The purpose of this study was to delineate the implications of language within an educational context as a means of facilitating self-actualization. Three premises identified in a priori fashion were drawn from the literature in linguistics, psychology, and general semantics, creating a three-part language continuum--acquisition, development, and…

Research studies have demonstrated that children tend to define nouns by describing first their function and later the object to which they refer. In a study devised to trace the development of noun definition in the language of grade school children and adults, 20 subjects from each of four grade levels (kindergarten and grades two, four, and…

This study describes some aspects of the emergence of displaced reference (talking about topics other than those in the immediate context) in conversations between a child and her parents. The data consisted of tape recorded interaction with the child between 17 and 36 months. During this period, speech about the here and now always dominated, but…

This volume deals with various aspects of the relationship between linguistic ability and general cognitive development. It presents original, up-to-date research for child psychologists, linguists, psycholinguists, scholars, teachers, and students interested in this field and interprets the findings in the context of contemporary linguistic…

A study was undertaken to determine whether children in early periods of language development use stress with any regular patterns, and if so, on what the patterns are based. The subjects were five children aged 21-29 months, MLU between 1.3 and 2.4. Tape recordings were made during play sessions with each child. Two-word utterances that could be…

THIS PAPER (WHICH WAS PREPARED FOR A SYMPOSIUM ON "THE STUDY OF PERSONALITY" AT RICE UNIVERSITY, HOUSTON, NOVEMBER, 1966) REVIEWS THE ADVANCES MADE BY INTERDISCIPLINARY LINGUISTIC RESEARCH INTO THE EFFECTS OF EARLY BILINGUALISM. USING THE SAUSSUREAN MODEL OF THE LINGUISTIC SIGN, A DISTINCTION IS MADE BETWEEN "COORDINATE" AND "COMPOUND" BILINGUALS.…

This study was conducted to explore the ability of children (6 to 12 years of age) to understand certain relatively complex relationships as they are commonly signaled syntactically in our language. It was hypothesized that development in language performance during this age range was, in some measure, a function of a growing ability to comprehend…

The purpose of this study was to locate those measurable criteria of responsiveness to language which have not been utilized to any significant extent in standardized tests. The project involved creating a testing instrument, reviewing of the instrument by a panel of experts, and applying the resultant test to a small population of college…

A study was conducted to describe the ability of students to handle the various systems of the English language (phonology, morphology, syntax, and semantics) and to determine how these systems are being affected by the linguistic environments surrounding the students. The 210 student subjects were enrolled in seven of the schools of the Lake and…

The prerequisites of language acquisition are cognitive and pragmatic. The child's conceptual development and social needs direct his attention to particular linguistic forms. These provide an efficient selection device enabling the child to match his language learning task with his abilities. The second language learner who is cognitively and…