Two studies investigated the degree to which the content of initial learning of a word facilitated transfer of the word meaning to other representations that were near or far, relative to the originally learned form of the word. Subjects in the first study were 40 undergraduate students, who were tested on a list of 13 uncommon words. Results…

In learning a language as a means of communication, children must first coin new word-forms to express meanings for words they do not yet know. Children learn at an early age that lexicon can be used creatively, and that creativity is not simply a matter of learning which word-paradigms are available in the language, but also learning adult…

This book discusses semantic feature analysis, a strategy that helps teachers focus students' attention on vocabulary and increase their sensitivity to language. The first half of the book deals with the theoretical foundation, reviews the research, and describes the basic teaching strategy of semantic feature analysis. The book's second half is…

The research orientations and perspectives of people participating in the international dialogue about the redefinition of English language studies have been varied. Two broad and overlapping areas are distinctive to English studies: the exploration of human values and experience through the study of literature and the media, and the development…

The nature of gazing at someone or something, as a form of communication among the Bahemba people in eastern Zaire, is analyzed across a range of situations. Variations of steady gazing, a common eye contact routine, are outlined, including: (1) negative non-gazing or glance routines, especially in situations in which gazing would ordinarily…

A study examined the expectation that videotaped male models would be rated similarly to ratings previously found in research literature for red, blue, and monotone hues, and high, medium, and low levels of color saturation. Using a Graeco-Latin Square design, the ratings of 147 subjects (communications students at the University of Utah) were…

Two divergent views of linguistic ability in adulthood currently exist. One view maintains that verbal ability is preserved in old age, while the other view maintains that verbal ability declines, especially comprehension. To analyze the effects of semantic priming during sentence processing by 30 younger adults (mean age, 25 years) and 30 older…

Contradictory previous research results showing that (1) language knowledge does not decrease with age; and (2) age differences exist in semantic strategies for memory recall provide the impetus for a study of semantic priming in young adults (mean age = 20) and older adults (mean age = 70) by providing target and prime words with six different…

Verbal productivity and lack of self-disclosure about feelings by counselor trainees may indicate resistance in a supervision session. In order to investigate resistance as it relates to trainees' statements, 20 supervisors viewed and rated a 15-minute videotape of a simulated supervisory session, in which the trainee was instructed to exhibit…

Previous research on the effects of counselor language on clients' perception of the counselor's social influence indicated that counselors using complex language were seen as more expert. Seventy-eight undergraduate and graduate counselor trainees participated in a study to replicate these earlier findings by investigating the effects of…

Semantic theory, its relationship to comprehension, the nature and function of semantic memory, and results of some research on semantic memory and bilinguals are discussed through a review of recent literature. The findings discussed seem to confirm these general observations regarding semantic memory and bilinguals: (1) there is integration and…

Analysis of data from Kekchi, a head-marking language following Mayan patterns, can provide insight into case relations and pronominal reference in head-marking languages. Tensed verb constructions are examined, focusing attention on how the verb stem can determine both the number of referents and their semantic roles. The language's predication…

An analysis of the nature of secondary predicates takes a comparative approach, using Italian and English. Distributional properties and extraction facts are accounted for, and an explanation for the fact that resultatives are not allowed in Romance languages is sought on the basis of Italian evidence. It is argued that the semantic distinction…

A study examined how preschool children use information about linguistic contrast in learning new words. The 72 subjects were assigned to four groups to play a game. They were asked to get an unfamiliar item, one of nine swatches of different colors, shapes, and materials. In the first group, the children were told only one label (color, shape, or…

The "contextual hypothesis" of French and Brown (1977) concerning children's acquisition of temporal terms was tested. French and Brown claimed that it would be impossible for children to learn the meaning of temporal terms except by hearing them used in contexts where they referred to already known sequences, and further proposed that the terms…