TY  - JOUR
A1  - Höhle, Barbara
A1  - Hoernig, Robin
A1  - Weskott, Thomas
A1  - Knauf, Selene
A1  - Krueger, Agnes
T1  - Effects of focus and definiteness on children's word order: evidence from German five-year-olds' reproductions of double object constructions
JF  - Journal of child language
N2  - Two experiments tested how faithfully German children aged 4; 5 to 5; 6 reproduce ditransitive sentences that are unmarked or marked with respect to word order and focus (Exp1) or definiteness (Exp2). Adopting an optimality theory (OT) approach, it is assumed that in the German adult grammar word order is ranked lower than focus and definiteness. Faithfulness of children's reproductions decreased as markedness of inputs increased; unmarked structures were reproduced most faithfully and unfaithful outputs had most often an unmarked form. Consistent with the OT proposal, children were more tolerant against inputs marked for word order than for focus; in conflict with the proposal, children were less tolerant against inputs marked for word order than for definiteness. Our results suggest that the linearization of objects in German double object constructions is affected by focus and definiteness, but that prosodic principles may have an impact on the position of a focused constituent.
Y1  - 2014
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1017/S0305000913000196
SN  - 0305-0009
SN  - 1469-7602
VL  - 41
IS  - 4
SP  - 780
EP  - 810
PB  - Cambridge Univ. Press
CY  - New York
ER  - 
TY  - GEN
A1  - Höhle, Barbara
A1  - Hörnig, Robin
A1  - Weskott, Thomas
A1  - Knauf, Selene
A1  - Krüger, Agnes
T1  - Effects of focus and definiteness on children's word order
BT  - evidence from German five-year-olds' reproductions of double object constructions
T2  - Postprints der Universität Potsdam Humanwissenschaftliche Reihe
N2  - Two experiments tested how faithfully German children aged 4; 5 to 5; 6 reproduce ditransitive sentences that are unmarked or marked with respect to word order and focus (Exp1) or definiteness (Exp2). Adopting an optimality theory (OT) approach, it is assumed that in the German adult grammar word order is ranked lower than focus and definiteness. Faithfulness of children's reproductions decreased as markedness of inputs increased; unmarked structures were reproduced most faithfully and unfaithful outputs had most often an unmarked form. Consistent with the OT proposal, children were more tolerant against inputs marked for word order than for focus; in conflict with the proposal, children were less tolerant against inputs marked for word order than for definiteness. Our results suggest that the linearization of objects in German double object constructions is affected by focus and definiteness, but that prosodic principles may have an impact on the position of a focused constituent.
T3  - Zweitveröffentlichungen der Universität Potsdam : Humanwissenschaftliche Reihe - 511 
KW  - indefinite articles
KW  - preschool-children
KW  - information
KW  - animacy
KW  - acquisition
KW  - constraints
KW  - sentences
KW  - language
KW  - grammar
KW  - stress
Y1  - 2019
U6  - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:kobv:517-opus4-415695
SN  - 1866-8364
IS  - 511
ER  -