Article published In: Linguistic Approaches to Bilingualism
Vol. 4:4 (2014) ► pp.462–493
Combined effects of age of onset and input on the development of different grammatical structures
A study of simultaneous and successive bilingual acquisition of French
Published online: 8 December 2014
https://doi.org/10.1075/lab.4.4.03agr
https://doi.org/10.1075/lab.4.4.03agr
This study investigates the combined effects of Age of Onset of Acquisition (AOA) and quality and quantity of input on the development of three grammatical structures in French. In a longitudinal and multiple case study including successive (L2) Swedish-French bilingual children (n = 3), simultaneous (2L1) Swedish-French bilingual children (n = 3) and monolingual French children (n = 3), we examine the development of finite verb forms, object pronouns and subject-verb agreement. A distinction is made between structures that are early/ late in different modes of acquisition and less/more difficult. The operationalization of quantity and quality of input is based on individual input profiles. The results show that AOA affects the development of less difficult and early grammatical structures whereas AOA has no influence on more difficult structures that are acquired late. An effect of input is found in the 2L1 children, and in some of the L2 children. This effect is most clear with more difficult and late structures.
Article outline
- 1.Introduction
- 2.Theoretical background
- 2.1The age factor
- 2.2The input factor
- 2.3The linguistic factor
- 2.4The three grammatical structures investigated
- 2.4.1 Finite and non-finite forms
- 2.4.2 Object pronouns (clitics)
- 2.4.3 Subject-verb agreement in number
- 2.4.4 Comparing the three structures
- 3.Research question and predictions
- 4.Method
- 4.1Participants
- 4.2The individual input profiles
- 4.3Procedures
- 4.4Analysis and scoring of data
- 5.Results
- 5.1Finite and non-finite forms
- 5.2Use of object clitics
- 5.3Subject-verb agreement in number
- 5.4Summary of results
- 6.
- Note
References
References (42)
Abrahamsson, N., & Hyltenstam, K. (2009). Age of onset and nativelikeness in a second language: Listener perception versus linguistic scrutiny. Language Learning, 59(2), 249–306.
Ågren, M. (2008). A la recherche de la morphologie silencieuse: Sur le développement du pluriel en français L2 écrit. Études Romanes de Lund 84. PhD dissertation, Lund University.
Ågren, M., & van de Weijer, J. (2013). Input frequency and the acquisition of subject-verb agreement in number in spoken and written French. Journal of French Language Studies, 231, 311–333.
Bartning, I., & Schlyter, S. (2004). Itinéraires acquisitionnels et stades de développement en français L2. Journal of French Language Studies, 141, 281–299.
Cardinaletti, A., & Starke, M. (1999). The typology of structural deficiency: A case study of the three classes of pronouns. In H. van Riemsdijk (Ed.), Clitics in the languages of Europe (pp. 145–233). Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter.
Chondrogianni, V., & Marinis, T. (2011). Differential effects of internal and external factors on the development of vocabulary, tense morphology and morpho-syntax in successive bilingual children. Linguistic Approaches to Bilingualism, 1(3), 318–345.
Gathercole, V. C. M. (2007). Miami and North Wales, so far and yet so near: A constructivist account of morpho-syntactic development in bilingual children. International Journal of Bilingual Education and Bilingualism, 101, 224–247.
Gathercole, V. C. M., & Thomas, E. M. (2009). Bilingual first language development: Dominant language takeover, threatened minority language take-up. Bilingualism: Language and Cognition, 121, 213–238.
Granfeldt, J. (2012). Development of object clitics in child L2 French: A comparison of developmental sequences in different modes of acquisition. Languages, Interaction and Acquisition, 3(1), 140–162.
Granfeldt, J., & Schlyter, S. (2004). Cliticisation in the acquisition of French as L1 and L2. In P. Prévost & J. Paradis (Eds.), The acquisition of French in different learners: Focus on functional categories (pp. 333–370). Amsterdam: John Benjamins.
