Do Emotions Speak a Universal Language? English-Speaking Preschoolers' and Adults' Detection of Emotional Prosody in an Unfamiliar Language
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| Title: | Do Emotions Speak a Universal Language? English-Speaking Preschoolers' and Adults' Detection of Emotional Prosody in an Unfamiliar Language |
|---|---|
| Language: | English |
| Authors: | Tyler Birse, Yomna Waly, Craig G. Chambers, Susan A. Graham (ORCID |
| Source: | Infant and Child Development. 2026 35(2). |
| Availability: | Wiley. Available from: John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 111 River Street, Hoboken, NJ 07030. Tel: 800-835-6770; e-mail: cs-journals@wiley.com; Web site: https://www.wiley.com/en-us |
| Peer Reviewed: | Y |
| Page Count: | 12 |
| Publication Date: | 2026 |
| Document Type: | Journal Articles Reports - Research |
| Descriptors: | Psychological Patterns, Preschool Children, Adults, Emotional Response, Suprasegmentals, Familiarity |
| DOI: | 10.1002/icd.70100 |
| ISSN: | 1522-7227 1522-7219 |
| Abstract: | We examined English-speaking preschoolers' and adults' attention to emotional prosody in an unfamiliar language when asked to: (a) match emotional prosody with emotional faces; and (b) use emotional prosody to identify a speaker's intended referent. In Experiment 1, 4-year-olds (N = 36, M = 4.16 years; 18 females) and adults (N = 38, M = 21.18 years; 26 females) matched happy and sad Polish utterances to a corresponding emotional face, as evidenced through pointing decisions. In Experiment 2, adults (N = 36, M = 20.17 years; 31 females), but not 4-year-olds (N = 36, M = 4.11 years; 18 females), matched the same emotional utterances to objects whose properties signalled an association with happiness or sadness (e.g., intact vs. broken toy). These findings demonstrate that 4-year-olds and adults can recognise emotional prosody in an unfamiliar language, however, only adults are successful at extending this information to other kinds of emotion-relevant decisions. |
| Abstractor: | As Provided |
| Notes: | https://osf.io/n2qpk/?view_only=621a74f95b034387adf24624badb3873 |
| Entry Date: | 2026 |
| Accession Number: | EJ1503802 |
| Database: | ERIC |
| Abstract: | We examined English-speaking preschoolers' and adults' attention to emotional prosody in an unfamiliar language when asked to: (a) match emotional prosody with emotional faces; and (b) use emotional prosody to identify a speaker's intended referent. In Experiment 1, 4-year-olds (N = 36, M = 4.16 years; 18 females) and adults (N = 38, M = 21.18 years; 26 females) matched happy and sad Polish utterances to a corresponding emotional face, as evidenced through pointing decisions. In Experiment 2, adults (N = 36, M = 20.17 years; 31 females), but not 4-year-olds (N = 36, M = 4.11 years; 18 females), matched the same emotional utterances to objects whose properties signalled an association with happiness or sadness (e.g., intact vs. broken toy). These findings demonstrate that 4-year-olds and adults can recognise emotional prosody in an unfamiliar language, however, only adults are successful at extending this information to other kinds of emotion-relevant decisions. |
|---|---|
| ISSN: | 1522-7227 1522-7219 |
| DOI: | 10.1002/icd.70100 |
