LINGUIST List 21.5170 Mon Dec 20 2010 Diss: Psycholing/Syntax: Asproudi: 'Comprehension and Production of...' Editor for this issue: Mfon Udoinyang <mfonlinguistlist.org> To post to LINGUIST, use our convenient web form at http://linguistlist.org/LL/posttolinguist.cfm. Directory         1.     Evangelia Asproudi , Comprehension and Production of Wh-Interrogatives in the L1 Acquisition of Greek Message 1: Comprehension and Production of Wh-Interrogatives in the L1 Acquisition of Greek Date: 16-Dec-2010 From: Evangelia Asproudi <evangelia.asproudigmail.com> Subject: Comprehension and Production of Wh-Interrogatives in the L1 Acquisition of Greek E-mail this message to a friend Institution: Aristotle University of Thessaloniki Program: Department of Linguistics Dissertation Status: Completed Degree Date: 2010 Author: Evangelia Asproudi Dissertation Title: Comprehension and Production of Wh-Interrogatives in the L1 Acquisition of Greek Linguistic Field(s): Psycholinguistics Syntax Applied Ling Dissertation Director(s): Ianthi Tsimpli Dissertation Abstract: The general aim of this dissertation is to investigate the acquisition of wh-interrogatives in L1 Greek by typically developing children. More concretely, comprehension and production of wh-interrogatives is examined with respect to four fundamental questions on children's sensitivity to long-distance movement constraints, to PF/LF discrepancy reduction, to locality considerations and to economy-based parsing. All these questions are addressed mainly on the basis of the following conditions: short-/long-distance extraction, presence or absence of wh-islands/negation/Discourse-linking, and presence of complementiser 'oti' vs. 'na'. In order to test the Greek-specific predictions made in relation to the fundamental questions outlined above, ninety 4-to-7 year-old Greek children participated in a series of comprehension and production experiments. The analysis of their results aims at comparisons between question comprehension and production, as well as between short- and long-distance question production. These comparisons are drawn both at an intralinguistic and at a crosslinguistic level, with the ultimate goal of gaining deeper insight into the acquisition of wh-movement. Overall, the obtained results provide evidence for the availability of successive cyclicity and for sensitivity to wh- and negative islands, for convergence of PF and LF representations, for early preference for maximally local movement and, finally, for the operation of economy-based parsing principles. On the whole, all the patterns observed point to a UG-compatible linguistic behaviour and thus attest for a continuity account of language acquisition. Maturation seems to pertain to children's processing ability and more prominently at the level of meaning rather than at the level of form. Read more issues|LINGUIST home page|Top of issue Page Updated: 20-Dec-2010       About LINGUIST    |   Contact Us       While the LINGUIST List makes every effort to ensure the linguistic relevance of sites listed on its pages, it cannot vouch for their contents.