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1. Agreement and Attraction in Russian (EJ806574)
Author(s):
Lorimor, Heidi; Bock, Kathryn; Zalkind, Ekaterina; Sheyman, Alina; Beard, Robert
Source:
Language and Cognitive Processes, v23 n6 p769-799 Sep 2008
Pub Date:
2008-09-00
Pub Type(s):
Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Peer-Reviewed:
No
Descriptors: Sentences; Morphology (Languages); Russian; Grammar; Native Speakers; Morphemes; Structural Grammar; Sentence Structure; Verbs; Nouns; Immigrants
Abstract: We assessed whether and under what conditions noncanonical agreement patterns occur in Russian, with the goal of understanding the factors involved in normal agreement. Russian is a morphosyntactically rich language in which agreement involves features for number, gender, and case. If consistent, overt specification of number and gender agreement features supports agreement processes in language production, agreement should be less vulnerable to number and gender attraction than in languages with sparse agreement morphology. A related question was the degree to which notional number influences agreement patterns in morphologically rich languages. We varied the grammatical and notional number properties of sentence subjects and examined the effects on the predicate in sentence completion tasks using native Russian speakers. Noncanonical agreement occurred, but at rates lower than those observed in English and other languages without rich number morphology. Noncanonically plural predicates occurred more often after notionally plural subjects, suggesting notional number agreement, but the incidence was also lower than in languages with sparser agreement morphology. Gender attraction was almost nonexistent. The results suggest that morphology arbitrates grammatical agreement processes and reduces the impact of variations in notional number. (Contains 6 tables and 3 figures.) Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract
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2. Is Structure Dependence an Innate Constraint? New Experimental Evidence from Children's Complex-Question Production (EJ785757)
Ambridge, Ben; Rowland, Caroline F.; Pine, Julian M.
Cognitive Science, v32 n1 p222-255 Jan 2008
2008-01-00
Journal Articles; Reports - Evaluative
Yes
Descriptors: Children; Language Processing; Language Patterns; Linguistic Input; Syntax; Language Acquisition; Structural Grammar; Error Patterns; Experiments; Foreign Countries
Abstract: According to Crain and Nakayama (1987), when forming complex yes/no questions, children do not make errors such as "Is the boy who smoking is crazy?" because they have innate knowledge of "structure dependence" and so will not move the auxiliary from the relative clause. However, simple recurrent networks are also able to avoid such errors, on the basis of surface distributional properties of the input (Lewis & Elman, 2001; Reali & Christiansen, 2005). Two new elicited production studies revealed that (a) children occasionally produce structure-dependence errors and (b) the pattern of children's auxiliary-doubling errors ("Is the boy who is smoking is crazy?") suggests a sensitivity to surface co-occurrence patterns in the input. This article concludes that current data do not provide any support for the claim that structure dependence is an innate constraint, and that it is possible that children form a structure-dependent grammar on the basis of exposure to input that exhibits this property. (Contains 1 figure, 9 tables and 9 notes.) Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract
3. The Shape of Direct Quotation (EJ817120)
Weber, Rose-Marie
Reading Teacher, v61 n7 p558-564 Apr 2008
2008-04-00
Descriptors: Teaching Methods; Oral Reading; Semantics; Text Structure; Story Grammar; Beginning Reading; Early Reading; Language Patterns; Language Skills; Sentence Structure; Structural Grammar; Form Classes (Languages); Language Rhythm
Abstract: Direct quotation can be a source of meaning in storybook texts for beginning readers. The author of this article sketches the linguistic complexity of direct quotation and offers instructional strategies. Three aspects of direct quotation are examined: the cluster of print features and syntactic characteristics that direct quotation involves, the prosodic qualities that direct quotation calls for in oral reading, and the semantic links, especially pronouns, between the speakers in the text and what they say. Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract
