The function of local cues in the acquisition of Japanese temporal sentences

Abstract

This study examines the role of Slobin's (1982) ‘local cues’ in the acquisition of temporal clauses in Japanese. The local cue under consideration is the grammatical aspect expressed by the verb-ru/-ta form in Japanese temporal clauses, especially in mae ‘before’, ato ‘after’, and toki ‘when’ clauses. Ninety-six children, equally divided into three age groups of 3, 4 and 5 yr, were examined in two distinct tasks. The performance on ato and V-ta toki in the first (“act-out”) task was significantly better than on mae and V-ru toki sentences. The results suggest that the children are sensitive to the local cues expressed by the V-ru/-ta form and indicate that the success of the verb forms as a cue depends on whether the verb forms can express the temporal relations clearly and consistently. These results confirm Slobin's claim that overt and clear surface cues facilitate a child's sentence processing. Although there was no significant difference found in the second (“story”) task, an explanation for this result is also offered.