Analyzes dialogs between mothers and their deaf or hearing children, while controlling for child age and linguistic ability. Results showed that the conversational interaction in mother-child dyads with deaf children was more restricted than that with hearing children. This seemed to be related to the linguistic ability of the deaf children. (SED)

Two linguistically deficient children of deaf parents had been cared for almost exclusively by their mother, who did not speak or sign to them. Intervention led to erasure of idiosynchratic speech pattern in the older child and in increasing both children's expressive ability. Implications for language-learning are discussed. (PJM)