Features of communication in Norwegian parent-child play interactions

Communication is best understood as occurring along three dimensions: interactional, conceptual, and linguistic. However, few studies have examined early parent-child communication along all three dimensions simultaneously. This study examines these three dimensions of communication in Norwegian parent-child interactions during play. Thirty-nine 2-year-old children participated in dyadic interactions with their fathers (N = 30) and mothers (N = 38). Of these 39 children, 29 engaged in separate interactions with both parents. Father-child and mother-child responsive communication, levels of abstract talk, and language complexity and diversity were examined and compared. Overall, the features of communication were very similar between father-child and mother-child interactions, and there were some noteworthy associations between the features of father-child and mother-child communication within families and dyads. We discuss these findings in reference to the three dimensions and in relation to the specific activity and cultural setting of the study.