaction, regardless of the language, but is guided by the modality, gestural and linguistic features of the language in question.

Keywords

gesturenonverbal communicationCODAKODAlanguage acquisition
Type
Article
Information
Journal of Child Language , Volume 51 , Issue 2 , March 2024 , pp. 411 - 433
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Copyright
© The Author(s), 2023. Published by Cambridge University Press

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