Mixed NPs in German-English and German-Russian bilingual children
Quick AE, Lieven E, Tomasello M (2016)
Publication Type: Authored book
Publication year: 2016
Publisher: De Gruyter
ISBN: 9781614514190
Abstract
Both cross-linguistic priming methodologies and research on codemixed utterances have been concerned with the nature of the underlying syntactic representations of bilinguals. The present paper investigated code-mixing at the morphosyntactic level (NP) by comparing German-English (G-E) and German- Russian (G-R) bilingual children between the ages of 3;6 and 5;6. Using a language priming paradigm and a monolingual interlocutor in each language, we attempted to elicit mixed NPs from these children. Results showed that G-E bilingual children produced mixed NPs significantly more often than G-R bilinguals, providing support for the importance of structural similarity in this type of mixing. A second finding was that children who were reported as code-mixing at home were significantly more likely to provide answers while children who did not code-mix remained silent. Explanations in terms of individual differences and/or balanced competence are discussed.
Involved external institutions
Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology / Max-Planck-Institut für evolutionäre Anthropologie
Germany (DE)
University of Manchester
United Kingdom (GB)
Germany (DE)
University of Manchester
United Kingdom (GB)
How to cite
APA:
Quick, A.E., Lieven, E., & Tomasello, M. (2016). Mixed NPs in German-English and German-Russian bilingual children. De Gruyter.
MLA:
Quick, Antje Endesfelder, Elena Lieven, and Michael Tomasello. Mixed NPs in German-English and German-Russian bilingual children. De Gruyter, 2016.
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