Child Lang Flashcards
Imitation theory
Skinner Born knowing nothing and learn through copying Trial and error Get rewarded for correct sounds Phonological development
Examples for and against imitation theory
Explains accents
Melodic utterances
‘Fis’ phenomenon
Doesn’t explain babbling, virtuous errors or grammar acquisition
Innateness theory
Chomksy
Ability to learn is innate
Born with Language Acquisition device (LAD)
We’re born knowing basic language structures
Universal grammar
Examples for and against innateness theory
Virtuous errors
Babbling
Regression model
Wug test
Doesn’t explain accents and requires an input to the LAD, need for interaction
Input theory
Bruner
Focus on language used by parents
Language acquisition support system (LASS) and child directed speech
Interactions for turn taking and convo development
Examples for and against input theory
Pragmatics and CDS
Changing in intonations, repetition, questions
Genie had no language (no interaction)
Doesn’t explain that some cultures don’t use CDS but kids still develop languages
Cognitive theory
Piaget
Learn object permanence to expand vocabulary
Develop concepts before language
Examples for and against cognitive theory
Majority of first 50 words are physical objects
Semantics
Over extensions
Learning ‘ing’ before any other inflection (here and now)
Doesn’t explain sentence or grammar acquisition or delayed mental development
Usage-based approach
Ibbotson and Tomasello
Against Chomsky
Children learn chunks of language
Put chunks together to form sentences
Examples for and against useage-based
Pragmatics
Predicting what people might say
Missing out less used auxiliaries and determiners
Doesn’t explain virtuous errors and generalisations
Phonological development
Sounds and pronunciations 1st year Pre-verbal stages Realisation rules Olmsted’s research Browns ‘fis’ phenomenon
Pre-verbal stages
Biological noises (0-8 weeks - vomiting burping crying etc universal) Cooing and laughing (6-8 weeks - settled state, short vowel or consonant sounds, more melodic and vocal muscle control develops) Vocal play (single controlled vowel or consonant like sounds) Babbling (7-8 months - combinations of vowels and consonants similar to native language, phonemic contraction, deaf babies babble) Melodic utterances (end of 1st year, melody intonation rhythm develop, sounds like native language, has different functions)
Realisation rules (8)
Reduplication (repeating a syllable e.g. dog = dodo)
Reduction /deletion of monosyllables (getting rid of last consonant sounds e.g. noise = noi)
Consonant cluster deletion (removing clustered consonants to keep CV rule e.g. plastic = patic)
Substitution (replacing end consonants for vowels e.g. button = butu)
Addition ( adding vowels to make it easier to say e.g. pig = pige)
Assimilation (making consonant sounds similar e.g. yellow = lellow)
Voiced / Voiceless consonants (voiced at beginning voiceless at the end e.g. dog = dok)
Weak syllable deletion (unstressed syllables are missed out e.g. behind = hind)
Olmsted’s research
Age 2 = plosives produced /p/ /b/ /d/ /m/
Age 2.5 = /k/ /g/
Age 3 = start fricritives /f/ /s/ /I/
Age 3.5 = /S/ /tS/
Age 4.5 = /d3/ /v/ /z/ /r/
Age 6 = /0/ /3/
Learn easier to say sounds first at the front of the mouth then learn sounds at back of mouth which are harder to say
See people saying sounds at front of mouth - copy mouth movements
Browns ‘fis’ phenomenon
Brown said ‘fish’ kid said ‘fis’
Brown said ‘fis’ kid said no ‘fis’
Kids know the correct pronunciation but can’t always produce the correct sounds
Lexical development
Word development
Learn first word around 12 months on average
First words tend to include objects they interact with every day e.g. daddy allgone shoe ball no
Katherine nelsons research
Katherine nelsons research (1973)
She classified a child’s first 50 words into 4 categories Naming things Actions /events Describing /modifying Personal /social
Semantic development
Development of meanings of words
Overextension & under extensions
Rescorlas research (1980)
Overextension & under extensions
Over extensions - when a child uses a word more broadly than an adult would (mainly categorical, rarely analogical)
