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Related Experiment Videos

Children are in control

J C Sherman1, B Lust

  • 1Massachusetts General Hospital, Department of Neurology, Boston 02114.

Cognition
|January 1, 1993
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Children continuously use universal grammar (UG) principles in first language acquisition of control, challenging stage-based theories. Overgeneralization reflects syntactic minimality, not a knowledge gap.

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Area of Science:

  • Linguistics
  • Developmental Psychology
  • Psycholinguistics

Background:

  • Theories of language acquisition often propose distinct developmental stages.
  • The role of Universal Grammar (UG) in early language development is a key area of research.
  • Control structures in language present complex acquisition challenges for children.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the continuous role of Universal Grammar (UG) principles in the first language acquisition of control.
  • To provide evidence against stage-based hypotheses of control acquisition.
  • To re-evaluate the interpretation of children's comprehension and production data in control structures.

Main Methods:

  • Analysis of comprehension and production data from 108 English-acquiring children aged 3-8 years.

Related Experiment Videos

  • Examination of children's understanding of antecedent choice in embedded null subject control structures.
  • Investigation of overgeneralization patterns in control structures, specifically with the verb 'promise'.

    • Main Results:

    • Children consistently apply fundamental grammatical principles of control throughout acquisition.
    • Evidence suggests previous hypotheses were misled by focusing on specific aspects of control knowledge.
    • A delay in acquisition with 'promise' is linked to integrating UG with language-specific lexicon-syntax principles.

    Conclusions:

    • Modular principles of Universal Grammar (UG) are continuously involved in first language control acquisition.
    • The acquisition of control does not follow a strict stage-based model.
    • Overgeneralization in control structures reflects a continuous principle of syntactic minimality, not a lack of grammatical knowledge.