Paper X procedure
1. What type of equipment was used to track parent and toddler visual attention?
A) Handheld cameras
B) Head-mounted GoPro cameras
C) Wearable eye trackers
D) Motion-capture sensors
C) Wearable eye trackers
1. What were the two primary recording methods used in the study?
A) Laboratory experiments and home interviews
B) Hour-long video recordings and daylong audio recordings
C) Parent self-reports and speech recognition software
D) EEG brain scans and infant vocalizations
B) Hour-long video recordings and daylong audio recordings
1. What was a key finding regarding parent speech during object play and mealtime?
A) Parents spoke significantly more during mealtime than object play.
B) Parents named objects more frequently during object play than mealtime.
C) Parents used the same set of vocabulary in both activities.
D) Mealtime had a higher proportion of “hit” naming moments than object play.
B) Parents named objects more frequently during object play than mealtime.
1. What was a major difference between the hour-long video recordings and the daylong audio recordings?
A) Video recordings captured more nouns per minute than daylong audio recordings.
B) Audio recordings contained more total nouns per minute than video recordings.
C) Video recordings featured fewer words overall than daylong audio recordings.
D) The study found no difference between the two recording methods.
A) Video recordings captured more nouns per minute than daylong audio recordings.
X (100):
Why is using eye-tracking technology in Paper X valuable for studying language learning?
A) It provides direct evidence of whether toddlers are looking at an object when it is named.
B) It eliminates the need for audio recordings by focusing only on gaze tracking.
C) It allows researchers to manipulate toddler attention in a controlled way.
D) It forces toddlers to interact with objects in a specific sequence.
A) It provides direct evidence of whether toddlers are looking at an object when it is named.
2. Where was the study conducted?
A) In a university laboratory
B) In daycare centers
C) In the participants' homes
D) In a preschool classroom
C) In the participants' homes
2. How did researchers categorize language input in the recordings?
A) By measuring only the number of words spoken per minute
B) By coding nouns and analyzing word quantity, utterance type, object presence, and talker variability
C) By having parents report the words they used during the recording session
D) By tracking the number of times infants responded to their parents’ speech
B) By coding nouns and analyzing word quantity, utterance type, object presence, and talker variability
2. How did toddlers’ visual attention differ between object play and mealtime?
A) Toddlers looked at their parents' faces more during object play than mealtime.
B) Toddlers were more likely to attend to named objects during object play than mealtime.
C) Toddlers focused on background objects more during object play than mealtime.
D) Toddlers showed no significant difference in visual attention across the two activities.
B) Toddlers were more likely to attend to named objects during object play than mealtime.
2. What did the study reveal about the density of language input in video recordings?
A) Video recordings captured the most natural distribution of speech infants hear throughout the day.
B) Video recordings represented peak speech exposure moments rather than typical speech exposure throughout the day.
C) Video recordings had significantly fewer nouns than expected compared to daylong audio recordings.
D) Video recordings showed that infants were exposed to more diverse words than audio recordings.
B) Video recordings represented peak speech exposure moments rather than typical speech exposure throughout the day.
Y (100):
What is a major strength of Paper Y’s study design?
A) It compares two different recording methods (hour-long video vs. daylong audio) to assess language input.
B) It only focuses on structured language exposure in a laboratory setting.
C) It studies infants learning sign language rather than spoken language.
D) It does not account for how language exposure varies over time.
A) It compares two different recording methods (hour-long video vs. daylong audio) to assess language input.
3. What determined whether a naming event was a "hit"?
A) If the toddler looked at the named object during the utterance
B) If the toddler repeated the word after the parent
C) If the parent used the word more than once in a sentence
D) If the object was within the toddler’s reach
A) If the toddler looked at the named object
3. How did the study ensure accuracy in coding language data?
A) By using automated speech recognition software
B) By having multiple researchers manually transcribe and annotate recordings with reliability checks
C) By limiting analysis to only high-quality recordings without background noise
D) By asking parents to verify the transcripts after the recordings were completed
B) By having multiple researchers manually transcribe and annotate recordings with reliability checks
3. How did the study contribute to research on infant language learning?
A) It showed that macro-level routines and micro-level interactions are unrelated to language development.
B) It provided the first direct evidence that toddlers ignore naming moments unless they are in a controlled lab setting.
C) It demonstrated that parent-toddler interactions involve structured language-learning opportunities across different timescales.
D) It concluded that wearable eye-tracking technology is ineffective for studying early language learning.
C) It demonstrated that parent-toddler interactions involve structured language-learning opportunities across different timescales.
3. How did talker variability differ between the two recording methods?
A) More unique talkers were captured in the video recordings than in the daylong audio recordings.
B) Daylong audio recordings included a greater number of different talkers than video recordings.
C) Both recording methods captured the same number of unique talkers.
D) Talker variability was not a focus of the study.
B) Daylong audio recordings included a greater number of different talkers than video recordings.
