Important Distinctions in Measuring Maternal Responses to Communication in Prelinguistic Children with Disabilities

Two research hypotheses were tested in the research reported here: The first was that nonlinguistic maternal responses to intentional child communication, but not to preintentional communication, will predict later intentional communication but not later language development. The second hypothesis was that linguistic mapping of intentional communication, but not of preintentional communication, will predict later language development but not later intentional communication. Study participants were 58 children with disabilities or developmental delays and their primary caretakers. Receptive language, prelinguistic communication, and maternal responses were measured at Time 1 (entry into study) and Time 2 (6 months later). Vocabulary level was measured at Time 2. Expressive and receptive language were measured at Time 3 (12 months after entry into study). After controlling for initial measures of child communication or language, number of maternal nonlinguistic responses to intentional communication were positively related to Time 2 rate of intentional communication and to Time 3 expressive and receptive language scores. After controlling for initial child language, number of linguistic mapping responses to intentional communication was positively related to Time 3 expressive and receptive language scores. The results of this study showed no relationship between responsiveness to preintentional communication and later language or communication, thus emphasizing the importance of responding differentially to preintentional and intentional communications.