We examine the referential choices (pronouns/zeros vs. names/descriptions) made during a narrative by high-functioning children and adolescents with autism and a well-matched typically developing control group. The process of choosing appropriate referring expressions has been proposed to depend on two areas of cognitive functioning: (a) judging…

This work aims to analyse the specific contribution of social abilities (here considered as the capacity for attributing knowledge to others) in a particular communicative context. 74 normally developing children (aged 3;4 to 5;9, M=4.6) were given two Theory of Mind (ToM) tasks, which are considered to assess increasing complexity levels of…

The study to be reported in this paper examined the work accomplished by "mm" and "mm hm" in the interactions of a parent and his daughter aged 0;10-2;0. Using the findings of Gardner (2001) for adults, the analysis shows that "mm" accomplished a range of functions based on its sequential placement and prosodic features, whereas "mm hm" was much…

Examined young children's social play for length of play episodes, use of communicative strategies, and complexity of play. Concluded that children spontaneously constructed shared meaning during interactive play from their shared knowledge about everyday activities and by responding to and building on their partner's ideas as the play unfolded.…

Reviews three articles in this journal on pretend play and focuses on the communicative activity through which social pretending is created. Suggests that, despite recent advances toward understanding techniques by which children construct make-believe, further examination of conversational exchanges and sequences of this complex activity is…

Developmental research and educational practice involve conversations between children and adults. The conversational aspects of these situations have rarely been occasions for reflection. Discrepancies between the child's expectations and the adult's intentions can lead to misunderstanding, for example, at school or during a research interview.…

Presents four articles in the context of workshop discussions on characteristics of environments that promote language development: (1) "Children's Conversations: Why are They Important?"; (2) "Ways of Talking: Respecting Differences"; (3) Paul's Talk: Teachers and Parents Look at a Child's Language"; and (4) "In the…

The professional practices concerning children's questions in the welfare clinic, the day care center, the school and the library in Finland are discussed in this paper. Each institution's historical background and the implicit and explicit concepts of children affecting professional behavior are analyzed. The research data include legal and…