The use of complex structures with a word class change in Inuktitut child-directed speech
Caregivers typically use a simplified mode of the language – child-directed speech (CDS) – when addressing young children. In this study, we investigate the use of complex morphological structures with a word class change within a single word in Inuktitut CDS. Inuktitut is a polysynthetic agglutinat...
| Main Authors: | , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Frontiers Media S.A.
2022-10-01
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| Series: | Frontiers in Psychology |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.971395/full |
| _version_ | 1811242566348177408 |
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| author | Olga Alice Johnson Shanley E. M. Allen |
| author_facet | Olga Alice Johnson Shanley E. M. Allen |
| author_sort | Olga Alice Johnson |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Caregivers typically use a simplified mode of the language – child-directed speech (CDS) – when addressing young children. In this study, we investigate the use of complex morphological structures with a word class change within a single word in Inuktitut CDS. Inuktitut is a polysynthetic agglutinative language of the Inuit–Yupik–Unangan language family spoken in arctic Quebec, which allows more than 10 morphemes per word and in which the meaning of an entire sentence can be expressed in one word. Clearly, such a complex morphological system presents special challenges for young children, which raises the question of whether caregivers shape their CDS in ways that facilitate acquisition. Using the data from mothers addressing eight Inuktitut-speaking children aged 0;11 to 3;6, we investigated whether the frequency and complexity of polysynthetic structures in CDS are dependent on the stage of the children’s linguistic development. The results demonstrate that the number and morphological complexity of the structures with a word class change increased as the children developed linguistically. The variety of nominalizers and verbalizers – the key components of such structures – also increased through the stages and were used in variation sets, which help children acquire morphological items by providing examples of use of the same morpheme in morphologically contrasting environments. These results show the presence of morphological simplification in Inuktitut CDS and demonstrate that such simplification is fine-tuned, i.e., that mothers are sensitive to their children’s level of linguistic development. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-12T13:54:14Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-76fb968623c5424185a5a7f510b77cc3 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1664-1078 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-12T13:54:14Z |
| publishDate | 2022-10-01 |
| publisher | Frontiers Media S.A. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Frontiers in Psychology |
| spelling | doaj.art-76fb968623c5424185a5a7f510b77cc32022-12-22T03:30:26ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Psychology1664-10782022-10-011310.3389/fpsyg.2022.971395971395The use of complex structures with a word class change in Inuktitut child-directed speechOlga Alice JohnsonShanley E. M. AllenCaregivers typically use a simplified mode of the language – child-directed speech (CDS) – when addressing young children. In this study, we investigate the use of complex morphological structures with a word class change within a single word in Inuktitut CDS. Inuktitut is a polysynthetic agglutinative language of the Inuit–Yupik–Unangan language family spoken in arctic Quebec, which allows more than 10 morphemes per word and in which the meaning of an entire sentence can be expressed in one word. Clearly, such a complex morphological system presents special challenges for young children, which raises the question of whether caregivers shape their CDS in ways that facilitate acquisition. Using the data from mothers addressing eight Inuktitut-speaking children aged 0;11 to 3;6, we investigated whether the frequency and complexity of polysynthetic structures in CDS are dependent on the stage of the children’s linguistic development. The results demonstrate that the number and morphological complexity of the structures with a word class change increased as the children developed linguistically. The variety of nominalizers and verbalizers – the key components of such structures – also increased through the stages and were used in variation sets, which help children acquire morphological items by providing examples of use of the same morpheme in morphologically contrasting environments. These results show the presence of morphological simplification in Inuktitut CDS and demonstrate that such simplification is fine-tuned, i.e., that mothers are sensitive to their children’s level of linguistic development.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.971395/fullchild-directed speechmorphological simplificationpolysynthesisInuktitutfirst language acquisitionnominalization |
| spellingShingle | Olga Alice Johnson Shanley E. M. Allen The use of complex structures with a word class change in Inuktitut child-directed speech Frontiers in Psychology child-directed speech morphological simplification polysynthesis Inuktitut first language acquisition nominalization |
| title | The use of complex structures with a word class change in Inuktitut child-directed speech |
| title_full | The use of complex structures with a word class change in Inuktitut child-directed speech |
| title_fullStr | The use of complex structures with a word class change in Inuktitut child-directed speech |
| title_full_unstemmed | The use of complex structures with a word class change in Inuktitut child-directed speech |
| title_short | The use of complex structures with a word class change in Inuktitut child-directed speech |
| title_sort | use of complex structures with a word class change in inuktitut child directed speech |
| topic | child-directed speech morphological simplification polysynthesis Inuktitut first language acquisition nominalization |
| url | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.971395/full |
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