Dissertations / Theses on the topic 'Language acquisition; Psycholinguistics; Semantics'
To see the other types of publications on this topic, follow the link: Language acquisition; Psycholinguistics; Semantics.
Create a spot-on reference in APA, MLA, Chicago, Harvard, and other styles
Consult the top 50 dissertations / theses for your research on the topic 'Language acquisition; Psycholinguistics; Semantics.'
Next to every source in the list of references, there is an 'Add to bibliography' button. Press on it, and we will generate automatically the bibliographic reference to the chosen work in the citation style you need: APA, MLA, Harvard, Chicago, Vancouver, etc.
You can also download the full text of the academic publication as pdf and read online its abstract whenever available in the metadata.
Browse dissertations / theses on a wide variety of disciplines and organise your bibliography correctly.
1
Cremers, Alexandre. "On the semantics of embedded questions." Thesis, Paris Sciences et Lettres (ComUE), 2016. http://www.theses.fr/2016PSLEE006/document.
Full textAbstract:
Suivant la proposition de Tarski (1936), la sémantique vériconditionnelle associeà une phrase déclarative des conditions de vérité. Ainsi, comprendre le sens dela phrase “Il pleut”, c’est pouvoir dire après avoir regardé par la fenêtre si elle estvraie ou fausse. Toutefois, ceci ne permet de rendre compte que des phrases déclaratives,et pas des questions puisqu’aucune situation ne rendra jamais la question“Qui a appelé ce matin ?” vraie ou fausse. Hamblin (1973) propose la premièrethéorie des questions dans le cadre de la sémantique véri-conditionnelle, et proposede leur associer des conditions de résolutions, c’est-à-dire des ensembles deréponses. Comprendre le sens de la question “Qui a appelé ce matin ?” c’est alorssavoir que “Jean a appelé” est une réponse possible, tandis que “il pleuvait” n’enest pas une.Très rapidement, l’étude de la sémantique des questions s’est tournée versles questions enchâssées dans des phrases déclaratives (questions indirectes). Eneffet, il est beaucoup plus aisé de juger des conditions de vérité d’une phrasesdéclarative que des conditions de résolution d’une question. Or moyennant deshypothèses sur la sémantique des verbes enchâssant des questions (‘savoir’, ‘oublier’.. . ), on peut relier les conditions de vérité d’une phrase déclarative au sensde la question qu’elle enchâsse. Cette approche, proposée par Karttunen (1977), adonné lieu à une littérature théorique très richeTwo important questions arise from the recent literature on embedded questions.First, Heim (1994) proposed that embedded questions are ambiguous betweena weakly and strongly exhaustive reading. Spector (2005) recently proposedan intermediate exhaustive reading as well. Second, adverbs of quantity such as’mostly’ can quantify over answers to an embedded questions (Berman, 1991). Ananalysis of this phenomena reveals an analogy between embedded questions andplural determiner phrases, and suggests a fine-grained structures for the denotationof questions (Lahiri, 2002).The first part of the dissertation consist of three psycholinguistic studies on theexhaustive readings of questions under ‘know’ in English, the acquisition of thesereadings under ‘savoir’ by French 5-to-6-ear-olds, and the properties of emotivefactivepredicates such as ‘surprise’. The second part presents a theory of embeddedquestions built on Klinedinst and Rothschild’s (2011) proposal to derive exhaustivereadings as implicatures, although it differs in the fine-grained structureit adopts for questions denotations in order to account for plurality effects as well.The theory solves problem raised by B. R. George (2013) and makes predictions fora larger range of sentences
2
Paciorek, Albertyna. "Implicit learning of semantic preferences." Thesis, University of Cambridge, 2013. https://www.repository.cam.ac.uk/handle/1810/244632.
Full textAbstract:
The research presented in this PhD dissertation examines the phenomenon of semantic implicit learning, using semantic preferences of novel verbs as a test case. Implicit learning refers to the phenomenon of learning without intending to learn or awareness that one is learning at all. Semantic preference (or selectional preference – as preferred in computational linguistics) is the tendency of a word to co-occur with words sharing similar semantic features. For example, ‘drink’ is typically followed by nouns denoting LIQUID, and the verb ‘chase’ is typically followed by ANIMATE nouns. The material presented here spans across disciplines. It examines a well-documented psychological phenomenon - implicit learning – and applies it in the context of language acquisition, thereby providing insights into both fields. The organisation of this dissertation groups its experiments by their methodology. Chapter 1 provides an overview of the current psychological and linguistic literature. Chapter 2 includes a pen-and-paper study carried out in a classroom environment on Polish learners of English, where awareness is assessed by subjective measures taken at each test question as well as a post-experiment questionnaire. Chapter 3 includes a collection of 5 computer-based experiments based on a false-memory paradigm. After exposure to sentential contexts containing novel verbs, participants are shown to endorse more previously unseen verb-noun pairings that follow the correct semantic preference patterns to the pairings that violate it. The result holds even when participants do not reveal any explicit knowledge of the patterns in the final debriefing. Awareness is additionally assessed using indirect measures examining correlations of confidence judgements with performance. Chapter 4 examines whether implicit learning of novel verb semantic preference patterns is automatic. To this end, a reaction time procedure is developed based on two consecutive decisions (“double decision priming”). The method reveals that semantic implicit learning, at least in the described cases, exerts its influence with a delay, in post-processing. Chapter 5 comprises research done in collaboration with Dr Nitin Williams, University of Reading. It documents an attempt at finding neural indices of implicit learning using a novel single-trial analysis of an electroencephalographic (EEG) signal, based on empirical mode decomposition (EMD) denoising. Chapter 6 presents a final discussion and indications for future research. The main contribution of this dissertation to the general field of implicit learning research consists in its challenging the predominant view that implicit learning mainly relies on similarity of forms presented in training and test. The experiments presented here require participants to make generalisations at a higher, semantic level, which is largely independent of perceptual form. The contribution of this work to the field of Second Language Acquisition consists of empirical support for the currently popular but seldom tested assumptions held by advocates of communicative approaches to language teaching, namely that certain aspects of linguistic knowledge can develop without explicit instruction and explanation. At the same time, it challenges any view assuming that vocabulary learning necessarily relies on explicit mediation. The experiments collected here demonstrate that at least word usage in context can be learnt implicitly. A further contribution of this dissertation is its demonstration that the native language may play a key role in determining what is learnt in such situations. A deeper understanding of the phenomenon of semantic implicit learning promises to shed light on the nature of word and grammar learning in general, which is crucial for an account of the processes involved in the development of a second language mental lexicon.
3
Vento-Wilson, Margaret. "The Intersection of Speech-Language Pathologists’ Beliefs, Perceptions, and Practices and the Language Acquisition and Development of Emerging Aided Communicators." Chapman University Digital Commons, 2019. https://digitalcommons.chapman.edu/education_dissertations/4.
Full textAbstract:
This dissertation discusses the convergence of aided augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) systems, the language acquisition and development of young children who are minimally verbal or nonverbal who acquire their native language while simultaneously learning to use an aided AAC system, and explicit and implicit elements that influence language outcomes. Factors investigated include those related to language acquisition universals, the AAC system, the young aided AAC user, and practices, philosophies, and beliefs of speech-language pathologists (SLPs). Further examined were: (a) language acquisition parallels in atypical populations who do not possess the full range of senses who have been shown to develop language, and (b) analogies between the linguistic structures of pidgins, interlanguages, and the syntax of young aided AAC users. This dissertation employed a survey methodology to capture the practices and beliefs of SLPs as a means of identifying potential contributing factors to the reduced linguistic outcomes of these children. Quantitative findings revealed statistically significant differences in SLPs’ perceptions of confidence and qualification with the two populations of children with language impairments who use an oral modality and young aided AAC users. Descriptive trends across all constructs measured suggested differences in SLPs’ practices, belifes, and perspectives in their work with these two populations. The analysis of the syntactic structures of the language of young aided AAC users revealed definitive parallels with the construct of interlanguages.
