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Title:
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Input-Based Phonological Acquisition
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Author:
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Tania Zamuner
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Email:
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click here to access email
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Homepage:
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http://www.psych.ubc.ca/~tzamuner/
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Degree Awarded:
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University of Arizona
, Department of Linguistics
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Degree Date:
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2001
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Linguistic Subfield(s):
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Phonology
Language Acquisition
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Director(s):
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Louann Gerken
Michael Hammond
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Abstract:
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This dissertation contrasts two theories of language acquisition. The first theory, which has been dominant in generative linguistics, argues that acquisition is primarily mediated by innate properties of language provided by universal grammar (Universal Grammar Hypothesis - UGH). The opposing view is that language is acquired based on the patterns in the ambient language or input (General Pattern Learning Hypothesis - GPLH). These theories are contrasted by examining children’s acquisition of coda consonants in CVC words.
The UGH of coda preferences was based on previous research and on frequency analyses of codas in CVC words from 35 languages. Results showed that languages prefer coronal codas and sonorant codas. These cross-linguistic preferences are interpreted as reflecting UG. Predictions of the GPLH were established through an examination of English codas in CVC words from a number of different sources. This revealed the frequency of codas in the input, upon which the GPLH was based. In order to determine which hypothesis better predicts children’s coda acquisition, data were then collected from previously published research, from CHILDES, and from an experiment designed to test children’s production of English codas.
To evaluate the UGH, children’s coda productions were analyzed to determine whether the preferred codas were coronals of sonorants. Results did not show that these codas were favoured. To evaluate the GPLH, analyses determined whether there were significant correlations between children’s coda productions and the frequency of English codas. Reuslts showed that these relationships were significant.
The role of the input was further examined in an experiment designed to test children’s productions of the same coda in non-words controlled for phonotactic probabilities. Results showed that phonotactic probabilities played a significant role in accounting for children’s production of the same coda in different words.
The results support an input-based account of phonological acquisition. Thus, language acquisition is best characterized with respect to patterns in the ambient language, where frequently occurring properties of the input serve to organize children’s linguistic representations. The research here illustrates the importance of considering the input in children’s acquisition of phonological structures.
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