What are the benefits of having a village? Effects of allomaternal care on communicative skills in early infancy

•Attending formal childcare does not impact communicative behaviors during infancy.•More exposure to Household AMC is predictive of higher rates of spontaneous giving.•More exposure to Household AMC is predictive of lower rates of turn taking.•Number of siblings present significantly impacts several communicative behaviors.•Naturalistic follows of infant interactions with caregivers and siblings are needed. This study investigates whether exposure to allomaternal care (AMC—care for infants from individuals other than the mother) improves rates of communicative behaviors during late infancy by providing more opportunities to practice communicating with varied caregivers. Data were collected from 102 typically-developing infants aged 13–18 months and their mothers. AMC variables were collected using a current care questionnaire, structured 14-day diary, and longitudinal interview. Communicative behaviors were assessed through post hoc microcoding of in-lab administrations of the Early Social Communication Scales (ESCS), as well as additional microcoding of the Bayley III Screening Cognitive Subtest. Demographic covariates were also included. For each communicative behavior, backward model selection was used to determine the best fitting linear regression model. Results suggested that rates of turn-taking decreased with Household AMC (p