4. Individual Variation in Agrammatism: A Single Case Study of the Influence of Interaction (EJ778306)
Beeke, Suzanne; Wilkinson, Ray; Maxim, Jane
International Journal of Language & Communication Disorders, v42 n6 p629-647 Nov 2007
2007-11-00
Descriptors: Language Impairments; Sentences; Story Telling; Speech Communication; Psycholinguistics; Verbs; Grammar; Cartoons; Interaction; Structural Grammar; Persuasive Discourse; Aphasia
Abstract: Background: Agrammatic speech can manifest in different ways in the same speaker if task demands change. Individual variation is considered to reflect adaptation, driven by psycholinguistic factors such as underlying deficit. Recently, qualitative investigations have begun to show ways in which conversational interaction can influence the form of an agrammatic speaker's output. Aims: To explore qualitative patterns of individual variation in the output of a single case, in order to address the following questions: (1) in what ways do grammatical structure, verbs and argument structure differ qualitatively between data samples?; and (2) what is the influence of interaction on the structure of utterances? Methods & Procedures: A man with severe and chronic agrammatism is videotaped completing tests of spoken sentence construction, composite, and cartoon strip picture descriptions and a story telling task. In addition, he independently videotapes a sample of conversation with a family member at home. Analyses of these data draw on cognitive neuropsychological, linguistic and psycholinguistic methodologies as well as the data-driven procedures of conversation analysis.Outcomes & Results: The qualitative analysis uncovers considerable variation between data sets with respect to grammatical structure, verbs and argument structure. The agrammatic speaker appears more skilled at imposing order on his spontaneous speech than the results of sentence construction tests might predict. Interaction influences his output style. Adaptation is found to be a collaborative process that occurs between two speakers in the quest for mutual understanding, not something that takes place within an individual. Conclusions: It is concluded that an interactional approach to agrammatism has the potential to yield important insights into the characteristics of telegraphic speech and individual variation. The failure of sentence-level tests to capture this individual's skill in producing systematically structured utterances in conversation implies that the assessment of agrammatism could benefit from the additional sampling and analysis of conversational grammar. Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract
5. ERP Evidence for the Rapid Assignment of an (Appropriate) Antecedent to PRO (EJ772169)
Demestre, Josep; Garcia-Albea, Jose E.
Cognitive Science, v31 n2 p343-354 2007
2007-00-00
Descriptors: Form Classes (Languages); Neurolinguistics; Language Processing; Error Analysis (Language); Structural Grammar; Sentence Structure; Associative Learning; Inferences; Research Design; Language Research
Abstract: Event-related brain potentials were recorded while subjects listened to sentences containing a controlled infinitival complement. Subject and object control items were used, both with 2 potential antecedents in the upper clause. Half of the sentences had a gender agreement violation between the null subject of the infinitival complement and an adjective predicated of it. The rapid detection of this anomaly would indicate that the parser had established the coreference relation between the null subject and an antecedent, and that the processor had rapidly consulted verb control information to select the proper antecedent of the null subject. The results showed that for both subject and object control items ungrammatical adjectives elicited a P600 effect. These data imply that the processor has coindexed the null subject with an antecedent, and that the antecedent has been selected on the basis of control information. These results are compatible with parsing models that emphasize the rapid influence of verb-specific information on sentence processing. Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract
6. Investigating the Abstractness of Children's Early Knowledge of Argument Structure (EJ777531)
McClure, Kathleen; Pine, Julian M.; Lieven, Elena V. M.
