Which statement defines customary production?

• A. The child produces the phoneme correctly more often than 50% of the time.
• B. The age at which more than 50% of children have mastered production of the phoneme.
• C. The age at which more than 90% of children produce the phoneme correctly more often than not.
• D. The child produces the phoneme correctly more often than 90% of the time.

Answer: (A)

Customary production describes how often a child uses a phoneme correctly in typical speech, signaling that the sound has become a regular, habitual part of their repertoire. The defining threshold is more than half of the opportunities, meaning the child produces the sound correctly in greater than 50% of trials. This level shows consistent usage rather than occasional success, which is why it’s the best match for customary production.

Other thresholds describe different milestones: more than 50% of children mastering a sound refers to population norms (an age-based milestone, not an individual’s habitual accuracy). A figure of more than 90% reflects a higher level of stability or near-dialect mastery, not habitual use. Producing correctly more than 90% of the time would indicate a higher level than customary production, representing stronger consistency rather than the habitual, everyday use captured by customary production.