Under extensions - when a child uses a word more narrowly than an adult would
Rescorlas research
Divided over extensions into 3 categories
Categorical - when a member of a category is extended to other members e.g. apple for all fruits
Analogical - when a word is extended to other things that are similar e.g. cat for a soft scarf
Statements - not labelling objects but extending one word in relation to other objects e.g. saying mum when seeing mums coat
Grammatical development
Acquisition of structure and rules of language
Syntax and morphology
Holophrastic stage
Two word stage
Telegraphic stage
Roger browns semantic roles
Bellugi and McNeil questions and negatives
Holophrastic stage
12-18 months
60% nouns 20% verbs
Single word utterances (holophrases) are produced and function as sentences
Sometimes use longer utterances but use as one word e.g. allgone
They change intonation for different functions
Two word stage
18-24 months
Inflections begin to be used especially ‘ing’ (Piaget)
Questions begin to appear e.g. where what
Near the end negatives begin to occur e.g. no not
Each two word combination has a function
Roger Brown’s Semantic roles (10)
Function of each 2 word combination Agent + Action (daddy kick) Action + Affected (throw stick) Agent + Affected (me ball) Action + Location (sit chair) Entity + Location (spoon table) Entity + Attribute (daddy tall) Possessor + Possession (mummy coat) Nomination (that cake) Recurrence (more ball) Negation (no ball)
Telegraphic stage
2-3 years
Begin to use multiple word utterances
Follow adult word order - subject + verb + object but miss out function words
Use of inflections, auxiliaries, determiners towards age 3 starting with ‘ing’ ‘s’ then ‘to be’ lastly
Regression Model
Kids copy words Learn the grammar rule Over generalise rule to irregulars Then learn the irregulars as exceptions to the rules E.g. went goed went
Bellugi and McNeil questions and negatives
Questions - begin by using rising intonation. Develop to saying questions words where dad? Then use word order manipulation and auxiliary verbs where is dad?
Negatives - begin by saying single words no. Then use negatives with another word no ball. Then have negative in middle of a sentence. Then contractions isn’t and increased accuracy of negatives
Pragmatic development
Using language in different social functions
Halliday’s 7 functions of speech
Child directed speech CDS
Protoconversations
Halliday’s 7 functions of speech (1975)
- Instrumental (to express needs or obtain things e.g. I want)
- Regulatory (to control others behaviours e.g. let’s go)
- Interactional (to relate to others/ interact e.g. me and you)
- Personal (to express themselves e.g. here or emotions)
- Informative (convey facts or info e.g. I have to say something)
- Heuristic (gain knowledge about things e.g. questions)
- Imaginative (for imagination e.g. stories and jokes)
Child directed speech CDS
Phonology - slower clearer pronunciation, pauses, higher intonation (prosodic features)
Lexis - simple restricted vocab, diminutive forms (doggie) concrete nouns
Grammar - simple sentences, imperatives, repetition, questions, less auxiliaries
Kaye 1980
Says prosodic, lexical, complexity, redundancy and content features are all part of CDS
Protoconversations
Interactional patterns between mothers and babies
Parents speaks when baby stops babbling
Lots of questions to engage the child in convo
Baby responds through imitations laughs smiles body movements etc
Protoconversations in ages
Age 2 - parents do most of the conversational work and convos are usually disjointed
Age 3 - learned aspects of convos such as turn taking and social factors like politeness, clarification and indirect requests
Age 4 - fully participate in conversations and they flow easier as both people talk
Types of babbling
Variegated - rhythm of babbled sounds and consonants and vowels changes into sequences not patterns e.g. gabama
Reduplicated - repeated sound and consonant is the same each time e.g. baba
Overgeneralisations vs virtuous errors
Over generalisations - applying rules to irregulars
Virtuous error - errors aren’t random. Don’t know the exceptions to rules yet
