Phonological Opacity Research Articles

Rapid processing of base and derived forms of words and grades 4, 5 and 6 children's spelling

This paper emphasizes the productive aspect of morphological processingand the effect on spelling proficiency in 226 grades 4, 5 and 6 children. Two convergent studies using reaction time measures aimed at exploring ten- to twelve-year old spellers' sensitivity to, and knowledge of, derivational morphology with lexical items varying in orthographic and phonological transparency and opacity. There is some evidence, from the accurate and rapid vocal production of base forms or derived forms of source words in sentential contexts, that the depth of segmentation to base morphology and the converse process of derived morphology of words, plays a role in spelling performance of these children. There are complex orthographic, phonological and semantic factors affecting morphological processing.

Some analytical issues in Optimality Theory

One important breakthrough of optimality theory involves the formal analysis of the functional unity of phonological processes. Rule-based theories have no formal means of accounting for why diverse processes in a single language may conspire to have output forms meet a specific phonological shape or characteristic. I will illustrate how optimality theory can account for a functional conspiracy by considering in detail syllable contact phenomena in Korean. While the account of functional conspiracies is one of the major analytical achievements of optimality theory, there are, nonetheless, analytical challenges confronting it. I briefly touch on two such challenges, one concerning a specific prediction regarding blocking segments in harmony systems and the other concerning the analysis of phonological opacity. The overall conclusion of this article is that while optimality theory offers analytic insight and does make specific empirical predictions, the analysis of phonological opacity remains a challenge to the theory.

Sympathy and phonological opacity

A central idea in rule-based phonology is the serial derivation (Chomsky & Halle 1968). In a serial derivation, an underlying form passes through a number of intermediate representations on its way to the surface:[Scheme here]Implementational details can differ: the order of rules might be stipulated or it might be derived from universal principles; the steps might be called ‘rules’, ‘cycles’ or ‘levels’; the steps might involve applying rules or enforcing constraints. But, details aside, the defining characteristic of a serial derivation, in the sense I will employ here, is the pre-eminence of the chronological metaphor: the underlying form is transformed into a succession of distinct, accessible intermediate representations on its way to the surface. I will call any theory with this property ‘serialism’.

Children's auditory lexical decisions: a limited processing capacity account of language impairment.

Twenty-three school-age children with language impairments (LI) and 46 typically achieving children participated in 2 auditory lexical decision tasks. Effects of phonological opacity (i.e., stress and vowel changes involved in forming derivatives from a base word) on word recognition were investigated. In one task, children made lexical decisions about phonologically transparent real derivatives (e.g., hatless) and pseudo derivatives (e.g., *quickless). In this task, children with LI showed only subtle deficits compared to their chronological-age (CA) peers. In the other task, children made lexical decisions about phonologically opaque real derivatives (e.g., acidity) and pseudo derivatives (e.g., *combinity) as well as transparent derivatives. In this task, children with LI were substantially less accurate than were CA children in identifying phonologically opaque real derivatives and were slower to do so than both CA and language-age (LA) children. Children in the LI and LA groups were slower than children in the CA group to identify phonologically opaque pseudo derivatives. These results are interpreted within a limited processing capacity account of language impairment.

Phonological opacity v. semantic transparency: Two cases from Israeli Hebrew

Two related ongoing changes in Israeli Hebrew are discussed in order to show how morphophonemic changes may be stymied if they lead to lexical merger. The present changes are triggered by phonological opacity which has arisen as a result of earlier morphophonemic changes in the history of the language. Parts of these changes are blocked in specific environments where the lexical merger or semantic opacity would result if the phonological opacity were removed unimpeded. Reference is made to phonological changes in other languages where lexical merger appears to be avoided. Some implications for both synchronic and diachronic analyses if language are discussed.