Language-mediated object categorization: A longitudinal study with 16-to 20-month-old Serbian-speaking children

This study addressed the development of language-mediated categorization longitudinally, on a sample of Serbian-speaking children aged 16-20months. Twenty four children were tested 3 consecutive times on: categorization of unknown objects with a shared label and a similar shape; and categorization of unknown objects with a shared label, but no visual similarity. The task was embedded in a game-like activity which included real object manipulation, categorization of novel objects labeled with made-up names, and socio-pragmatic cues provided by the experimenter. Our results indicate that an average child develops the ability to categorize novel objects with a similar shape and a shared label around 16months of age, whereas for novel objects with a shared label, but no visual similarity, this ability is acquired sometime between 18 and 20months of age. Our results partly confirm research findings obtained in other languages, thus emphasizing the need for cross-linguistic and cross-cultural validation of all language-related developmental studies.