Determining the development of syntax in typically-developing Indian adolescents using a syntactic analysis package.

Abstract

The syntactic structures used by adolescents can be calculated by measuring various markers that have the scope of developing with age. The use of such markers can be influenced by the type and modality of discourse on the individual uses. The present study was aimed at exploring the syntactic development in 10-16-year-old Indian adolescents using markers such as sentences, clauses, subordinators, coordinators, T-units and the subordination index (SI) using written expository texts. The study followed a cross-sectional study design following a non-random convenient sampling procedure. A total number of 180 typically-developing adolescents divided into six groups participated in the study. Phase 1 of the study comprised the preparation of the stimuli; Phase 2 included the data collection; Phase 3 focused on the data analysis; and Phase 4 involved the statistical analysis performed on the obtained data. One-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) revealed a main level of significance at p < 0.05 for all variables (except SI) indicating an overall change in the development across the six age groups. Bonferroni's post hoc analysis indicated poor significance between the groups in almost all the six variables. Understanding the syntactic markers in the language of adolescents is essential to determine the academic and communicative effectiveness of these individuals.