Form-function rules in the first words stage: A longitudinal study of two children.

Abstract

This work analyzes pragmatic development in the first words stage, specifically the form-function rules that infants construct for communicating. It presents data from two children who took part in a longitudinal/ observational case study research. Our results point to the general tendencies identified with respect to form-function rules (Ninio, 1994b; Ninio Snow, 1996) and to the existence of inter-individual differences. These differences refer to: a) the mapping of form-function rules and b) pragmatic flexibility. Differences in early lexical acquisition are related to the children's general communicative profiles