Neonatal Imitation and Language Preference

This study will examine the relationship between language and communication in newborn infants. In the past, it has been found that newborns are able to imitate the facial expressions of adults. It has also been found that newborns generally prefer the sound of their mother’s native language(s). This study proposes to explore the connection between these two findings by testing whether infants are more likely to imitate an adult who is speaking their mother’s native language. It is expected that infants with monolingual mothers will be more likely to imitate the adult speaking their native language. Newborns with bilingual mothers, however, are expected not to show this bias when exposed to adults speaking both their native languages. The collection of data will take place in a maternity ward of a hospital and will include both monolingual speakers of French and bilingual speakers of French and English.

Faculty Supervisor:

Henny Yeung

Student:

Partner:

Université Paris Ouest Nanterre La Défense

Discipline:

Sociology

Sector:

Life Sciences (not health)

University:

Simon Fraser University

Program: