Rispoli Matthew, Hadley Pamela A, Holt Janet K
Department of Speech and Hearing Science, University of Illinois, Champaign, IL 61820, USA.
J Speech Lang Hear Res. 2009 Aug;52(4):930-44. doi: 10.1044/1092-4388(2009/08-0079).
This study tests empirical predictions of a maturational model for the growth of tense in children younger than 36 months using a type-based productivity measure.
Caregiver-child language samples were collected from 20 typically developing children every 3 months from 21 to 33 months of age. Growth in the productivity of tense morphemes, centered at 21 months, was examined using hierarchical linear modeling. The empirical Bayes residuals from 21- to 30-month productivity growth trajectories predicted children's accuracy of tense marking at 33 months.
A random effects quadratic growth model with no intercept best characterized the growth of tense marking between 21 and 30 months. Average development was characterized by slow instantaneous linear growth of less than 1 morpheme per month at 21 months and acceleration overall. Significant variation around this trend was also evident. Children's linear and quadratic empirical Bayes residuals together predicted 33-month accuracy scores (r = .672, p = .008).
Acceleration and variation about this trend are consistent with maturational models of language acquisition. With an empirically sound characterization of early variation in morphosyntactic growth rates, future investigations can more rigorously test hypotheses regarding biological, environmental, and developmental contributions to the acquisition of morphosyntax.
本研究使用基于类型的产出性测量方法，对36个月以下儿童时态发展的成熟模型的实证预测进行检验。
从20名发育正常的儿童中收集照顾者-儿童语言样本，这些儿童年龄从21个月至33个月，每3个月收集一次。使用分层线性模型检验以21个月为中心的时态语素产出性的发展。21至30个月产出性增长轨迹的经验贝叶斯残差预测了儿童在33个月时的时态标记准确性。
一个无截距的随机效应二次增长模型最能描述21至30个月期间时态标记的发展。平均发展的特点是在21个月时每月瞬时线性增长缓慢，少于1个语素，且总体呈加速趋势。围绕这一趋势的显著差异也很明显。儿童的线性和二次经验贝叶斯残差共同预测了33个月时的准确性得分（r = .672，p = .008）。
围绕这一趋势的加速和差异与语言习得的成熟模型一致。通过对形态句法增长率早期差异进行实证合理的描述，未来的研究可以更严格地检验关于生物、环境和发展对形态句法习得贡献的假设。
