The link between lexical semantic features and children’s comprehension of English verbal be -passives

Bibliographic Data

ID21630784
AuthorsEmma Nguyen (0000-0001-7728-7853, University of Connecticut, corresponding author), Lisa Pearl (0000-0001-6987-6092, University of California, Irvine, corresponding author)
Year2021
Volume28
Issue4
Pages433-450
Publication date2021-10-02
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueLanguage Acquisition (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1048-9223 • E-ISSN: 1532-7817
PublisherInforma UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/10489223.2021.1939354
OpenAlexW3199601286
LanguageEN
Citations received5
References cited21

Children seem to be relatively delayed in their comprehension of the verbal be-passive in English, compared to their acquisition of other constructions of object-movement such as wh-questions and unaccusatives. Prior work has found that children’s performance on these passives can be affected by the verb’s lexical semantics. Through a meta-analysis of experimental studies assessing English-speaking children’s age of acquisition for the verbal be- passive, we identify a developmental trajectory composed of five classes, where each class has a distinct lexical semantic profile. A Truth-Value Judgment (TVJ) Task assessing English-speaking children’s comprehension of verbal be-passives supports this developmental trajectory. Together, the meta-analysis and TVJ study underscore the importance of lexical semantics for understanding the development of the English verbal be-passive

Cognitive psychology · Comprehension · Language acquisition · Lexical item · Lexical Semantics · Linguistics · Morpheme · Verb · Computer Science · Language Development and Disorders · Neurobiology of Language and Bilingualism · Psychology · Reading and Literacy Development

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