engleski

Importance of joint attention in early language development

Early language development is built on many preverbal skills such as joint attention, vocalization and characteristics of child`s play. Between these factors, joint attention stands out, since it enables sharing the same referent point between two subjects, and these situations help the child to identify relation between word and a referent. Consequently, frequent episodes of joint attention between a child and parent/caregiver increase child`s vocabulary. Many studies have shown that the greatest developmental changes in joint attention skills in typically developing children occur between 9 and 18 months. At the age of 9 months, infants start to share attention with another person on an entity, later they learn to ERFCON2017.0208 ERFCON2017.0218 9th International Conference of the Faculty of Education and Rehabilitation Sciences University of Zagreb 17 – 19 May 2017, Zagreb follow attention of another person (responding to joint attention) and at the end to initiate another person`s attention (initiating to joint attention). Therefore, by the age of 18 months, child learns to monitor adult eye gaze and associate item of adult`s interest with word to establish the meaning. The aim of this study is to identify connection between joint attention skills and language skills during early development, as well as compare this connection in typically developing children and children with communication/language disorder/delay. Early Social Communication Scales was used as a measure of joint attention skills, and Short- form version of the MacArthur Communicative Development Inventories was used as a measure of receptive and expressive vocabulary. Study included 30 typically developing children aged 9, 12 and 18 months and 10 children with communication and language disorders. All children with developmental disabilities/delay were included in speech and language therapy. Clinical implications of this study are directed toward the importance of strengthening joint attention skills as one of the primary aims of speech and language therapy in early childhood.

joint attention, autism, language

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