4
Padilla-Reyes, Ramon E. D. "CONNECTIONS AMONG SCALES, PLURALITY, AND IINTENSIONALITY INSPANISH." The Ohio State University, 2018. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1523540040987239.
Full text
5
Ionin, Tania. "Article semantics in second language acquisition." Thesis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2003. http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/7963.
Full textAbstract:
Thesis (Ph. D.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, 2003.Includes bibliographical references (p. 311-318).
This thesis examines article choice and parameter-setting in second language (L2) acquisition. It argues, on the basis of L2-English elicitation and production data, that L2- learners have access to UG-based semantic distinctions governing article choice, but do not know which distinction is appropriate for English. A Fluctuation Hypothesis (FH) is proposed, according to which L2-learners fluctuate between different parameter settings until the input leads them to set the parameter to the target value. The thesis proposes that articles cross-linguistically may encode definiteness or specificity. The definition of specificity that is adopted is based on Fodor and Sag's (1982) view of specificity as speaker intent to refer. The behavior of referential this, a specificity marker in colloquial English, is examined, and it is proposed that the definition of specificity incorporates the concept of noteworthy property. An Article Choice Parameter is next proposed, which governs whether articles in a given language are distinguished on the basis of definiteness or on the basis of specificity. While English has the Definiteness setting of this parameter, it is suggested, on the basis of data from Mosel and Hovdhaugen (1992), that Samoan has the Specificity setting. It is hypothesized, in accordance with the FH, that L2-learners fluctuate between the two settings of the Article Choice Parameter. This hypothesis leads to the prediction that L2- English errors of article use should come in two types: overuse of the with specific indefinites and overuse of a with non-specific definites. These predictions are examined in a series of studies with adult speakers of Russian and Korean, two languages with no
(cont.) articles. The empirical data confirm the predictions, and show that L2-English article choice is not random but reflects access to the two settings of the Article Choice Parameter. The same patterns of results are found for L-Russian and L-Korean speakers, and it is shown that the results are not attributable to LI-transfer. On the basis of these findings, it is concluded that L2-learners have direct UG-access to semantic distinctions underlying article choice. The data also provide evidence for the existence of a specificity distinction which cross-cuts the definiteness distinction.
bu Tania Ruth Ionin.
Ph.D.
6
Iyer, Gowri Krovi. "Cross-linguistic studies of lexical access and processing in monolingual English and bilingual Hindī-English speakers." Connect to a 24 p. preview or request complete full text in PDF format. Access restricted to SDSU campuses, 2006. http://wwwlib.umi.com/cr/ucsd/fullcit?p3237601.
Full text
7
Dick, Frederic. "Language in a sensorimotor brain /." Diss., Connect to a 24 p. preview or request complete full text in PDF format. Access restricted to UC campuses, 2003. http://wwwlib.umi.com/cr/ucsd/fullcit?p3091337.
Full text
8
Newman, Aaron Jon. "Effects of adult second language acquisition on the neural substrates of language /." view abstract or download file of text, 2002. http://wwwlib.umi.com/cr/uoregon/fullcit?p3061961.
Full textAbstract:
Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Oregon, 2002.Typescript. Includes vita and abstract. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 241-288). Also available for download via the World Wide Web; free to University of Oregon users.
9
Love-Geffen, Tracey E. "The processing of dependency relationships /." Diss., Connect to a 24 p. preview or request complete full text in PDF format. Access restricted to UC IP addresses, 1998. http://wwwlib.umi.com/cr/ucsd/fullcit?p9904728.
Full text
10
Granger, Colette A. "Trying the tongue : a psychoanalytic reading of silence in second language learning /." Thesis, National Library of Canada = Bibliothèque nationale du Canada, 2000. http://www.collectionscanada.ca/obj/s4/f2/dsk1/tape3/PQDD_0018/MQ59172.pdf.
Full text
11
Draine, Sean C. "Analytic limitations of unconscious language processing /." Thesis, Connect to this title online; UW restricted, 1997. http://hdl.handle.net/1773/9143.
Full text
12
Stenberg, Benjamin J. "Toward a linguistic conception of thought /." Thesis, Connect to this title online; UW restricted, 2006. http://hdl.handle.net/1773/5715.
Full text
13
Dolena, Alexis Lynn. "Uncovering the "slow mapping" process of word learning through word definition and word association tasks." Click here for download, 2006. http://proquest.umi.com/pqdweb?did=1212794661&sid=1&Fmt=2&clientId=3260&RQT=309&VName=PQD.
Full text
14
Purcell, Anne. "The nature of nurture : measuring some environmental correlates of first language acquisition /." St. Lucia, Qld, 2003. http://www.library.uq.edu.au/pdfserve.php?image=thesisabs/absthe17791.pdf.
Full text
15
Conboy, Barbara Therese. "Patterns of language processing and growth in early English-Spanish bilingualism /." Diss., Connect to a 24 p. preview or request complete full text in PDF format. Access restricted to UC campuses, 2002. http://wwwlib.umi.com/cr/ucsd/fullcit?p3071176.
Full text
16
Yeung, Pui-sze. "An investigation of the sentence interpretation strategies among Chinese-English bilinguals in Hong Kong." Hong Kong : University of Hong Kong, 2001. http://sunzi.lib.hku.hk/hkuto/record.jsp?B23001045.
Full text
17
Matos, Amaral Patricia. "The meaning of approximative adverbs evidence from European Portuguese /." Columbus, Ohio : Ohio State University, 2007. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc%5Fnum=osu1186724054.
Full text
18
Balčiūnienė, Ingrida. "Analysis of conversational structure from the perspective of language acquisition." Doctoral thesis, Lithuanian Academic Libraries Network (LABT), 2009. http://vddb.library.lt/obj/LT-eLABa-0001:E.02~2009~D_20090915_081635-07813.
Full textAbstract:
The dissertation deals with acquisition and development of conversation between a child and parents. The main objective of the study was to define the development of conversation between a child and parents: to analyse how a child acquires the structure of conversation (learns initiating and closing a conversation, continuing topics, turn-taking, repairing conversation breakdowns), learns certain speech acts (the main focus is on the acquisition of directives and questions), and how the communicative behaviour of parents influences the acquisition of the native language grammar.
To achieve these goals the following research methods were applied: a longitudinal observation, a method of corpus linguistics, an analytical method, a descriptive method and a comparative method. A research material contains a corpus of conversations between a child (a Lithuanian girl) and her parents. The corpus has been transcribed and annotated for a multipurpose linguistic analysis using a longitudinal observation method (2000–2002) and tools of the program CHILDES. The size of the corpus is 128,517 running words, which comprises 27 hours of records of the child’s (1;8–2;8) conversations with her parents. A linguistic diary kept 1999–2002 was analysed as an additional material.
