John Benjamins Publishing Company
8. Frequency effects in children's syntactic and morphological development
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Abstract
We have long loved Langendoen (1970) — a paper on the theoretical justification of “transformations, their effects on the structure of sentences, and the conditions under which they are optional or obligatory” (p. 102). In that paper, Langendoen argued that acceptability and grammaticality are “partially independent [and] partially dependent notions” (p. 103). We are struck by the implications of this contrast for language learning. If the learner’s grammar is a set of probabilistic patterns and not (also or instead) a set of grammatical rules, one might expect high frequency elements to be ‘grammatical’ and low frequency elements to be ‘ungrammatical.’ In other words, grammaticality and acceptability should be similar if frequency is the determining factor. But Langendoen (1970) hypothesized that grammatical competence contributes to grammaticality while processing factors contribute to acceptability. Our research shows clearer effects of frequency on the latter than the on former and thus relates to Langendoen’s observation.
This chapter explores the role of frequency in children’s syntactic and morphophonological development. One study compares relative clauses involving different extraction sites, which constructions vary considerably in their frequency of occurrence. Children’s production of these relatives suggests that frequency affects sentence planning, but their judgments of the same relatives are out of synchrony with the frequency rates. The other study presented here concerns the a and an forms of the indefinite article, which distinction is acquired relatively late even though the forms occur frequently. These studies show that frequency cannot be the whole story. We conclude that children’s mastery of a system of rules proceeds — at least to some extent — independently of frequency patterns in the input.
Abstract
We have long loved Langendoen (1970) — a paper on the theoretical justification of “transformations, their effects on the structure of sentences, and the conditions under which they are optional or obligatory” (p. 102). In that paper, Langendoen argued that acceptability and grammaticality are “partially independent [and] partially dependent notions” (p. 103). We are struck by the implications of this contrast for language learning. If the learner’s grammar is a set of probabilistic patterns and not (also or instead) a set of grammatical rules, one might expect high frequency elements to be ‘grammatical’ and low frequency elements to be ‘ungrammatical.’ In other words, grammaticality and acceptability should be similar if frequency is the determining factor. But Langendoen (1970) hypothesized that grammatical competence contributes to grammaticality while processing factors contribute to acceptability. Our research shows clearer effects of frequency on the latter than the on former and thus relates to Langendoen’s observation.
This chapter explores the role of frequency in children’s syntactic and morphophonological development. One study compares relative clauses involving different extraction sites, which constructions vary considerably in their frequency of occurrence. Children’s production of these relatives suggests that frequency affects sentence planning, but their judgments of the same relatives are out of synchrony with the frequency rates. The other study presented here concerns the a and an forms of the indefinite article, which distinction is acquired relatively late even though the forms occur frequently. These studies show that frequency cannot be the whole story. We conclude that children’s mastery of a system of rules proceeds — at least to some extent — independently of frequency patterns in the input.
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Acknowledgements vii
- Introduction ix
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Part I. Syntax and semantics
- 1. Inverse reflexives 3
- 2. On the nature of the approximative expression NUM- odd 37
- 3. Skating along the syntactic verge: Experimental pragmatics and understood elements of content 55
- 4. Current challenges to the Lexicalist Hypothesis: An overview and a critique 91
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Part II. Psycholinguistics
- 5. On the homogeneity of syntax: How similar do coordinates and subordinates look to the comprehension system? 121
- 6. The effect of case marking on subject-verb agreement errors in English 135
- 7. First language acquisition of coordination: The mud-puddle study and beyond 151
- 8. Frequency effects in children's syntactic and morphological development 177
- 9. Abstract linguistic representations and innateness: The development of determiners 189
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Part III. Language as a Formal System
- 10. One-level finite-state phonology 209
- 11. Biolinguistics today and Platonism yesterday 227
-
Part IV. Standards
- 12. Linguistics as a community activity: The paradox of freedom through standards 235
- 13. Sherwin Cody's school of English 251
- Index 263
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Acknowledgements vii
- Introduction ix
-
Part I. Syntax and semantics
- 1. Inverse reflexives 3
- 2. On the nature of the approximative expression NUM- odd 37
- 3. Skating along the syntactic verge: Experimental pragmatics and understood elements of content 55
- 4. Current challenges to the Lexicalist Hypothesis: An overview and a critique 91
-
Part II. Psycholinguistics
- 5. On the homogeneity of syntax: How similar do coordinates and subordinates look to the comprehension system? 121
- 6. The effect of case marking on subject-verb agreement errors in English 135
- 7. First language acquisition of coordination: The mud-puddle study and beyond 151
- 8. Frequency effects in children's syntactic and morphological development 177
- 9. Abstract linguistic representations and innateness: The development of determiners 189
-
Part III. Language as a Formal System
- 10. One-level finite-state phonology 209
- 11. Biolinguistics today and Platonism yesterday 227
-
Part IV. Standards
- 12. Linguistics as a community activity: The paradox of freedom through standards 235
- 13. Sherwin Cody's school of English 251
- Index 263
