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Intonational phrase structure processing at different stages of syntax acquisition: ERP studies in 2‐, 3‐, and 6‐year‐old children
Author(s) -
Männel Claudia,
Friederici Angela D.
Publication year - 2011
Publication title -
developmental science
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.801
H-Index - 127
eISSN - 1467-7687
pISSN - 1363-755X
DOI - 10.1111/j.1467-7687.2010.01025.x
Subject(s) - syntax , psychology , phrase , phrase structure rules , linguistics , grammar , philosophy
This study explored the electrophysiology underlying intonational phrase processing at different stages of syntax acquisition. Developmental studies suggest that children’s syntactic skills advance significantly between 2 and 3 years of age. Here, children of three age groups were tested on phrase‐level prosodic processing before and after this developmental phase, while their brain activity was recorded. The Closure Positive Shift (CPS), which indexes the perception of intonational phrasing in adults, served as dependent variable. The event‐related brain potentials of 3‐ and 6‐year‐olds, but not of 21‐month‐olds, showed a CPS. These results suggest that prosodic phrase processing, as indicated by the CPS, is established only later during children’s development, pointing to a close interaction of prosody and syntax acquisition.