Abstract
The paper presents the interactive perspective in developmental psycholinguistics. From this perspective, recent data pertaining to language disorders, particularly mental retardation, childhood autism, deafness, and speech and language impairment, are presented and discussed. The implications of these data for language intervention within the family and with the help of the family are indicated. The emphasis is on the systemic dimension of the parent-child relationship within the family context and the reciprocal adaptations that supply the dynamic basis of the system. The developmental value of these adjustments is strongly suggested and their therapeutic usefulness is indicated.