Abstract
Are all syntactic dependencies impaired in SLI? Whereas children with
(syntactic-)SLI have difficulties in the comprehension of sentences derived by
Wh movement, it is not clear whether they are impaired in other types of
dependency. To explore the general question of whether all types of
dependencies are impaired in SLI, this study tested the dependency between
pronominal elements and their antecedents. We used a picture selection task to
test the comprehension of pronouns and reflexives in 12 Hebrew-speakers with
Syntactic SLI aged 9;3-13;10. Whereas the participants with syntactic SLI were
very impaired in the comprehension and production of sentences derived by Whmovement, they showed intact performance in the interpretation of pronouns and
reflexives. No significant difference was found between the SLI and the control
group, and no significant difference was found between pronouns and reflexives.
These results suggest that the difficulty in syntactic-SLI is specific to a certain
type of dependency, Wh-movement, and does not extend to all types of
dependencies. The results further indicate that syntactic SLI is not a general
syntactic delay, because Hebrew-speaking 5-year-olds have difficulties in the
comprehension of both Wh-movement and pronouns, whereas school-aged
children with syntactic SLI encounter difficulties only in Wh-movement, and
show good comprehension of pronouns.
(syntactic-)SLI have difficulties in the comprehension of sentences derived by
Wh movement, it is not clear whether they are impaired in other types of
dependency. To explore the general question of whether all types of
dependencies are impaired in SLI, this study tested the dependency between
pronominal elements and their antecedents. We used a picture selection task to
test the comprehension of pronouns and reflexives in 12 Hebrew-speakers with
Syntactic SLI aged 9;3-13;10. Whereas the participants with syntactic SLI were
very impaired in the comprehension and production of sentences derived by Whmovement, they showed intact performance in the interpretation of pronouns and
reflexives. No significant difference was found between the SLI and the control
group, and no significant difference was found between pronouns and reflexives.
These results suggest that the difficulty in syntactic-SLI is specific to a certain
type of dependency, Wh-movement, and does not extend to all types of
dependencies. The results further indicate that syntactic SLI is not a general
syntactic delay, because Hebrew-speaking 5-year-olds have difficulties in the
comprehension of both Wh-movement and pronouns, whereas school-aged
children with syntactic SLI encounter difficulties only in Wh-movement, and
show good comprehension of pronouns.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Title of host publication | The 34th Boston University Conference on Language Development (BUCLD) proceedings |
| Editors | Katie Franic, Kate M. Iserman, Lauren L. Keil |
| Publisher | Cascadilla press |
| Volume | 34 |
| ISBN (Print) | 978-1-57473-055-5 |
| State | Published - 2010 |
| Externally published | Yes |