Imitations and repetitions: what do children say following recasts?

The current study investigated whether children revise their speech (i.e., imitate) or repeat their errors following negative evidence. In addition we examined how children's replies varied as a function of family setting. Fourteen children (2;3) were videotaped interacting with their mothers, fathers and siblings (4;1) in dyad, triad and tetrad settings. Analyses revealed that following recasts children were likely to revise their speech rather than repeat their original error. Without feedback, children repeated their errors. The overall pattern of children's replies following recasts differed considerably from replies following noncorrective speech across family settings. Implications and limitations of these findings are discussed in terms of current negative evidence research.