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The Influence of Prenatal Language Exposure on the Use of Pitch in Newborns' Vocalisations: A Systematic Review

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Title: The Influence of Prenatal Language Exposure on the Use of Pitch in Newborns' Vocalisations: A Systematic Review
Language: English
Authors: Elanie van Niekerk (ORCID 0000-0002-5605-2163), Caroline Junge, Aoju Chen (ORCID 0000-0002-6745-9794)
Source: First Language. 2026 46(2):305-334.
Availability: SAGE Publications. 2455 Teller Road, Thousand Oaks, CA 91320. Tel: 800-818-7243; Tel: 805-499-9774; Fax: 800-583-2665; e-mail: journals@sagepub.com; Web site: https://sagepub.com
Peer Reviewed: Y
Page Count: 30
Publication Date: 2026
Document Type: Journal Articles
Information Analyses
Descriptors: Literature Reviews, Infants, Infant Behavior, Acoustics, Intonation, Child Language, Prenatal Influences, Language Acquisition, Aural Learning, Nonverbal Communication, Crying, Age Differences, Foreign Countries
DOI: 10.1177/01427237251372203
ISSN: 0142-7237
1740-2344
Abstract: Prenatal language exposure has been shown to influence early speech perception, with evidence suggesting that the acquisition of certain aspects of native-language prosody may begin before birth. While this notion has been well-supported from a perceptual perspective, findings across available production studies are inconsistent. This study, therefore, explored whether the pitch of newborns' early vocalisations is influenced by prenatal exposure to their native language via a systematic review of quantitative evidence. The review included 18 studies analysing the pitch patterns of cry and non-cry vocalisations in healthy newborns aged birth to 3 months with monolingual prenatal exposure to 11 languages. It systematically describes the study characteristics and outcomes of these studies and synthesises the converging and diverging trends across them through cross-linguistic comparisons. Within this sample, the available evidence for cross-linguistic differences in the pitch patterns of early vocalisations is sparse and inconsistent. Importantly, substantial variations in the analysis methods used across studies were noted, which further obscure cross-study comparisons. Furthermore, studies were restricted in number as well as the diversity of languages and vocalisation types represented. Taken together, our review suggests that there is at best tentative evidence for an influence of prenatal language exposure on newborns' pitch production. Based on this review, we offer recommendations to improve the replicability and representativeness of future research, with the aim of arriving at a more definitive answer to the research question.
Abstractor: As Provided
Entry Date: 2026
Accession Number: EJ1499980
Database: ERIC
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  Data: The Influence of Prenatal Language Exposure on the Use of Pitch in Newborns' Vocalisations: A Systematic Review
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Elanie+van+Niekerk%22">Elanie van Niekerk</searchLink> (ORCID <externalLink term="https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5605-2163">0000-0002-5605-2163</externalLink>)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Caroline+Junge%22">Caroline Junge</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Aoju+Chen%22">Aoju Chen</searchLink> (ORCID <externalLink term="https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6745-9794">0000-0002-6745-9794</externalLink>)
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="SO" term="%22First+Language%22"><i>First Language</i></searchLink>. 2026 46(2):305-334.
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  Data: SAGE Publications. 2455 Teller Road, Thousand Oaks, CA 91320. Tel: 800-818-7243; Tel: 805-499-9774; Fax: 800-583-2665; e-mail: journals@sagepub.com; Web site: https://sagepub.com
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  Data: 0142-7237<br />1740-2344
– Name: Abstract
  Label: Abstract
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  Data: Prenatal language exposure has been shown to influence early speech perception, with evidence suggesting that the acquisition of certain aspects of native-language prosody may begin before birth. While this notion has been well-supported from a perceptual perspective, findings across available production studies are inconsistent. This study, therefore, explored whether the pitch of newborns' early vocalisations is influenced by prenatal exposure to their native language via a systematic review of quantitative evidence. The review included 18 studies analysing the pitch patterns of cry and non-cry vocalisations in healthy newborns aged birth to 3 months with monolingual prenatal exposure to 11 languages. It systematically describes the study characteristics and outcomes of these studies and synthesises the converging and diverging trends across them through cross-linguistic comparisons. Within this sample, the available evidence for cross-linguistic differences in the pitch patterns of early vocalisations is sparse and inconsistent. Importantly, substantial variations in the analysis methods used across studies were noted, which further obscure cross-study comparisons. Furthermore, studies were restricted in number as well as the diversity of languages and vocalisation types represented. Taken together, our review suggests that there is at best tentative evidence for an influence of prenatal language exposure on newborns' pitch production. Based on this review, we offer recommendations to improve the replicability and representativeness of future research, with the aim of arriving at a more definitive answer to the research question.
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      – SubjectFull: Aural Learning
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