The results of the analysis has reflected most typical features of conversation between a child and parents, as well as the development of the features as a child grows, such as: the acquisition of initiating and closing... [to full text]Disertacijoje nagrinėjama vaiko ir tėvų pokalbio ypatybės ir raida. Analizuojama, kaip vaikas įsisavina pokalbio struktūrą (išmoksta savarankiškai pradėti, plėtoti ir baigti pokalbį, keisti pokalbio temą, spręsti komunikacinius nesklandumus, keistis kalbėtojo ir klausytojo vaidmenimis), kaip išmoksta atpažinti ir kurti tam tikrus kalbos aktus (daugiausia dėmesio skiriama nurodymų ir klausimų įsisavinimui) ir kaip komunikacinis tėvų elgesys veikia gimtosios kalbos gramatikos išmokimą. Tyrimas atliktas taikant ilgalaikio stebėjimo, tekstynų lingvistikos, analitinį, aprašomąjį ir lyginamąjį metodus. Empirinę tyrimo medžiagą sudaro ilgalaikio stebėjimo metodu (2000–2002 m.) sukauptas, CHILDES programa transkribuotas ir įvairiapusei kalbinei analizei paruoštas 128 517 žodžių (27 val.) apimties tiriamojo vaiko (1;8–2;8) ir tėvų pokalbių įrašų tekstynas. Papildomai analizuotas 1999–2002 m. rašytas 11 tūkst. žodžių apimties tiriamojo vaiko kalbos dienoraštis. Tyrimo rezultatai atskleidžia būdingiausias vaiko ir tėvų pokalbio ypatybes ir jų kaitą vaikui augant: pokalbio pradžios ir pabaigos taisyklių įsisavinimą, gebėjimų plėtoti pokalbio temą, keistis kalbėtojo ir klausytojo vaidmenimis formavimąsi, taip pat – tėvų komunikacinio elgesio poveikį vaiko gimtosios kalbos gramatinės sistemos įsisavinimui. Remiantis šiais rezultatais, galima numatyti tolesnių vaiko komunikacinės kompetencijos tyrimų gaires, panaudoti šiuos rezultatus kaip pagrindą ir / ar lyginamąją medžiagą tolesniems... [toliau žr. visą tekstą]
19
Pham, Son Bao Computer Science & Engineering Faculty of Engineering UNSW. "Incremental knowledge acquisition for natural language processing." Awarded by:University of New South Wales. School of Computer Science and Engineering, 2006. http://handle.unsw.edu.au/1959.4/26299.
Full textAbstract:
Linguistic patterns have been used widely in shallow methods to develop numerous NLP applications. Approaches for acquiring linguistic patterns can be broadly categorised into three groups: supervised learning, unsupervised learning and manual methods. In supervised learning approaches, a large annotated training corpus is required for the learning algorithms to achieve decent results. However, annotated corpora are expensive to obtain and usually available only for established tasks. Unsupervised learning approaches usually start with a few seed examples and gather some statistics based on a large unannotated corpus to detect new examples that are similar to the seed ones. Most of these approaches either populate lexicons for predefined patterns or learn new patterns for extracting general factual information; hence they are applicable to only a limited number of tasks. Manually creating linguistic patterns has the advantage of utilising an expert's knowledge to overcome the scarcity of annotated data. In tasks with no annotated data available, the manual way seems to be the only choice. One typical problem that occurs with manual approaches is that the combination of multiple patterns, possibly being used at different stages of processing, often causes unintended side effects. Existing approaches, however, do not focus on the practical problem of acquiring those patterns but rather on how to use linguistic patterns for processing text. A systematic way to support the process of manually acquiring linguistic patterns in an efficient manner is long overdue. This thesis presents KAFTIE, an incremental knowledge acquisition framework that strongly supports experts in creating linguistic patterns manually for various NLP tasks. KAFTIE addresses difficulties in manually constructing knowledge bases of linguistic patterns, or rules in general, often faced in existing approaches by: (1) offering a systematic way to create new patterns while ensuring they are consistent; (2) alleviating the difficulty in choosing the right level of generality when creating a new pattern; (3) suggesting how existing patterns can be modified to improve the knowledge base's performance; (4) making the effort in creating a new pattern, or modifying an existing pattern, independent of the knowledge base's size. KAFTIE, therefore, makes it possible for experts to efficiently build large knowledge bases for complex tasks. This thesis also presents the KAFDIS framework for discourse processing using new representation formalisms: the level-of-detail tree and the discourse structure graph.
20
Li, Kam-cheong. "Linguistic consciousness and writing performance /." Hong Kong : University of Hong Kong, 1999. http://sunzi.lib.hku.hk/hkuto/record.jsp?B20842107.
Full text
21
Bazaco, Carmelo A. "Ser and Estar in Spanish: A Scalar Account." The Ohio State University, 2017. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1511804902540217.
Full text
22
Magnus, Brooke E. "When does warmness become warmth : an investigation of children's vocabulary acquisition through their writing /." Connect to online version, 2009. http://ada.mtholyoke.edu/setr/websrc/pdfs/www/2009/360.pdf.
Full text
23
Thompson, Cynthia Ann. "Semantic lexicon acquisition for learning natural language interfaces /." Digital version accessible at:, 1998. http://wwwlib.umi.com/cr/utexas/main.
Full text
24
Ferguson, Stuart Douglas. "Language assimilation and crosslinguistic influence : a study of German exile writers /." [Milperra, N.S.W. : The Author], 1996. http://library.uws.edu.au/adt-NUWS/public/adt-NUWS20030508.163610/index.html.
Full text
25
Frey, Camille 1991. "Comparing monolingual and bilingual language acquisition : phonemes and lexicon." Doctoral thesis, Universitat Pompeu Fabra, 2020. http://hdl.handle.net/10803/668759.
Full textAbstract:
In the present dissertation we compared monolingual and bilingual language acquisition by exploring two main topics of the early bilingual language acquisition: the establishment of the phoneme system and the establishment of the lexico-semantic system. The first topic was addressed by assessing the possible influence of word-level information on phonetic learning in both monolinguals and bilinguals (both adults and infants). The development of the bilingual lexico-semantic semantic system has been approached by assessing the emergence of inhibitory semantic links in monolingual and bilingual toddlers.
Our results showed an impact of bilingualism concerning the use of word-level information in adults but not in infants. For this latter group, our results suggested more an impact of bilingualism on the discrimination abilities. Unfortunately our results for the last study did not allow us to conclude on the emergence of inhibitory semantic effects in the bilingual lexicon.En esta tesis doctoral comparamos la adquisición del lenguaje en monolingües y bilingües investigando dos temas centrales de la adquisición bilingüe temprana: el establecimiento del sistema fonético y el establecimiento del sistema léxico-semántico. El primer tema se ha abordado evaluando la posible influencia de información léxica (forma) sobre el aprendizaje fonético, la investigación ha estudiado tanto bebés y adultos monolingües y bilingües. Para el estudio del desarrollo del sistema léxico-semántico bilingüe se ha evaluado la aparición de conexiones semánticas inhibitorias en niños monolingües y bilingües. Los resultados sugieren un impacto del bilingüismo en el uso de información léxica (forma) en adultos, pero no en bebés. El estudio con bebés ha mostrado un impacto del bilingüismo en las capacidades discriminatorias. Los resultados del último estudio no permiten extraer conclusiones sobre la aparición de conexiones semánticas inhibitorias en el léxico bilingüe.
26
Sorhagen, Nicole. "Exploring social class differences in the development of elaborated word meanings." Click here for download, 2009. http://proquest.umi.com.ps2.villanova.edu/pqdweb?did=1930212961&sid=1&Fmt=2&clientId=3260&RQT=309&VName=PQD.
