Preschool children generate quantity inferences from both words and pictures

As children learn to communicate with others, they must develop an understanding of the principles that underlie human communication. Recent evidence suggests that adults expect communicative principles to govern all forms of communication, not just language, but evidence about children's ability to do so is sparse. This study investigated whether preschool children expect both pictures and words to adhere to the communicative principle of quantity using a simple matched paradigm. Children (N = 293) aged of 3 to 5 years (52.5% male and 47.5% female; majority White with college educated mothers) participated. Results show that children as young as 3.5 years can use the communicative principle of quantity to infer meaning across verbal and pictorial alternatives. (c) 2023 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Automated summary

This study investigated whether preschool children expect both pictures and words to adhere to the communicative principle of quantity. The results showed that even 3.5-year-old children can use the communicative principle of quantity to infer meaning across verbal and pictorial alternatives.