The acquisition of nominal determiners
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Dominique Bassano-Bonhommo
Abstract
The acquisition of nominal determiners, in particular articles, has inspired a vast amount of research in different theoretical frameworks. Focusing on cross-linguistic approaches, this overview addresses two main issues: the emergence of determiners in children’s early speech, and the later development of the determiner system. The first issue accounts for when and how children acquire the ability to use determiners in the contexts required by the target language and how linguistic and environmental factors influence this process. The second issue deals with when and how children learn to use the full range of different determiner types in their correct morphological realization and in the appropriate discourse functions in spontaneous or narrative speech.
Abstract
The acquisition of nominal determiners, in particular articles, has inspired a vast amount of research in different theoretical frameworks. Focusing on cross-linguistic approaches, this overview addresses two main issues: the emergence of determiners in children’s early speech, and the later development of the determiner system. The first issue accounts for when and how children acquire the ability to use determiners in the contexts required by the target language and how linguistic and environmental factors influence this process. The second issue deals with when and how children learn to use the full range of different determiner types in their correct morphological realization and in the appropriate discourse functions in spontaneous or narrative speech.
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Introduction 1
- The acquisition of nominal determiners 25
- Mapping information structure and word order 51
- Children’ use of intonation in reference and the role of input 83
- The role of gesture in referential communication 105
- The role of cognitive accessibility in children’s referential choice 123
- Acquisition and use of pronouns in a dialogic perspective 155
- From early to late mastery of reference 181
- Online evidence for children’s interpretation of personal pronouns 213
- Children’s sensitivity to caregiver cues and the role of adult feedback in the developmentof referential communication 241
- The cognitive underpinnings of referential abilities 263
- Production and comprehension of pronouns and reflexives in atypical populations 285
- Referential expressions in bilingual acquisition 311
- Language index 335
- Subject index 337
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Introduction 1
- The acquisition of nominal determiners 25
- Mapping information structure and word order 51
- Children’ use of intonation in reference and the role of input 83
- The role of gesture in referential communication 105
- The role of cognitive accessibility in children’s referential choice 123
- Acquisition and use of pronouns in a dialogic perspective 155
- From early to late mastery of reference 181
- Online evidence for children’s interpretation of personal pronouns 213
- Children’s sensitivity to caregiver cues and the role of adult feedback in the developmentof referential communication 241
- The cognitive underpinnings of referential abilities 263
- Production and comprehension of pronouns and reflexives in atypical populations 285
- Referential expressions in bilingual acquisition 311
- Language index 335
- Subject index 337
