CONICET | Buscador de Institutos y Recursos Humanos

This presentation aims to analyse SES variations in the mental-state language used and heard by young children in family interactions at home. Previous research has shown that the caregiver ́s amount, diversity and discursive use of mental-state language can give way to children ́s individual differences in ToM abilities (de Rosnay & Hughes, 2006; Howard, Mayeux & Naigles, 2008). Most of the previous studies have been carried out with middle-income populations. The present study is designed to address differences in the vocabulary that refers to emotions, desires and cognitive states and events that is used by 4 year- old Argentine children from middle income and urban-marginalized populations and is contained in the input they receive in everyday situations in their homes. The data analyzed consists of 252 hours of spontaneous situations (including play, hygiene, and mealtime situations) recorded in the homes of 21 children (4:5) from urban marginalized populations and 228 hours of spontaneous situations (play, hygiene, meal) recorded in the homes of 19 children (4:5) from middle-income populations. Each child?s home was recorded for 12 hours. Data was transcribed according to CHAT and analysed using the CLAN Program (MacWhinney, 2000). The analysis considered the quantity and diversity of nouns, adjectives and verbs that refer to emotions, cognitions and desires that the children were exposed to and produced themselves. Results showed significant differences according to social groups in the amount of mental terms that they used (z= -3,86 p > 0,00) and that were contained in their input (z= -3,58 p > 0,00) as well as an association between the mental-state language they were exposed to and that which they produced (r=0,584 p > 0,01). No differences in mental-state language were observed relative to gender (children? s types: z= -1,56 p >0,12; types in the input: z= -0,11 p >0,91).

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