The interactionist theory of language development suggests that:

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11ecba2d_0d43_6dc1_a3bf_570d8c049154_MD0008_00 There are several language development theories; some stress the importance of reinforcement and imitation (eg, learning perspective), whereas others suggest that language acquisition is innate (eg, nativist perspective). The interactionist theory proposes that language acquisition is the result of both biological (eg, normal brain development) and environmental/social factors, particularly the interaction that occurs between children and their caregivers. The interactionist theory is supported by evidence that certain aspects of language appear to be innate whereas others appear to be social. Children typically learn to communicate with language along a similar timeline (eg, first words around age 1, simple two-word phrases by age 2, etc), which provides evidence that some aspects of language acquisition are innate. However, children who are severely neglected (ie, almost no social contact) do not learn to communicate using language, which provides evidence that language acquisition also requires social interaction. (Choice A) The learning theory, which proposes that language is acquired through conditioning and modeling, would be supported by evidence that praise for speaking a new word reinforces young children to say that word again. (Choice B) The nativist theory, which proposes that language is not learned as are other skills/behaviors but is learned via an innate process hardwired in the brain, would suggest that only language exposure during a critical (time sensitive) period early in life results in fluency. (Choice C) The linguistic relativity theory (ie, the Sapir-Whorf hypothesis) proposes that cognition is influenced and/or shaped by language; in its stronger version, this perspective would suggest that children are unable to think about concepts for which they have not yet learned the words. Educational objective: The interactionist theory of language development suggests that language is acquired through a process that is both social and biological. Children require interaction with caregivers early in life to learn language (social), but they are also predisposed to learn language in a way that is different from how they learn all other skills (biological).

The Interactionist Theory of Language Development Suggests That