Full text
27
Ursini, Francesco-Alessio. "The Language Of Space : The Acquisition And Interpretation of Spatial Adpositions In English." Doctoral thesis, Macquarie University, Faculty of Human Sciences, Macquarie Centre for Cognitive Science, 2011. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:su:diva-85019.
Full textAbstract:
This thesis by publication presents a study on English adpositions (e.g. to, in, at, from, in frontof, through). It attempts to offer a solution to the following three outstanding problems, whichare presented in each of the three parts making up the thesis, preceded by a general introduction(chapter 1) and followed by the general conclusions (chapter 7). The first part includes chapter2, and discusses the problem of What is the relation between adpositions and the non-linguistic,visual content they represent. The second part includes chapters 3 and 4, and discusses theproblem ofwhat is a proper compositional theory of the Syntax and Semantics of adpositions.The third part includes chapters 5 and 6, and discusses the problem of what is the psychologicalreality of this theory, regarding adults and children’s data.The following three solutions are suggested. First, the relation between adpositions and theircorresponding visual information is an isomorphism: adpositions capture how we “see” possiblespatio-temporal relations between objects, at a flexible level of fine-grainedness. Second, aproper compositional treatment of adpositions treats each syntactic unit (in front, of ) as offeringa distinct semantic contribution, hence spelling out a restricted instance of a spatio-temporalpart-of relation. Third, this compositional treatment of adpositions can also stand as a theory ofon-line interpretation in adults and a theory of their acquisition in children.These three answers are couched within a single theoretical approach, that of Discourse Representation Theory, and offer a unified solution to three apparently distinct problems regardingspatial adpositions and their linguistic properties.
28
Shigenaga, Yasumasa. "Processing and Acquisition of Scrambled Sentences by Learners of Japanese as a Second Language." Diss., The University of Arizona, 2014. http://hdl.handle.net/10150/344218.
Full textAbstract:
The Japanese language exhibits a free word-order phenomenon called scrambling. Because each noun phrase (NP) is case-marked with postpositional particles, it allows a freer word order than such languages as English. For simple transitive sentences, Subject-Object-Verb is the canonical word order while OSV is the scrambled word order. Previous studies with native speaker (NS) children have found that they go through a developmental stage during which they consistently misunderstand scrambled sentences, taking the first NP in OSV sentences to be the subject. It has also been found that NS adults experience slowdowns in reading and comprehending scrambled sentences. However, investigations into the processing of scrambled sentences by second language (L2) learners have been scarce, and it is not entirely clear how scrambled sentences are processed and acquired by L2 learners. This three-article dissertation aimed at investigating how simple transitive sentences with a scrambled word order (i.e., OSV) are processed and acquired by L2 learners whose native language is English. The first article (Chapter 2) examined L2 learners’ grammatical knowledge and production performance of the OSV sentences through two tasks (fill-in-the-blank and picture description). The results indicated a positive relationship between the learners’ general proficiency in Japanese and their knowledge/production performance of the OSV sentences, although there was a rather large individual difference even within proficiency groups. It was also found that the difficulty in producing OSV sentences was mostly due to a lack of grammatical knowledge, but the relationship of grammatical knowledge and production performance interacted with the types of sentences. For reversible sentences (in which both the subject and object NPs are animate), there was evidence that errors in the production of OSV sentences were caused by the overuse of the canonical template (i.e., SOV). For non-reversible sentences (in which the subject NP is animate and the object NP is inanimate), on the other hand, there was little evidence that a processing problem such as the overuse of the SOV template caused the production difficulty. The second article (Chapter 3) examined the comprehension processes of OSV sentences. While the results of a pilot study (sentence correctness decision task) indicated that both the L2 learners and NSs took longer to read and comprehend OSV sentences than SOV sentences, the results of a self-paced reading task suggested that the processing of OSV sentences by L2 learners might be quite different from that of NSs. The NS participants read more slowly at the second NP position when they read the OSV sentences. On the other hand, the L2 learners, regardless of their proficiency level, did not show such slowdowns. However, the data provided evidence that the advanced L2 learners integrated the case particles more consistently in their sentence comprehension than the learners with lower proficiency. The third article (Chapter 4) examined whether a psycholinguistic task (syntactic persistence with picture description) might facilitate the production of scrambled sentences among L2 learners, for the purpose of exploring the possibility of using such a method as an L2 instructional tool. While the main task (Task 4, which used regular SOV/OSV sentences as primes) was not very effective in eliciting the production of OSV sentences, the follow-up task (Task 6, which used questions in SOV/OSV orders as primes) observed a more positive effect of syntactic persistence. Based on the results, explicit instruction and practice on scrambling is suggested. Since processing of scrambled sentences requires that L2 learners be aware of the functions of case markers (and other postpositional particles) instead of relying on the canonical template, such explicit instruction and practice may also contribute to the acquisition of the particles that mark case.
29
Kolberg, Leticia Schiavon 1990. "O processo de bootstrapping na aquisição de linguagem." [s.n.], 2015. http://repositorio.unicamp.br/jspui/handle/REPOSIP/271185.
Full textAbstract:
Orientador: Ruth Elisabeth Vasconcellos LopesDissertação (mestrado) - Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Instituto de Estudos da Linguagem
Made available in DSpace on 2018-08-27T13:05:36Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Kolberg_LeticiaSchiavon_M.pdf: 4780312 bytes, checksum: 5100646d80c91b736957133628e83277 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2015
Resumo: O papel do input na aquisição tem sido amplamente discutido dentro das teorias de bootstrapping, que postulam que certas informações linguísticas seriam responsáveis pelo disparo dos mecanismos inatos de aquisição. Embora não se acredite que apenas um tipo de pista (sintático, prosódico ou semântico) dê conta do processo de aquisição por si só, a maioria dos autores postula uma hierarquia de acesso a esses sistemas linguísticos. Pinker (1989) afirma que a informação semântica é a responsável pelo início da aquisição, sendo a base para a estrutura sintática; já Mazuka (1996) postula que para iniciar a aquisição é necessário determinar certos parâmetros básicos a partir do ritmo, sendo este o responsável lógico pelo disparo dos mecanismos inatos. A dificuldade em se chegar a um consenso sobre qual tipo de pista seria usado inicialmente gera o chamado bootstrapping problem (PINKER, 1989): Como se chega à estrutura sintática pela semântica sem compreender a correlação entre a estrutura sintática e a conceitual? Da mesma forma, como se pode usar pistas prosódicas sem a transposição do nível fonético/fonológico para o nível de representação formal? A fim de resolver estas questões, Hirsh-Pasek & Golinkoff (1996) postulam um modelo de coalisão em que pistas sintáticas, semânticas e prosódicas são usadas em conjunto desde o início, embora assumam pesos diferentes conforme a aquisição procede. Para isso, ressaltam três fases do desenvolvimento linguístico, baseadas no tipo de informação mais saliente: a fase prosódica, aproximadamente dos 0 aos 09 meses, na qual a criança realiza a segmentação inicial da fala e a delimitação de eventos; a semântica, dos 09 aos 24 meses, na qual ocorre o mapeamento semântico e a determinação de parâmetros básicos a partir de pistas redundantes do contexto; e a sintática, dos 24 aos 36 meses, na qual os parâmetros sintáticos mais complexos são determinados. As fases são corroboradas por evidências empíricas de crianças adquirindo o inglês, mas os resultados são considerados universais. A fim de somar evidências em favor desta hipótese, o objetivo principal desta dissertação é a adaptação de um dos testes realizados pelas autoras com crianças adquirindo o português brasileiro. O teste escolhido investigará a compreensão da ordem de palavras e sua correlação com os papéis de agente e paciente por crianças na segunda fase a partir do Paradigma de Olhar Preferencial Intermodal (SPELKE, 1979): dois monitores mostram vídeos dos personagens Ju e Nino realizando ações, sendo que em um monitor Ju é a agente, e no outro, paciente. O estímulo auditivo apresenta sentenças como "A Ju está coçando o Nino", correspondentes a apenas um dos vídeos, enquanto uma câmera grava o tempo de fixação do olhar das crianças para cada vídeo. Os resultados gerais não mostram um tempo de fixação maior para o vídeo correspondente, o que poderia ser justificado pela falta de conhecimento do significado dos verbos usados no teste pelas crianças, já que, diferente de Hirsh-Pasek & Golinkoff, não acessamos esta informação antes da testagem. Estes, no entanto, nos farão questionar as fases do modelo de coalisão, levando-nos à reflexão de que a saliência perceptual entre os sistemas linguísticos talvez alterne não apenas conforme a fase da aquisição, mas também conforme as características de cada problema apresentado.
