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Talking to children in Western Samoa*†

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  18 December 2008

Elinor Ochs
Elinor Ochs
Affiliation:
Department of Linguistics, University of Southern California
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Abstract

This study examines the relation between cultural beliefs and values on the one hand and the organization of communication between caregivers and young children on the other. The study compares caregiver-child verbal interaction in two different communities, rural Western Samoa and Anglo middle class, with an emphasis on the former. It illustrates ways in which organization of turn-taking and procedures for clarification and interpretation are linked to beliefs and expectations concerning the nature of children and the social organization of caregiving. (Language acquisition, socialization, input, communicative competence, Oceania.)

Type
Articles
Information
Language in Society , Volume 11 , Issue 1 , April 1982 , pp. 77 - 104
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1982

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