The Role of Underdeterminacy and Reference in the Sentence Recall of Young Children

Children of five and eight years of age were asked to repeat sentences. The sentences were (1) underdetermined sentences containing modal verbs, (2) referential sentences in which the subject referred to an object presented simultaneously with the sentence, and (3) control sentences containing neither. Sentences were presented in a conversation condition approximating an ordinary conversation and on a tape recording. In eight-year-olds, but not five-year-olds, the adult meaning system was observed. Modal sentences were recalled better than control sentences in the conversation condition, but not in the tape condition. At both ages referentiality of the sentence subject improved its recall without regard to condition.