Journal of Child Language, v33 n4 p693-720 Nov 2006
2006-11-00
Descriptors: Verbs; Child Language; Program Validation; Investigations; Syntax; Debate; Connected Discourse; Dialogs (Language); Structural Grammar; Abstract Reasoning; Early Experience
Abstract: In the current debate about the abstractness of children's early grammatical knowledge, Tomasello & Abbott-Smith (2002) have suggested that children might first develop "weak" or "partial" representations of abstract syntactic structures. This paper attempts to characterize these structures by comparing the development of constructions around verbs in Tomasello's (1992) case study of Travis, with those of 10 children (Stage I-II) in a year-length, longitudinal study. The results show some evidence that children's early knowledge of argument structure is verb-specific, but also some evidence that children can generalize knowledge about argument structure across verbs. One way to explain these findings is to argue that children are learning limited scope formulae around high frequency subjects and objects, which serve as building blocks for more abstract structures such as S+V and V+O. The implication is that children may have some verb-general knowledge of the transitive construction as early as Stage I, but that this knowledge is still far from being fully abstract knowledge. Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract
7. Effects of Grammatical Categories on Children's Visual Language Processing: Evidence from Event-Related Brain Potentials (EJ737508)
Weber-Fox, Christine; Hart, Laura J.; Spruill, John E., III
Brain and Language, v98 n1 p26-39 Jul 2006
2006-07-00
Descriptors: Structural Grammar; Form Classes (Languages); Children; Language Acquisition; Visual Learning; Language Processing; Brain Hemisphere Functions; Sentences; Beginning Reading; Word Frequency
Abstract: This study examined how school-aged children process different grammatical categories. Event-related brain potentials elicited by words in visually presented sentences were analyzed according to seven grammatical categories with naturally varying characteristics of linguistic functions, semantic features, and quantitative attributes of length and frequency. The categories included nouns, adjectives, verbs, pronouns, conjunctions, prepositions, and articles. The findings indicate that by the age of 9-10 years, children exhibit robust neural indicators differentiating grammatical categories; however, it is also evident that development of language processing is not yet adult-like at this age. The current findings are consistent with the hypothesis that for beginning readers a variety of cues and characteristics interact to affect processing of different grammatical categories and indicate the need to take into account linguistic functions, prosodic salience, and grammatical complexity as they relate to the development of language abilities. Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract
8. Impact of Error Labeling on Error Elimination in Business Writing (EJ798299)
Quible, Zane K.
Business Communication Quarterly, v69 n1 p8-24 2006
2006-00-00
Descriptors: Control Groups; Business Communication; Form Classes (Languages); Instructional Effectiveness; Remedial Instruction; Quasiexperimental Design; Experimental Groups; Error Analysis (Language); Error Correction; Structural Grammar
Abstract: This article reports a quasi-experimental study of how error labeling in remediation exercises affects students' writing performance. Students in five sections of a course in written business communication composed the control group, whereas students in two sections composed the treatment group. On the first letter each group wrote early in the semester--before the treatment group began error labeling in remediation exercises--no significant differences were found in the writing performance of both groups. However, on their last letter written late in the semester, students in the treatment group significantly reduced the number of sentence-level errors they made, compared to students in the control group. The improved writing performance of the treatment group is attributed to error labeling in conjunction with error correction in the remediation exercises. (Contains 1 figure and 2 tables.) Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract
9. Object Agreement and Specificity in Early Swahili (EJ777521)
Deen, Kamil Ud
Journal of Child Language, v33 n2 p223-246 May 2006
2006-05-00
Journal Articles; Reports - Descriptive
Descriptors: African Languages; Language Research; Form Classes (Languages); Child Language; Structural Grammar; Linguistics
Abstract: Schaeffer (1997, 2000) argues that children lack knowledge of specificity because Dutch children omit determiners and fail to scramble pronouns. Avrutin & Brun (2001), however, find that Russian children place arguments correctly according to whether they are specific or non-specific. This paper investigates object agreement and specificity in early Swahili. Object agreement in Swahili is obligatory when the object is specific, but is prohibited when the object is non-specific. Analysis of naturalistic data from four Swahili-speaking children (1;8-3;2) reveals that children overwhelmingly provide object agreement in obligatory contexts (when the object is a personal name, is topicalized, or refers to first/second person). The supply of object agreement cannot be due to a general strategy of overusing agreement, since object agreement does not occur in prohibited contexts such as intransitive clauses. I conclude that object agreement and knowledge of specificity are acquired by Swahili children before the age of two years. (Contains 1 footnote.) Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract
10. A Comparison of English Reading Passages for Elicitation of Speech Samples from Clinical Populations (EJ729283)
Powell, Thomas W.
Clinical Linguistics & Phonetics, v20 n2-3 p91-97 Apr-May 2006
Descriptors: Oral Reading; Phonetics; Lexicology; English; Speech Evaluation; Communication Disorders; Structural Grammar; Phonemes; Reading Materials
Abstract: Oral reading passages are often used to elicit speech samples from clinical populations. Few objective guidelines exist, however, to guide one's selection from among the many existing passages. Therefore, this study was undertaken to describe phonetic, lexical, and structural characteristics of 15 oral reading passages. The passages differed markedly in the demands that they placed upon the speaker (i.e., length and complexity), as well as the adequacy of the phonetic sample. (Contains 1 note.) Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract
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