Null Subjects in Monolingual and Bilingual, Typical and Atypical Development
-
João Costa
Abstract
We present an exploratory test on the production of null subjects by 13 monolinguals acquiring Capeverdean, 6 bilingual speakers of Capeverdean and European Portuguese with typical language development and 7 bilingual speakers with SLI features. Capeverdean does not allow null referential subjects in matrix clauses. European Portuguese, on the other hand, is a prototypical pro-drop language. The results from an elicited production task revealed that the production of null subjects does not appear to constitute a distinctive feature for bilingual children with language impairment. As for the contrast between the early abandon of subject drop by Capeverdean monolinguals and the maintenance of null subjects among the bilinguals in both languages, the latter confirms that this is an area of interference.
Abstract
We present an exploratory test on the production of null subjects by 13 monolinguals acquiring Capeverdean, 6 bilingual speakers of Capeverdean and European Portuguese with typical language development and 7 bilingual speakers with SLI features. Capeverdean does not allow null referential subjects in matrix clauses. European Portuguese, on the other hand, is a prototypical pro-drop language. The results from an elicited production task revealed that the production of null subjects does not appear to constitute a distinctive feature for bilingual children with language impairment. As for the contrast between the early abandon of subject drop by Capeverdean monolinguals and the maintenance of null subjects among the bilinguals in both languages, the latter confirms that this is an area of interference.
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- List of contributors vii
- Introduction 1
- The Genetics of Specific Language Impairment (SLI) 7
- Language disorders in children with Developmental Dyslexia 35
- Is there an overlap between Specific Language Impairment and Developmental Dyslexia? New insights from French 57
- Comparing SLI and dyslexia: developmental language profiles and reading outcomes 89
- Specific Language Impairment (SLI) is not specific enough: Sub-types of SLI and their implications for the theory of the disorder 113
- Memory profiles of children with SLI 125
- The relationship between SLI in English and Modern Greek 145
- Null Subjects in Monolingual and Bilingual, Typical and Atypical Development 175
- Quantification in Catalan SLI 191
- Specific Language Impairment in German Children 215
- The acquisition of past tense by Greek-speaking children with Specific Language Impairment 253
- Theory Motivated Therapy Studies of SLI 287
- Index 319
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- List of contributors vii
- Introduction 1
- The Genetics of Specific Language Impairment (SLI) 7
- Language disorders in children with Developmental Dyslexia 35
- Is there an overlap between Specific Language Impairment and Developmental Dyslexia? New insights from French 57
- Comparing SLI and dyslexia: developmental language profiles and reading outcomes 89
- Specific Language Impairment (SLI) is not specific enough: Sub-types of SLI and their implications for the theory of the disorder 113
- Memory profiles of children with SLI 125
- The relationship between SLI in English and Modern Greek 145
- Null Subjects in Monolingual and Bilingual, Typical and Atypical Development 175
- Quantification in Catalan SLI 191
- Specific Language Impairment in German Children 215
- The acquisition of past tense by Greek-speaking children with Specific Language Impairment 253
- Theory Motivated Therapy Studies of SLI 287
- Index 319
