title: Individual differences in children's and parents' generic language.
abstract: Generics ("Dogs bark") convey important information about categories and facilitate children's learning. Two studies with parents and their 2- or 4-year-old children (N = 104 dyads) examined whether individual differences in generic language use are as follows: (a) stable over time, contexts, and domains, and (b) linked to conceptual factors. For both children and parents, individual differences in rate of generic production were stable across time, contexts, and domains, and parents' generic usage significantly correlated with that of their own children. Furthermore, parents' essentialist beliefs correlated with their own and their children's rates of generic frequency. These results indicate that generic language use exhibits substantial stability and may reflect individual differences in speakers' conceptual attitudes toward categories.
authors.affiliation: University of Michigan.
authors.forename: Susan A
authors.initials: SA
authors.lastname: Gelman
authors.affiliation: Viterbo University.
authors.forename: Elizabeth A
authors.initials: EA
authors.lastname: Ware
authors.affiliation: University of Michigan.
authors.forename: Felicia
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Kleinberg
authors.affiliation: Northwestern University.
authors.forename: Erika M
authors.initials: EM
authors.lastname: Manczak
authors.affiliation: University of Michigan.
authors.forename: Sarah M
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: Stilwell
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003210:Concept Formation / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007206:Individuality; D007802:Language; D007804:Language Development; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010287:Parent-Child Relations; D055815:Young Adult