Abstract: The role of the input in language acquisition has been widely discussed within bootstrapping theories, that postulate that certain linguistic information are responsible for triggering innate mechanisms for language acquisition. Although no author believes only one type of cue (syntactic, semantic or prosodic) would handle the acquisition process on itself, most of them postulate that the linguistic systems are accessed hierarchically. Pinker (1989) says that the semantic information is responsible for the beginning of language acquisition, being the basis for syntactic structure; on the other hand, Mazuka (1996) postulates that, in order to bootstrap acquisition, it is necessary to determine certain basic parameters through rhythmic information, the logic responsible for the triggering of innate mechanisms. The difficulty in getting to a consensus about what type of cue would be initially accessed generates the Bootstrapping Problem (PINKER, 1989): how does one gets to syntactic structure through semantics without knowing the correlation between conceptual and syntactic structure? By the same logic, how can one use prosodic cues without transposing the phonetic/phonological level to the level of formal representation? In order to solve these questions, Hirsh-Pasek & Golinkoff (1996) created a coalition model in which syntactic, semantic and prosodic cues are accessed together since the beginning of acquisition, although they take different weights as it proceeds. The authors postulate three phases of linguistic development, based on the most salient cues: the prosodic phase, from 0 to 9 months of age, in which the child performs initial segmentation of the input speech and the delimitation of events in the context; the semantic phase, from 9 to 24 months, when the processes of semantic mapping and basic parameter determination through redundant syntactic/semantic cues occur; and the syntactic phase, from 24 to 36 months, when more complex syntactic parameters are determined. Those phases are corroborated by empirical evidences from children acquiring English, but the results are considered universal. In order to gather evidence in favor of this hypothesis, the main goal of this dissertation is the adaptation of one of the tests ran by the authors, to be ran with children acquiring Brazilian Portuguese. The chosen test will investigate the comprehension of word order and its correlation with the agent and patient roles by children in the second phase postulated by the authors, through the Intermodal Preferential Looking Paradigm (SPELKE, 1979): two video monitors show videos of the characters Ju and Nino performing transitive actions, and when Ju is the agent in one video, it is the patient in the other. The audio presents sentences such as "Ju is scratching Nino", corresponding to only one of the video screens, while a hidden camera records the eye fixations of children to each video screen. The main results do not show a longer fixation time to the video corresponding to the linguistic stimulus, which could be justified by the lack of knowledge of the meanings of the verbs being tested, since, unlike Hirsh-Pasek & Golinkoff's, we did not access this information before the test. These results, however, will make us question the phases of the coalition model, leading us to the conclusion that the perceptual salience between linguistic systems perhaps alternate not just in conformity with the phase of development, but also with the characteristics of each presented problem
Mestrado
Linguistica
Mestra em Linguística
30
Sawasaki, Koichi. "L2 reading by learners of Japanese a comparison of different L1s /." Columbus, Ohio : Ohio State University, 2007. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc%5Fnum=osu1166738614.
Full text
31
Juffs, Alan. "Learnability and the lexicon in second language acquisition : Chinese learners' acquisition of English argument structure." Thesis, McGill University, 1993. http://digitool.Library.McGill.CA:80/R/?func=dbin-jump-full&object_id=41626.
Full textAbstract:
This thesis investigates the knowledge of semantics-syntax correspondences in second language acquisition (SLA) within the Principles and Parameters framework. A parameter of semantic structure is proposed to account for crosslinguistic syntactic differences between two previously unrelated, and superficially distinct, verb classes: change of state locatives and 'psychological' verbs. Chinese and English contrast in terms of the parameter setting. Experimental evidence indicates that adult Chinese learners of English L2 initially transfer parameter settings, but are able to reset the proposed parameter. However, they only acquire L2 lexical properties and concomitant syntactic privileges with ease when L2 input adds a representation to their grammar. When positive L2 input should pre-empt overgeneralizations based on representation transferred from the L1, it is shown that L1 influence may persist until quite advanced stages of acquisition. The implications of the results are discussed for the parameter setting model of SLA.
32
李錦昌 and Kam-cheong Li. "Linguistic consciousness and writing performance." Thesis, The University of Hong Kong (Pokfulam, Hong Kong), 1999. http://hub.hku.hk/bib/B31238890.
Full text
33
O'Brien, de Ramirez Kathleen. "SILENT, ORAL, L1, L2, FRENCH AND ENGLISH READING THROUGH EYE MOVEMENTS AND MISCUES." Diss., The University of Arizona, 2008. http://hdl.handle.net/10150/194211.
Full textAbstract:
During 24 silent and oral readings of Guy de Maupassant and Arthur C. Clarke short stories (1294 and 1516 words) by proficient multilinguals, movement of the left eye was tracked and utterances were recorded. Three hypotheses investigate universality in the reading process: reading in English is similar in reading speed, miscues, and eye movements to reading in French (chapter 4); reading in a first, or native language (L1), is similar in reading speed, miscues, and eye movements to reading in a second, or later acquired, language (L2) (chapter 5); silent reading is similar to oral reading in reading speed and eye movements (chapter 6). Hypothesis are partially confirmed; implications are drawn for teaching and research.Silent reading is consistently faster than oral reading, with a mean difference of 28.7%. Reading speed is similar in English and French, but interacts differently with language experience: L2 readers of English read 50% slower than L1 readers, while in French, L2 readers read 13% faster.Retelling scores demonstrate a slight comprehension advantage for oral reading over silent, a wider range after oral than after silent, L1 readers having a slight advantage over L2 readers, and improved scores after second readings. Proscribing rereading to increase oral accuracy may disadvantage some readers: Second oral readings in English (but not in French) produced more miscues than first oral readings. This requires further study with tightly controlled groups. Overall, English readings produced 36% more miscues than French readings.Mean fixation durations are slightly longer during silent than oral reading, and show little variation between English and French reading. Wide variation in reading speed (L1/L2, silent/oral) is not reflected in mean eye fixation durations, although language dominance show an effect in French, where fixations during L1 readings are 18.6% shorter than during L2 readings.Individual variation is a factor. Emotional affect, poetic style, construction of syntax, and attention to metaphor are all observed in this EMMA data. Future analysis of this database may look at anaphoric relations, metaphor, how texts teach; and how readers develop narrative, verb phases, syntactic, semantic, and pragmatic relations in complete textual discourse.
