Language and Working Memory: referential expressions usages in 7- and 9-years old children

SILVA, MARÍA LUISA; GARAY FRONTINI, MELISA; IACOBUZIO, SOFIA

Congreso; 56th Linguistics International Colloquium; 2020

Syntax could be seen within an evolutionary perspective as a symbolic resource by which humans manage the phonological forms to process and store more efficiently in Working Memory (WM) the linguistic stimulus (Bybee, 2003; Elvira, 2009). This assumption has received increasing empirical evidence. However, the current models of WM (Baddeley, 1999) have not considered the role of Syntax at structuring and storing the stimulus. In the same sense, we have not found research programs that inquire about the relationships between Syntax and WM. Perhaps the Linguistic models that sustain Syntax as an autonomous module cause this gap. On the other hand, Language Usage Models (LUM) (Ellis, 2008; Tomasello, 2003) offer a theoretical framework in which it is possible to explore these relationships. In LUM framework Relative Clauses (RCs.) are characterized by the updating of a series of features that allow guiding the referential identification (Reference Point constructions) (Fox & Thompson, 1990; Langacker, 1993; Silva, 2010; Silva & Plana, 2014). When a speaker uses a RC must recognize when and how it is needed to increase the cognitive accessibility of lexical items, previously activated in some conceptual fields (Langacker, 1993). The present study aimed to explore the relationships among the use of referential expressions, mainly RCs., and the differences in WM measures, via comparing the performances of children of 7 (n: 26) and 9 (n: 24) years old. We administered different tests of WM and calculated descriptive statistics; to elicit referential expressions we administered an experimental task and considered the hierarchy of referential expressions (Benítez Rosete, 2014). The results indicate that the WM indices are higher than previous ones, showing an evolutionary increase although it is not similar in the three tests considered. Considering the referential phrases, the most frequent structure in 7-year-old children is: Demonstrative Pronoun + Relative Clause, while the predominant structure in 9 years is: Relative Clause without a noun or SN + Relative Clause. Finally, the first results indicate a correlational pattern in the use of referential expressions and WM measures. We consider that these differences respond to the different complexity of the cognitive activities involved: the difference in storage and in storage and processing.