This longitudinal study (data collected from 2019 to 2023) examines the relation between Spanish‐English bilingual Latino toddlers' (n=46; F=22; M=24) early gesture production (Mage=18.67 months; SDage=1.02) and later language skills (Mage=36.87 months; SDage=0.81). Video recordings at child‐age 18‐months yielded counts of children's speech and gesture production; the latter included gesture words (different meanings) and gesture sentences (gestures‐plus‐speech combinations). Multiple regression analyses revealed that gesture words and sentences at 18 months of age positively predicted word‐ and sentence‐level skills at 36 months of age, respectively, but only in English. These relations held despite controlling for children's speech production. These findings, that early gesture production selectively predicts language outcomes in bilingual children, suggest that gesture production may facilitate language‐specific learning rather than reflecting a global communicative skill.

中文翻译：

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手势产生选择性地预测西班牙语-英语双语儿童的语言结果

这项纵向研究（从 2019 年到 2023 年收集的数据）考察了西班牙语-英语双语拉丁裔幼儿 （n=46;F=22;M=24）早期手势产生 （Mage=18.67 个月;SDage=1.02）和以后的语言技能 （Mage=36.87 个月;SDage=0.81）。18 个月大儿童的视频记录产生了儿童言语和手势产生的计数;后者包括手势词（不同含义）和手势句子（手势加语音组合）。多元回归分析显示，18 个月大时的手势词和句子分别积极预测了 36 个月大时的单词和句子水平技能，但仅限于英语。尽管控制了儿童的言语产生，但这些关系仍然存在。这些发现，早期手势产生选择性地预测了双语儿童的语言结果，这表明手势产生可能促进特定语言的学习，而不是反映整体交际技能。