34
Xia, Mengying. "Acquisition of metaphorical expressions by Chinese learners of English." Thesis, University of Cambridge, 2018. https://www.repository.cam.ac.uk/handle/1810/284383.
Full textAbstract:
This study investigates the acquisition of conventional metaphorical expressions by Chinese learners of English. A conventional metaphorical expression, following the definition of cognitive semantics, refers to the use of a conventionalised non-literal meaning of a lexical item in a multi-word phrase. For example, the word 'attack' in the phrase 'attack one's idea', which should be interpreted as 'to criticise somebody or something severely', clearly departs from the literal meaning 'to use violence to try to hurt or kill somebody', and thus should be seen as a metaphorically used word. Consequently, the phrase 'attack one's idea' is a conventional metaphorical expression. This study explores learners' behaviour towards and acquisition of metaphorical expressions from two major perspectives: (1) possible cross-linguistic influence in the process of acquisition and factors that could affect cross-linguistic influence; and (2) the organisation of learners' bilingual lexicon and the status of metaphorical expressions in a bilingual lexicon. These two perspectives are considered to be the main factors that can influence learners' acquisition of metaphorical expressions: in order to acquire a metaphorical expression, learners should be able to integrate it into the bilingual lexicon, while the process of integration can be impacted by cross-linguistic influence. Previous research has mainly been conducted on the acquisition of certain figurative expressions in a second language, predominantly idioms; however, a combination of the two perspectives and a joint analysis on the acquisition of figurative language has yet to be accomplished. This study presents a first attempt of such analysis on the acquisition of a specific type of figurative language. The results of the experiments reported in this dissertation show that learners react differently to metaphorical expressions with different cross-linguistic availabilities (shared between Chinese and English or exclusively available in Chinese or English) but in general they encounter difficulty to achieve native-like performance when reading metaphorical expressions available in their second language. Persistent cross-linguistic influence is observed in two aspects, even among highly proficient learners: (1) learners encounter obstacles when acquiring the metaphorical expressions that are only available in their second language; and (2) learners seem to still activate the metaphorical meanings that are only available in their first language even when they read in their second language. These results altogether reflect that metaphorical expressions, regardless of cross-linguistic availability, are more difficult to acquire than literal expressions in a second language.
35
Hara, Yoshiyuki. "The Perceptions of the Japanese Imperfective Aspect Marker –Teiru among Native Speakers and L2 Learners of Japanese." Thesis, University of Oregon, 2016. http://hdl.handle.net/1794/20496.
Full textAbstract:
The Japanese imperfective aspect marker –teiru is one of the most widely researched tense/aspect markers because of its multiple semantic functions. It has been claimed that the –teiru form can describe two main aspectual meanings, progressive and resultative, depending on the lexical aspect of the attached verb. The present study aims to empirically investigate native speakers’ interpretations of the –teiru meaning with different verb and sentence types through a judgment test. It compares them with the predicted semantic categories from the previous studies, which based their conclusion upon introspective analysis, as well as perceptions of L2 Japanese learners. The results suggest that overall perceptional patterns are consistent with predicted descriptions but also that interpretations of the meaning are flexible to some extent. As for learners’ perceptions, the results indicate that L2 learners develop progressive semantic processing in Japanese faster than resultative semantic processing in Japanese.
36
Messenger, Katherine. "Syntactic priming and children's production and representation of the passive." Thesis, University of Edinburgh, 2009. http://hdl.handle.net/1842/5794.
Full textAbstract:
This thesis investigates children’s mental representation of syntactic structure and how their acquisition and production of syntax is affected by lexical and semantic factors, focusing on three- and four-year-old children. It focuses on a construction that has been a frequent subject of language acquisition research: the passive. It is often claimed that English-speaking children acquire the passive relatively late in language development (e.g. Horgan, 1978): previous studies have typically found unreliable comprehension and infrequent production of passives by children younger than five (e.g. Fraser et al., 1963). However, there is some evidence from studies providing an appropriate pragmatic context for passives (e.g. Crain et al., 1987) and studies which increase children’s exposure to passives (e.g. Whitehurst et al., 1974) to suggest that children can produce this structure at a younger age. Converging evidence comes from studies of syntactic priming, or the tendency to repeat syntactic structure (e.g. Bencini & Valian, 2008). Syntactic priming effects are potentially informative about the nature of syntactic representation, as they are assumed to reflect the repeated use of the same syntactic representation across successive utterances. With respect to language acquisition, syntactic priming effects can be informative about the extent to which children have acquired an abstract representation of a structure. Specifically, if children have a syntactic representation of the passive, then it should be possible to prime their production of passives, such that they should be more likely to produce passives after hearing passives than after hearing actives. Furthermore, by examining the conditions under which such priming occurs, it is possible to draw inferences about the nature of their passive representation. This thesis presents seven experiments, six using a syntactic priming paradigm, to examine children’s knowledge of passives. Experiment 1 establishes a syntactic priming effect for actives and passives in three- and four-year-old children, and shows that priming occurs for both structures within an experimental session, using a withinparticipants design. Experiments 2, 3 and 4 examine whether young children’s acquisition of the passive is semantically constrained. Experiments 2 and 3 show that children can be primed to produce passive responses by actional and non-actional passive primes. Experiment 4, a picture-sentence matching task, replicates the results of other studies, however, showing that children find subject-experiencer non-actional verb passives more difficult to understand than actional verb passives; this mis-match between the results from the different tasks suggests that some effects of verb-type may be task-related. Experiments 5 and 6 examine whether the observed priming effect could be a lexically-driven effect that is dependent on the repetition of function words (the preposition by or the passive auxiliary). They show that this explanation can be ruled out: children are more likely to produce passives following both passive primes that do not express the agent using a by-phrase and passive primes involving a different auxiliary verb. Experiment 7 examines the later development of passive structures by testing passive production in six- and nine-year-old children. It finds evidence that at six, they still have difficulties with the construction, however by nine, children have an adult-like representation of the passive. I conclude that by four, children have begun to develop a syntactic representation for the passive which is already common to a range of different possible forms(short, full, get and be), and which is not restricted to particular semantic classes of verb. However, these results also suggest that children do not fully master the passive construction before six: young children make morphological errors and errors mapping thematic roles to syntactic positions, even following passive primes. Hence children may acquire the purely syntactic aspects of the passive, leading to a syntactic priming effect, before they acquire other aspects of this structure, hence the children’s occasional errors producing passives.
37
Sanders, Lisa Diane. "Speech segmentation by native and non-native speakers : behavioral and event-related potential evidence /." view abstract or download file of text, 2001. http://wwwlib.umi.com/cr/uoregon/fullcit?p3018392.
Full textAbstract:
Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Oregon, 2001.Typescript. Includes vita and abstract. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 215-239). Also available for download via the World Wide Web; free to University of Oregon users.
38
鄭俊洺 and Chun-ming Cheng. "The connectionism approach to syntactic and semantic acquisition of simple Chinese sentences: the role of wordorder information." Thesis, The University of Hong Kong (Pokfulam, Hong Kong), 2000. http://hub.hku.hk/bib/B31224118.
Full text
39
Ytsma, Jehannes. "Frisian as first and second language sociolinguistic and socio-psychological aspects of the acquisition of Frisian among Frisian and Dutch primary school children /." Ljouwert : Fryske Akademy, 1995. http://catalog.hathitrust.org/api/volumes/oclc/32703202.html.