X (100):
What is a key limitation of the study?
A) The study included only a small sample of families, limiting generalizability.
B) The study failed to collect any meaningful data from the toddlers.
C) The study was conducted in an artificial lab setting, removing natural interactions.
D) The study did not analyze parent speech patterns.
A) The study included only a small sample of families, limiting generalizability.
(only 4 families)
4. What methodological step was taken to ensure that the wearable eye trackers did not interfere with natural toddler behavior?
A) Parents and toddlers were required to complete a calibration process before each session
B) Toddlers were given a week to practice wearing oversized glasses before the study began
C) The eye trackers were equipped with motion sensors to detect moments of discomfort
D) Researchers monitored the toddlers in real-time to ensure they did not remove the device
B) Toddlers were given a week to practice wearing oversized glasses before the study began
4. What was one major reason why researchers focused specifically on nouns in their coding process?
A) Nouns are more frequent in caregiver speech than verbs and adjectives in early infant language exposure
B) The study was designed to compare noun learning across different languages
C) Nouns are easier to transcribe than other types of words
D) Parents tend to speak only in nouns when addressing infants
A) Nouns are more frequent in caregiver speech than verbs and adjectives in early infant language exposure
4. What statistical trend was observed in parent speech across the two activities (object play and mealtime)?
A) Parents spoke significantly more per minute during object play than mealtime.
B) Parents spoke equally frequently in both activities, but the type of speech differed.
C) Parents used more total words during mealtime than object play.
D) Parents only named objects during object play and not during mealtime.
B) Parents spoke equally frequently in both activities, but the type of speech differed.
4. What do the study’s results suggest about using different recording methods for language research?
A) Researchers should always rely on video recordings because they capture more speech per minute.
B) Daylong audio recordings provide a more representative sample of an infant’s language environment.
C) Video recordings are more reliable than audio recordings for understanding language exposure.
D) Audio recordings are unnecessary for language research since they capture too much background noise.
B) Daylong audio recordings provide a more representative sample of an infant’s language environment.
Y (100)
What could be the key limitation of Paper Y?
A) The study only focuses on nouns, ignoring other linguistic features like verbs or prosody.
B) The study completely lacks any visual data, making it hard to analyze context.
C) It only studies one family, making the results impossible to generalize.
D) It assumes that all parents talk to their children the same way.
A) The study only focuses on nouns, ignoring other linguistic features like verbs or prosody.
5. How did the researchers ensure accurate coding of toddler visual attention during naming moments?
A) They used an AI-based gaze-tracking algorithm to automatically detect fixations on objects.
B) A trained coder manually annotated each frame of the eye-tracking video, blind to the spoken noun.
C) Parents were instructed to indicate when their child was looking at an object by pressing a button.
D) Researchers calibrated the eye trackers at the beginning of each recording session using a standardized object set.
B) A trained coder manually annotated each frame of the eye-tracking video, blind to the spoken noun.
5. What was a unique limitation of the daylong audio recordings compared to video recordings?
A) They lacked direct visual confirmation of object presence
B) They captured too much background noise, making transcription impossible
C) Infants were less likely to wear the recording equipment for the full day
D) Parents altered their speech patterns significantly during audio recording
A) They lacked direct visual confirmation of object presence
5. What broader conclusion did the researchers draw about the relationship between parent speech and toddler attention?
A) Parents and toddlers coordinate their interactions in predictable ways, but these interactions differ by context.
B) Parent speech has no influence on toddler attention during naming moments.
C) Toddlers pay equal attention to named objects in all contexts, regardless of activity.
D) Object play is the only activity where parent speech influences word learning.
A) Parents and toddlers coordinate their interactions in predictable ways, but these interactions differ by context.
5. What does the study recommend when interpreting data from short video recordings?
A) Short samples should be considered with caution, as they may not represent everyday language exposure accurately.
B) Short video recordings are always a better method than long audio recordings for language research.
C) Short samples should be used exclusively to measure how infants acquire words.
D) Short video recordings do not provide useful data for language acquisition research.
A) Short samples should be considered with caution, as they may not represent everyday language exposure accurately.
Both studies contribute valuable insights into language acquisition, but what are two fundamental issues that could impact the validity of their findings?
A) Both studies rely on specific data collection methods (eye tracking and audio/video recordings) that may not capture the full range of language exposure under different scenarios.
B) Both studies lack cultural generalizability (e.g., due to a small sample size or lack of diversity among participants).
C) Both studies fail to measure infant-directed speech, meaning they do not account for the unique way caregivers modify speech when talking to young children.
D) Both studies exclude all background speech, focusing only on words spoken directly to the infant.
A) Both studies rely on specific data collection methods (eye tracking and audio/video recordings) that may not capture the full range of language exposure under different scenarios.
B) Both studies lack cultural generalizability (e.g., due to a small sample size or lack of diversity among participants).