Simultaneous naturalistic acquistition of inflectional morphology in two languages by adult learners: Three case studies.
Item
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Title
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Simultaneous naturalistic acquistition of inflectional morphology in two languages by adult learners: Three case studies.
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Identifier
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AAI8914768
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identifier
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8914768
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Creator
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Kiciuk, Maria.
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Contributor
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Adviser: Carlos Yorio
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Date
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1988
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Language
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English
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Publisher
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City University of New York.
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Subject
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Language, Linguistics
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Abstract
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The purpose of this research is to investigate the role of the learner's first language and the principles of markedness in naturalistic adult second language acquisition. I propose to examine these issues by studying the interlanguage of three adult subjects whose native language is German and who have acquired two languages, English and Ukrainian, as adults without formal instruction. I hypothesize that the subjects' interlanguage will reveal differential success in the acquisition of inflectional morphology in the two languages under study. To explain the predicted differential success in acquiring the inflectional morphology in Ukrainian and English, I posit the Acquisitional Direction of Complexity and claim that the degree of complexity of the inflectional system in the learner's first language in relationship to the language being acquired is a crucial variable and a predictor of the degree of difficulty as well as the eventual proficiency in second language acquisition.;Additionally, I propose that markedness is an important factor in second language acquisition. I therefore claim that morphological structures in Ukrainian which are marked in terms of the "complexity principle" and "typological markedness" will be constrained by the principles of markedness and will be especially difficult to acquire.
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Type
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dissertation
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Source
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PQT Legacy CUNY.xlsx
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degree
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Ph.D.
