Lexis and Semantics Flashcards
Difference between a child’s understanding of language and their ability to produce it?
Their understanding of language is much faster, for example they understand who ‘mummy’ is before they can say it. This is shown by the ability to look towards ‘mummy’ when the name is spoken.
Katherine Nelson Study?
Studied 18 children’s first words and found they could be categorised according to their function.
60% were nouns to name people, animals or things.
The other 3 categories were words that expressed or demanded actions and personal and social words.
Leslie Rescorla -
If a child has fewer words in their vocabulary aged 2, it could also be a sign of other problems, such as deafness or autism.
What is overextension?
Found by Eve Clark, as when a child uses a more specific word to label a more general noun.
What are the two types of overextension?
- categorical
- analogical
What is analogical overextension?
When a child tries to make links between different objects according to similar properties or use.
E.g. calling all spherical objects ball.
What is categorical overextension?
When a child refers to all objects within the same category with the same name. E.g. calling all types of outwear ‘dress’
What is underextension?
Eve Clark - when a child uses a more general word but will only apply it to a very specific situation or thing.
How does over and under extension support Chomsky’s innate theory?
It could be argued that the ability to seek connections and find similarities between words is a sign of some kind of innate capacity to make sense of language.
