During the last 10 years, more and more linguistic and psycholinguistic research has been devoted to the study of discourse and written texts. Much of this research deals with the markers that underline the connections and the breaks between clauses and sentences plus the use of these markers -- by adults and children -- in the production and comprehension of oral and written material. In this volume, major observations and theoretical views from both sides of the Atlantic are brought toge...

Is children's language acquisition based on innate linguistic structures or built from cognitive and communicative skills? This book summarises the major theoretical debates in all of the core domains of child language acquisition research (phonology, word-learning, inflectional morphology, syntax and binding) and includes a complete introduction to the two major contrasting theoretical approaches: generativist and constructivist. For each debate, the predictions of the competing accounts ...

Providing a solid foundation in second language acquisition, this book has become the leading introduction to the subject for students of linguistics, psychology and education, and trainee language teachers. Now in its third edition, the textbook offers comprehensive coverage of fundamental concepts, including second language acquisition (SLA) in adults and children, in formal and informal learning contexts, and in diverse socio-cultural settings, and takes an interdisciplinary approach, e...

The Psycholinguistics of Bilingualism presents a comprehensive introduction to the foundations of bilingualism, covering language processing, language acquisition, cognition and the bilingual brain.This thorough introduction to the psycholinguistics of bilingualism is accessible to non-specialists with little previous exposure to the fieldIntroduces students to the methodological approaches currently employed in the field, including observation, experimenta...

Introducing Second Language Acquisition: Perspectives and Practices represents a clear and concise introduction to the main concepts, issues, and debates in second language acquisition studies aimed specifically at undergraduates encountering the topic for the first time.Follows six fictitious language learners throughout the text whose stories serve to introduce various concepts and issuesContains specific chapters on first language acquisition and bilingu...

How humans produce and understand language is clearly introduced in this textbook for students with only a basic knowledge of linguistics. With a logical, flexible structure Introducing Psycholinguistics steps through the central topics of production and comprehension of language and the interaction between them. Students will gain an understanding of the processes and representations involved in language use, aided by a comprehensive glossary, concepts defined in the margins and online fl...

Introducing the fundamental issues in psycholinguistics, this book explores the amazing story of the unconscious processes that take place when humans use language. It is an ideal text for undergraduates taking a first course in the study of language.Topics covered include the biological foundations of language; acquisition of first and second languages in children and adults; the mental lexicon; and speech production, perception, and processingStructured as an enga...

Infants and very young children develop almost miraculously the ability of speech, without apparent effort, without even being taught - as opposed to the teenager or the adult struggling without, it seems, ever being able to reach the same level of proficiency as five year olds in their first language. This useful textbook serves as a guide to different types of language acquisition: monolingual and bilingual first language development and child and adult second language acquisition. Unlik...

From the point of view of psychology and cognitive science, much of modern linguistics is too formal and mathematical to be of much use. The newly emerging approaches to language termed, "Functional and Cognitive Linguistics," however, are much less formally oriented. Instead, functional and cognitive approaches to language structure are typically couched in terms already familiar to cognitive scientists: perception, attention, conceptualization, meaning, symbols, categories, schemas, pers...

"[This book] opens a window into the process of psycholinguistics, pulling together classic and cutting-edge research from a number of different areas to provide an engaging and insightful introduction to the study of language processing. Psycholinguistics 101 is sure to hook students with its enthusiasm as it provides a clear introduction to the modern research in this field."Maria Polinsky, PhDHarvard UniversityHow is language repres...

What is language and how can we investigate its acquisition by children or adults? What perspectives exist from which to view acquisition? What internal constraints and external factors shape acquisition? What are the properties of interlanguage systems? This comprehensive 31-chapter handbook is an authoritative survey of second language acquisition (SLA). Its multi-perspective synopsis on recent developments in SLA research provides significant contributions by established experts and wid...

This best-selling dictionary is now in its 4th edition. Specifically written for students of language teaching and applied linguistics, it has become an indispensible resource for those engaged in courses in TEFL, TESOL, applied linguistics and introductory courses in general linguistics.Fully revised, this new edition includes over 350 new entries. Previous definitions have been revised or replaced in order to make this the most up-to-date and comprehensive dictionary available.