Full text
40
Hjelm, Hans. "Cross-language Ontology Learning : Incorporating and Exploiting Cross-language Data in the Ontology Learning Process." Doctoral thesis, Stockholms universitet, Institutionen för lingvistik, 2009. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:su:diva-8414.
Full textAbstract:
An ontology is a knowledge-representation structure, where words, terms or concepts are defined by their mutual hierarchical relations. Ontologies are becoming ever more prevalent in the world of natural language processing, where we currently see a tendency towards using semantics for solving a variety of tasks, particularly tasks related to information access. Ontologies, taxonomies and thesauri (all related notions) are also used in various variants by humans, to standardize business transactions or for finding conceptual relations between terms in, e.g., the medical domain. The acquisition of machine-readable, domain-specific semantic knowledge is time consuming and prone to inconsistencies. The field of ontology learning therefore provides tools for automating the construction of domain ontologies (ontologies describing the entities and relations within a particular field of interest), by analyzing large quantities of domain-specific texts. This thesis studies three main topics within the field of ontology learning. First, we examine which sources of information are useful within an ontology learning system and how the information sources can be combined effectively. Secondly, we do this with a special focus on cross-language text collections, to see if we can learn more from studying several languages at once, than we can from a single-language text collection. Finally, we investigate new approaches to formal and automatic evaluation of the quality of a learned ontology. We demonstrate how to combine information sources from different languages and use them to train automatic classifiers to recognize lexico-semantic relations. The cross-language data is shown to have a positive effect on the quality of the learned ontologies. We also give theoretical and experimental results, showing that our ontology evaluation method is a good complement to and in some aspects improves on the evaluation measures in use today.För att köpa boken skicka en beställning till exp@ling.su.se/ To order the book send an e-mail to exp@ling.su.se
41
Enkin, Elizabeth Bella. "The Maze Task: Using a Computerized Psycholinguistic Experimental Technique in Examining Methodologies for Second Language Learning." Diss., The University of Arizona, 2012. http://hdl.handle.net/10150/238674.
Full textAbstract:
The maze task is a psycholinguistic tool that is used in experimentally measuring online sentence processing time (Forster et al., 2009). It asks subjects to "weave" their way through sentences, choosing the correct grammatical alternative from two choices. This task can also offer insight into the processing strategies of L2 learners. Thus, whether or not this task can be used as an effective training program for beginning L2 learners is the topic of this current investigation. The maze task is therefore transformed into the "story maze", which contextualizes sentences for learners. Because the task provides immediate feedback regarding the precise location of an error, learners can efficiently tune their L2 processing strategies, which echoes VanPatten (2004) and his objective with processing instruction. In effect, connections made in the classroom through explicit instruction can be reinforced and strengthened through implicit maze task training. Using L2 Spanish learners, the efficacy of training types is tested in order to investigate whether the maze task can assist learners in altering their processing strategies of complex, L2 structures that are not found in the L1. Furthermore, the task's generalizing capability with respect to building the implicit and explicit knowledge bases is examined. Lastly, because the task speaks to students' identity as learners in a technologically advanced world, the likability of this task is evaluated through qualitative data, and pedagogical implications are discussed.
42
Demir, Orhan. "The Nature Of Acquisition And Processing Of Island Constraints By Turkish Learners Of English." Master's thesis, METU, 2012. http://etd.lib.metu.edu.tr/upload/12614608/index.pdf.
Full textAbstract:
The primary goal of this thesis was to test the validity of the Full Transfer Full Access (FTFA) Hypothesis on the acquisition of island constraints by Turkish learners of English. The FTFA Hypothesis claims that L2ers have access to UG even at the initial state, which is assumed to be the final state of L1, and there is a gradual restructuring of L2 grammar. The second goal was to investigate whether Turkish learners of English employ the same parsing strategies in bi-clausal wh-questions. If so, the results would support the Continuity Hypothesis arguing that Universal Parser is available in SLA.
Four experiments were conducted in this study. The first two experiments were devised to shed light on the acquisition and processing of island constraints. Two experimental groups (30 intermediate and 30 advanced learners of English) and a control group (30 native speakers of English) were employed for these tests. The third and fourth experiments were administered to display whether there were similarities between the way native speakers of Turkish and English resolve ambiguities and whether island constraints were operative in Turkish. 30 native speakers of Turkish participated in these experiments.
The results showed that different processing strategies for the resolution of ambiguities were employed in English and Turkish and island constraints were not operative in Turkish. Besides, Turkish learners of English had access to UG and there was a developmental pattern for the restructuring of L2 grammar. Furthermore, a gradual approximation to the native speakers&rsquoparsing strategies was observed.
43
Moore, Glenn Edward. "Anxiety and motivation in second language learning." CSUSB ScholarWorks, 2004. https://scholarworks.lib.csusb.edu/etd-project/2448.
Full textAbstract:
This study investigates student and instructor perceptions of the causes and effects of anxiety and motivation's effect on a student's ability to learn a second language. The study focused on the participant's perceptions of the causes and effects of anxiety, and relationships between anxiety and motivation, in both short-term and long-term learners.
44
Ferguson, Stuart Douglas, of Western Sydney Macarthur University, and Faculty of Education. "Language assimilation and crosslinguistic influence : a study of German exile writers." THESIS_FE_XXX_Ferguson_S.xml, 1996. http://handle.uws.edu.au:8081/1959.7/285.
Full textAbstract:
Social and textual aspects of the language assimilation of German exile writers are studied. Major differences concern the length of their exile, their foreign language learning ability and their attitude to assimilating, and the primary sources are letters and diaries. Descriptive analysis is performed on the prose, mainly in the area of crosslinguistic influences. Despite their differing assimilation, the prose contains similar crosslinguistic influences. There are consistent changes in crosslinguistic influences during the course of language assimilation, initially determined by the extent of second language acquisition. However, language learning factors give way to social factors with crosslinguistic infuences ultimately governed by the functional independence of the second language. Lexically triggered code-switching is usually a step towards functionally motivated code-switching. Finally a tentative, schematic model of how the process of language assimilation causes and modifies crosslinguistic influences is proposed.Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)
45
Adams, Aurora Mathews. "LINGUISTIC AND CONCEPTUAL METAPHORS OF ‘HEART’ IN LEARNER CORPORA." UKnowledge, 2017. http://uknowledge.uky.edu/ltt_etds/20.
Full textAbstract:
This corpus-based study examined English and Spanish learner language for ‘heart’ metaphors. Gutiérrez Pérez (2008) compared ‘heart’ metaphors across five languages and that study served as a reference framework for the work presented here. This work intended to find evidence of metaphor transfer and/or new metaphor learning in second language writing. Conceptual metaphors (Lakoff and Johnson, 1980) and linguistic or lexical metaphors (Falck, 2012) from both languages were considered in the analysis. This work analyzed ‘heart’ metaphors taken from two learner corpora, the Cambridge Learner Corpus and the Corpus de Aprendices de Español. Results were compared to the findings of Gutiérrez Pérez (2008) to see whether these metaphors typically occur only in English, only in Spanish, or are found in both languages. The results showed evidence of language learners using several kinds of metaphors that do not typically occur in their first language. The aim of this study was to add a new facet to this body of research by examining these phenomena in learner corpora rather than monolingual corpora. Furthermore, this study also examined both second language English and second language Spanish corpora, addressing potential bi-directionality of transfer or conversely, the use of new linguistic forms.
46
Sethuraman, Nitya. "The acquisition of verbs and argument structure constructions /." Diss., Connect to a 24 p. preview or request complete full text in PDF format. Access restricted to UC campuses, 2002. http://wwwlib.umi.com/cr/ucsd/fullcit?p3049671.