Grüter, T. (2006). Object (clitic) omission in L2 French: Miss-setting or missing surface inflection? In M.G. O’Brien, C. Shea, and J. Archibald (Eds.), Proceedings of the 8th Generative Approaches to Second Language Acquisition Conference (pp. 63–71). Somerville, MA: Cascadilla Proceedings Project.
Gutiérrez-Clellen, V. F., & Kreiter, J. (2003). Understanding child bilingual acquisition using parent and teacher reports. Applied Psycholinguistics, 241, 267–288.
Hamann, C., & Belletti, A. (2008). Developmental patterns in the acquisition of complement clitic pronouns: Comparing different acquisition modes with an emphasis on French. Rivista di Grammatica Generativa, 311, 39–78.
Hellan, L., & Platzack, C. (1999). Pronouns in Scandinavian languages: An overview. In H. van Riemsdijk (Ed.), Clitics in the languages of Europe (pp. 123–142). Berlin/New York: Mouton de Gruyter.
Jakubowicz, C., Nash, L., Rigaut, C., & Gérard, C.-L. (1998). Determiners and clitic pronouns in French-speaking children with SLI. Language Acquisition, 7(2-4): 113–160.
Jia, G., Aaronson, D., & Wu, Y. (2002). Long-term language attainment of bilingual immigrants: Predictive variables and language group differences. Applied Psycholinguistics, 231, 599–621.
Jia, G., & Aaronsson, D. (2003). A longitudinal study of Chinese children and adolescents learning English in the United States. Applied Psycholinguistics, 241, 131–161.
Legendre, G., Vainikka, A., Hagstrom, P., & Todorova, M. (2002). Partial Constraint ordering in child French syntax. Language Acquisition, 10(3), 189–227.
Marty, F. (2001). Les signaux morphologiques du français parlé. Le français moderne, 69(2), 211–240.
Matthews, D., Lieven, E. V., Theakston, A. L., & Tomasello, M. (2004). The role of frequency and distributional regularity in the acquisition of word order. In E. V. Clark (Ed.), Proceedings of the 32nd Stanford Child Language Research Forum (pp. 68–77). Retrieved on 30 August 2012, from [URL]
Meisel, J. M. (1994). Getting FAT: Finiteness, agreement and tense in early grammars. In J. M. Meisel (Ed.), Bilingual first language acquisition (pp. 89–129). Amsterdam: John Benjamins.
. (2008). Child second language acquisition or successive first language acquisition? In B. Haznedar & E. Gavruseva (Eds.), Current trends in child second language acquisition: A generative perspective (pp. 55–80). Amsterdam: John Benjamins.
Moyer, A. (2009). Input as a critical means to an end: Quantity and quality of experience in L2 phonological attainment. In T. Piske & M. Young-Scholten (Eds.), Input matters in SLA (pp. 159–174). Clevedon: Multilingual Matters.
Paradis, J. (2007). Second language acquisition in childhood. In E. Hoff & M. Shatz (Eds.), Blackwell handbook of language development (pp. 387–406). Oxford: Blackwell.
. (2010). Bilingual children’s acquisition of English verb morphology: Effects of language dominance, structure difficulty, and task type. Language Learning, 601, 651–680.
. (2011). Individual differences in child English second language acquisition: Comparing child-internal and child-external factors. Linguistic Approaches to Bilingualism, 1(3), 213–237.
Paradis, J., Nicoladis, E., Crago, M., & Genesee, F. (2011). Bilingual children’s acquisition of the past tense: A usage-based approach. Journal of Child Language, 381, 554–578.
Pérez-Leroux, A. T., Pirvulescu, M., & Roberge, Y. (2009). Bilingualism as a window into the language faculty: The acquisition of objects in French-speaking children in bilingual and monolingual contexts. Bilingualism: Language and Cognition, 12(1), 97–112.
Place, S., & Hoff, E. (2011). Properties of dual language exposure that influence two-year-olds’ bilingual proficiency. Child Development, 821, 1834–1849.
