Argument structure in the Spanish Determiner Phrase: Acquisition of hierarchies through posessivization

Abstract

Four types of Determiner Phases (DP) in Spanish have arguments in the form of Prepositional Phrases (PP) introduced by de (‘of’). Picture (foto ‘photo’) and deverbal nouns (descripción ‘description’) project a more complex argument structure than relational (primo ‘cousin’) and deadjectival nouns (belleza ‘beauty’). The possessivization test implies that the most prominent de-PP of each DP type can be possessivized depending on different thematic hierarchies. This study analyzes whether comparative complexity affects convergence on possessivization, with earlier convergence predicted for comparatively simpler relational and deadjectival DPs. To test this prediction, this study examines order of DP acquisition in 52 L1 Spanish-speaking children (6-year-olds (N = 14), 7-year-olds (N = 21), 8-year-olds (N = 17)). A Graded Grammaticality Judgment Task (GGJT) containing 32 items divided across four conditions (relational, deadjectival, picture, deverbal) with four contexts each was administered. Results reveal developmental improvement and partial support for the prediction in that relational DPs are converged upon first, while deverbal DPs are converged upon last. This study’s import is the novel examination of argument structure across four DP types in Spanish-speaking children with the aim of observing and explaining the developmental path.