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On the nature of verb–noun dissociations in bilectal SLI: A psycholinguistic perspective from Greek

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 March 2013

MARIA KAMBANAROS ,
KLEANTHES K. GROHMANN ,
MICHALIS MICHAELIDES  and
ELENI THEODOROU
MARIA KAMBANAROS
Affiliation:
Cyprus Acquisition Team
KLEANTHES K. GROHMANN*
Affiliation:
Cyprus Acquisition Team & Department of English Studies, University of Cyprus
MICHALIS MICHAELIDES
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology, University of Cyprus
ELENI THEODOROU
Affiliation:
Cyprus Acquisition Team & Department of English Studies, University of Cyprus
*
Address for correspondence: Kleanthes K. Grohmann, University of Cyprus, Department of English Studies, 75 Kallipoleos, P.O. Box 20537, 1678 Nicosia, Cypruskleanthi@ucy.ac.cy
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Abstract

We report on object and action picture-naming accuracy in two groups of bilectal speakers in Cyprus, children with typical language development (TLD) and children with specific language impairment (SLI). Object names were overall better retrieved than action names by both groups. Given that comprehension for action names was relatively intact for all children, this finding is taken to be the result of a breakdown at the interface of the semantic lexicon and phonological representations, or access to them. The results complement similar research on English, a minimally inflected language in contrast to Greek. Overall, cross-linguistic word class effects provide strong evidence for the hypothesis that grammatical category is an organizing principle shared across languages. Finally, our results suggest that bilectal children with SLI present with general lexical delay rather than a deficit in verb naming per se.

Keywords

object and action namingspecific language impairmentbilectal childrenlexical delay
Type
Research Article
Information
Bilingualism: Language and Cognition , Volume 17 , Issue 1 , January 2014 , pp. 169 - 188
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2013 

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