Prévost, P. (2009). The acquisition of French: The development of inflectional morphology and syntax in L1 acquisition, bilingualism, and L2 acquisition. Amsterdam: John Benjamins.
Rasetti, L. (2003). Optional categories in early French syntax: A developmental study of root infinitives and null arguments. PhD dissertation, University of Geneva.
Schlyter, S. (1993). The weaker language in bilingual Swedish–French children. In K. Hyltenstam & A. Viberg (Eds.), Progression and regression in language (pp. 289–308). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
. (2003). Development of verb morphology and finiteness in children and adults. In C. Dimroth & M. Starren (Eds.), Information structure and the dynamics of language acquisition (pp. 15–44). Amsterdam: John Benjamins.
Schlyter, S. & Thomas, A. (2012). L1 or L2 acquisition? Finiteness in child second language learners (cL2), compared to adult L2 learners (aL2) and young bilingual children (2L1). In M. Watorek, S. Benazzo, & M. Hickmann (Eds.), Comparative perspectives to language acquisition: A tribute to Clive Perdue (pp. 282–302). Clevedon: Multilingual Matters.
Schwartz, B. D. (2004). On child L2 development of syntax and morphology. Lingue e Linguaggio, 31, 97–132.
Thomas, A. (2009). Les apprenants parlent-ils à l’infinitif? Influence de l’input sur la production des verbes par des apprenants adultes du français. Études Romanes de Lund 87, PhD dissertation, Lund University.
Unsworth, S. (2013). Assessing the role of current and cumulative exposure in simultaneous bilingual acquisition: The case of Dutch gender. Bilingualism: Language and cognition, 16(1), 86–110.
Unsworth, S,. Argyri, F., Cornips, L., Hulk, A, Sorace, A., & Tsimpli, I. (2011). Bilingual acquisition of Greek voice morphology and Dutch gender: What do they have in common? BUCLD 35 Proceedings. Retrieved on 30 January 2012, from [URL]
Cited by (21)
Cited by 21 other publications
Thomas, Anita & Rosamond Mitchell
Devlin, Anne Marie & Henry Tyne
Smolander, Sini, Marja Laasonen, Eva Arkkila, Pekka Lahti‐Nuuttila & Sari Kunnari
Thomas, Anita
Thomas, Anita
Thomas, Anita, Jonas Granfeldt & Malin Ågren
Karayayla, Tuğba
2020. Effects of first language attrition on heritage language input and ultimate attainment. In Lost in transmission [Studies in Bilingualism, 59], ► pp. 33 ff.
Granget, Cyrille, Marie-Ange Dat, Christine Cuet, Pascale El Haj, Fatima Albochi, Ashraf Allawama, F. Neveu, B. Harmegnies, L. Hriba & S. Prévost
Leal, Tania, Emilie Destruel & Bradley Hoot
2018. The realization of information focus in monolingual and bilingual native Spanish. Linguistic Approaches to Bilingualism 8:2 ► pp. 217 ff.
Nicoladis, Elena
2018. Simultaneous child bilingualism. In
Bilingual Cognition and Language [Studies in Bilingualism, 54], ► pp. 81 ff.
BERNARDINI, PETRA
MATUSEVYCH, YEVGEN, AFRA ALISHAHI & AD BACKUS
BEDORE, LISA M., ELIZABETH D. PEÑA, ZENZI M. GRIFFIN & J. GREGORY HIXON
Engemann, Helen
Granfeldt, Jonas
GRANFELDT, JONAS
Granfeldt, Jonas
2025. Child L2 acquisition of French. In Approaches and Methods in French Second Language Acquisition Research [Research Methods in Applied Linguistics, 9], ► pp. 308 ff.
Granfeldt, Jonas
UNSWORTH, SHARON
[no author supplied]
This list is based on CrossRef data as of 24 november 2025. Please note that it may not be complete. Sources presented here have been supplied by the respective publishers. Any errors therein should be reported to them.