Argument-Adjunct Asymmetry in the Acquisition of Inversion in Wh-Questions by Korean Learners of English
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 4501665 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Sun‐young Lee (0000-0003-4970-241X, University of Maryland, College Park, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2008 |
| Volume | 58 |
| Issue | 3 |
| Pages | 625-663 |
| Publication date | 2008-09-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Language Learning (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0023-8333 • E-ISSN: 1467-9922 |
| Publisher | Wiley (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1111/j.1467-9922.2008.00452.x |
| OpenAlex | W2117617655 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 3 |
| References cited | 27 |
This article investigates an argument-adjunct asymmetry in English as a second language (ESL) learners' acquisition of inversion in wh-questions. A generative approach (DeVilliers, 1991; Stromswold, 1990) claims that inversion is acquired earlier in argument wh-questions than in adjunct wh-questions, the asymmetry resulting from their different structural properties. However, an input frequency approach (Rowland & Pine, 2000, 2003; Rowland, Pine, Lieven, & Theakston, 2005) proposes that individual wh-word + auxiliary combinations are acquired based on their input frequency, with no argument-adjunct asymmetry being predicted other than as an indirect consequence of a frequency difference. Two studies were conducted: one acquisition study with a grammaticality judgment task and one input study with a corpus analysis of the learners' input sources. The results show that learners are more successful at subject-auxiliary inversion in argument wh-questions than in adjunct wh-questions and that the argument-adjunct asymmetry cannot be traced to input frequency. The results of the studies here run counter to the input frequency account but conform to the prediction of a structure-based generative approach: There exists an argument-adjunct asymmetry in the acquisition of inversion in wh-questions because of the different syntactic properties of two types of wh-phrases
Adjunct · Argument (complex analysis) · Asymmetry · Generative grammar · Grammar · Grammaticality · Inversion (geology) · Lexicon · Linguistics · Theoretical linguistics · Computer Science · EFL/ESL Teaching and Learning · Language Development and Disorders · Philosophy · Psychology · Syntax, Semantics, Linguistic Variation
Principles and practice in second language acquisition
Knowledge of language
A First Language
Lectures on Government and Binding
Input Enhancement and L2 Question Formation
Comparing different accounts of inversion errors in children's non-subject wh-questions
Learning how to ask
The development of subject–auxiliary inversion in English wh-questions
The development of inversion in wh-questions
Subject–auxiliary inversion errors and wh-question acquisition
Continuity and development in the acquisition of inversion in yes/no questions
The status of functional categories in child second language acquisition
Inversion of subject NP and aux in children's questions
Implicational Universals and Interrogative Structures in the Interlanguage of ESL Learners
Adult Performance on the Slope Test
The Effect of Formal Instruction on Second Language Acquisition1
Processing Complexity and Filler-Gap Dependencies across Grammars
| Unique citing works | 3 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 0,3 |
| Citation span | 2016 - 2019 (4) |
| Citation velocity | historical |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 3 |