Full text
47
Balčiūnienė, Ingrida. "Pokalbio struktūros analizė kalbos įsisavinimo požiūriu." Doctoral thesis, Lithuanian Academic Libraries Network (LABT), 2009. http://vddb.library.lt/obj/LT-eLABa-0001:E.02~2009~D_20090915_081916-70538.
Full textAbstract:
Disertacijoje nagrinėjama vaiko ir tėvų pokalbio ypatybės ir raida. Analizuojama, kaip vaikas įsisavina pokalbio struktūrą (išmoksta savarankiškai pradėti, plėtoti ir baigti pokalbį, keisti pokalbio temą, spręsti komunikacinius nesklandumus, keistis kalbėtojo ir klausytojo vaidmenimis), kaip išmoksta atpažinti ir kurti tam tikrus kalbos aktus (daugiausia dėmesio skiriama nurodymų ir klausimų įsisavinimui) ir kaip komunikacinis tėvų elgesys veikia gimtosios kalbos gramatikos išmokimą.
Tyrimas atliktas taikant ilgalaikio stebėjimo, tekstynų lingvistikos, analitinį, aprašomąjį ir lyginamąjį metodus. Empirinę tyrimo medžiagą sudaro ilgalaikio stebėjimo metodu (2000–2002 m.) sukauptas, CHILDES programa transkribuotas ir įvairiapusei kalbinei analizei paruoštas 128 517 žodžių (27 val.) apimties tiriamojo vaiko (1;8–2;8) ir tėvų pokalbių įrašų tekstynas. Papildomai analizuotas 1999–2002 m. rašytas 11 tūkst. žodžių apimties tiriamojo vaiko kalbos dienoraštis.
Tyrimo rezultatai atskleidžia būdingiausias vaiko ir tėvų pokalbio ypatybes ir jų kaitą vaikui augant: pokalbio pradžios ir pabaigos taisyklių įsisavinimą, gebėjimų plėtoti pokalbio temą, keistis kalbėtojo ir klausytojo vaidmenimis formavimąsi, taip pat – tėvų komunikacinio elgesio poveikį vaiko gimtosios kalbos gramatinės sistemos įsisavinimui. Remiantis šiais rezultatais, galima numatyti tolesnių vaiko komunikacinės kompetencijos tyrimų gaires, panaudoti šiuos rezultatus kaip pagrindą ir / ar lyginamąją medžiagą tolesniems... [toliau žr. visą tekstą]The dissertation deals with acquisition and development of conversation between a child and parents. The main objective of the study was to define the development of conversation between a child and parents: to analyse how a child acquires the structure of conversation (learns initiating and closing a conversation, continuing topics, turn-taking, repairing conversation breakdowns), learns certain speech acts (the main focus is on the acquisition of directives and questions), and how the communicative behaviour of parents influences the acquisition of the native language grammar. To achieve these goals the following research methods were applied: a longitudinal observation, a method of corpus linguistics, an analytical method, a descriptive method and a comparative method. A research material contains a corpus of conversations between a child (a Lithuanian girl) and her parents. The corpus has been transcribed and annotated for a multipurpose linguistic analysis using a longitudinal observation method (2000–2002) and tools of the program CHILDES. The size of the corpus is 128,517 running words, which comprises 27 hours of records of the child’s (1;8–2;8) conversations with her parents. A linguistic diary kept 1999–2002 was analysed as an additional material. The results of the analysis has reflected most typical features of conversation between a child and parents, as well as the development of the features as a child grows, such as: the acquisition of initiating and closing... [to full text]
48
Jarrar, Haneen. "Language acquisition in children with autism in the Arab world : evidence from processes of phonology, semantics, syntax and pragmatics." Thesis, Goldsmiths College (University of London), 2015. http://research.gold.ac.uk/11251/.
Full textAbstract:
The studies described in this thesis are the first to investigate the use of diagnostic and language tests developed in the western world in an Arab autism clinic. This chapter will provide contextual information and will begin by giving a historical overview of the developments in diagnostic criteria, and clinical and language assessment methods that followed Kanner’s first description of autism in 1943. Research findings that have informed our current understanding of language abilities in autism in the western world are discussed. Finally, prevalence and methods of autism assessment in the Arab world will be considered and the aims of the thesis will be described.
49
Guo, Ling-Yu. "Acquisition of auxiliary and copula BE in young English-speaking children." Diss., University of Iowa, 2009. https://ir.uiowa.edu/etd/370.
Full textAbstract:
This study tested the unique checking constraint hypothesis and the usage-based account concerning why young children produced tense and agreement morphemes variably via three experiments. Experiment 1 investigated whether subject types influenced the production accuracy of auxiliary 'is' in three-year-olds through an elicited production task. The rate of use of auxiliary 'is' increased as children's tense productivity increased, but the pattern was different for each subject type. The rate of use increased more rapidly with tense productivity for lexical NP subjects than it did for pronominal subjects.
Experiment 2 further examined the role of subject types, predicate types, and predicate word frequency on the use of copula 'is' in three-year-olds via an elicited production task. Overall, the production accuracy of copula 'is' was higher with nominal predicates than with permanent- or temporary-adjectival predicates, followed by locative predicates. Children also produced copula 'is' more accurately with low-frequency predicate words than with high-frequency predicate words. Moreover, the effect of subject types on the use of copula 'is' varied with children's tense productivity. For sentences with nominal, permanent-adjectival, or temporary-adjectival predicates, children with lower tense productivity used copula 'is' more accurately with lexical subjects than with pronominal subjects in. In contrast, children with higher tense productivity produced copula 'is' more accurately with pronominal subjects than with lexical subjects.
Experiment 3 extended Experiment 1 by exploring the degree of abstractness of representations of auxiliary BE via a structural priming task. The production accuracy of auxiliary 'is' in three-year-olds increased above the baseline when the prime-target pair shared the same structure and subject + auxiliary 'is' combinations, but not when the prime-target pair only shared the same structure. However, the production accuracy of auxiliary 'are' did not change with prime types.
These experiments suggest that young children have only lexically-specific representations of auxiliary BE. Frequency, rather than structural properties, of sentence elements influenced the production accuracy of auxiliary and copula 'is' in young children. These findings support the usage-based approach that young children use tense and agreement morphemes variably because they have not yet learned adult-like abstract representations and use highly frequent/ lexically-specific constructions for the production of these morphemes.
50
Canizares, Carlos I. "Second Language Learners’ Performance on Non-Isomorphic Cross-Language Cognates in Translation." FIU Digital Commons, 2016. http://digitalcommons.fiu.edu/etd/3061.
Full textAbstract:
Do adult L2 English bilingual speakers have difficulty with cognate words whose meanings are distinct across their two languages? This study explored the extent to which variations in meaning in cross-language cognates affect translation performance in a translation task by L2 English (L1 Spanish) speakers who learned English as adults. A prep-phase experiment was conducted to test native English-speakers’ predicted completions of the study’s stimuli sentences, in order to choose the optimal stimuli for the primary experiment. The method for the primary experiment of this study consisted of a web-based translation task of 120 sentences from Spanish to English, while controlling for polysemy and frequency. The results showed that adult L2 learners of English did experience difficulty when translating cognates in sentences from their L1 to their L2. The interaction of the Spanish word’s polysemous nature, Spanish word frequency, English target frequency and English cognate frequency played a role in the participants’ performance.