Thought and language: Effects of group-mindedness on young children's interpretation of exclusive we

The current study investigated whether age-related changes in the conceptualization of social groups influences interpretation of the pronoun we. Sixty-four 2- and 4-year-olds (N = 29 female, 50 White-identifying) viewed scenarios in which it was ambiguous how many puppets performed an activity together. When asked who performed the activity, a speaker puppet responded, We did! In one condition, the speaker was near one and distant from another puppet, implying a dyadic interpretation of we. In another condition, the speaker was distant from both, thus pulling for a group interpretation. In the former condition, 2- and 4-year-olds favored the dyadic interpretation. In the latter condition, only 4-year-olds favored the group interpretation. Age-related conceptual development expands the set of conceivable plural person referents.

Automated summary

The current study examined the impact of age-related conceptualization changes in social groups on the interpretation of the pronoun "we." The findings revealed that 2- and 4-year-old children interpreted "we" differently in different situations, suggesting that age-related conceptual development plays a crucial role in understanding personal pronouns.