The aim of the present mixed cross-sectional and longitudinal study was to observe and
describe some aspects of vocal imitation in natural mother-infant interaction. Specifically,
maternal imitation of infant utterances was observed in relation to the imitative modeling,
mirrored equivalence, and social guided learning models of infant speech development.
Nine mother-infant dyads were audio-video recorded. Infants were recruited at different ages
between 6 and 11 months and followed for 3 months, providing a quasi-longitudinal series�…