应用语言学第四章课后习题答案.docVIP

Chapter4 1. Is it easy for the child to acquire his mother tongue? Why (not)? No, it is not easy for the child to acquire his mother tongue. First of all, he must segment the sound stream into meaningful units (words or phrases). This requires his ability to analyze. Then, he must combine them to arrive at the intended underlying propositions. This requires his ability to synthesize. 2. What questions must theories of L1 acquisition answer? Why? Psycholinguists who study child language are confronted with a more complex task than theoretical linguists whose major concern is competence (i.e. the system of language) and sociolinguists whose major concern is performance (i.e. the use of language). Psycholinguists have to be concerned with both competence and performance. Because they look at language from different angles, and because their purposes in the study of language are different. 3. Sketch out Skinner’s behavioristic theory of L1 acquisition. Skinner’s behavioristic model is embodied in his classic Verbal Behavior. His theory of verbal behavior is in fact an extension of his general theory of learning by operant conditioning. According to Skinner, verbal behavior, like other human behavior, is controlled by its consequences. When consequences are rewarding the behavior is reinforced and maintained, and even increased in strength and frequency. When consequences are punishing or when there is no reinforcement, the behavior is weakened and eventually extinguished. Therefore, effective language is the production of correct responses to external stimuli. The L1 acquisition process is one in which the child’s correct responses are repeatedly reinforced and finally a habit is formed. 4. What are the main points of mediation theories? Why are they called mediation theories? Mediation theories are represented by O. H. Mowrer and C. E. Osgood. Their goal is to fill the “black box” with postulated internal psychological structures and processes in order to account f