Children born or raised during lockdown are developing language skills at a slower rate

By Eva Murillo Sanz, Departamento de Psicología Básica. Coordinadora del Máster en Especialización en Desarrollo Comunicativo y Lingüístico en a Etapa de 0 a 6 años, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid
Irene Rujas Pascual, Profesora Ayudante Doctora. Facultad de Psicología, Universidad Complutense de Madrid
Marta Casla Soler, Profesora del dpto. Psicología Evolutiva y de la Educación. Facultad de Psicología, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid
Miguel Lázaro, Profesor de la Facultad de Psicología. Logopeda y lingüista. Especialista en trastornos del lenguaje oral y escrito, Universidad Complutense de Madrid

Social interactions in the first months of life are fundamental for babies to learn how to communicate and develop their language skills. Physical contact, touch, smiling and our first face-to-face “conversations” are the pillars on which we build our understanding of the social world.

The limits placed on social interaction during the COVID-19 pandemic profoundly affected these early interactions. We interacted less and with fewer people and had to go without some basic aspects of communication, such as physical touch or sharing objects.

For children born during the pandemic,…

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