scholarly journals Comprehension of verb directionality in LIS and LSF

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Valentina Aristodemo ◽  
Beatrice Giustolisi ◽  
Carlo Cecchetto ◽  
Caterina Donati
Keyword(s):  
Sign Language ◽  
First Language ◽  
Sign Languages ◽  
Verb Agreement ◽  
Comprehension Task ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Language Exposure ◽  
Native Signers

The present work reports the results of a comprehension task on verb directionality in Italian Sign Language (LIS) and French Sign Language (LSF) considering native and non-native signers. Our goals were to study age of first language exposure effects on the comprehension of verb agreement in LIS and LSF, to verify whether a significant difference between forward and backward directionality was found, and see if our results may provide insight about the nature (gestural vs. linguistic) of verb directionality in sign languages. In both languages we found that the ability to comprehend verb agreement is affected in non-native signers. This indicates that delayed first language exposure has long lasting effects in adulthood. We argue that our results support analyses of verb agreement as a fully grammatical phenomenon.

scholarly journals Monitoring Different Phonological Parameters of Sign Language Engages the Same Cortical Language Network but Distinctive Perceptual Ones

2016 ◽  
Vol 28 (1) ◽  
pp. 20-40 ◽  
Author(s):  
Velia Cardin ◽  
Eleni Orfanidou ◽  
Lena Kästner ◽  
Jerker Rönnberg ◽  
Bencie Woll ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Sign Language ◽  
Action Observation ◽  
Sign Languages ◽  
Signed Languages ◽  
Phonological Structure ◽  
British Sign Language ◽  
Action Observation Network ◽  
Native Signers ◽  
British Sign ◽  
Phonological Rules

The study of signed languages allows the dissociation of sensorimotor and cognitive neural components of the language signal. Here we investigated the neurocognitive processes underlying the monitoring of two phonological parameters of sign languages: handshape and location. Our goal was to determine if brain regions processing sensorimotor characteristics of different phonological parameters of sign languages were also involved in phonological processing, with their activity being modulated by the linguistic content of manual actions. We conducted an fMRI experiment using manual actions varying in phonological structure and semantics: (1) signs of a familiar sign language (British Sign Language), (2) signs of an unfamiliar sign language (Swedish Sign Language), and (3) invented nonsigns that violate the phonological rules of British Sign Language and Swedish Sign Language or consist of nonoccurring combinations of phonological parameters. Three groups of participants were tested: deaf native signers, deaf nonsigners, and hearing nonsigners. Results show that the linguistic processing of different phonological parameters of sign language is independent of the sensorimotor characteristics of the language signal. Handshape and location were processed by different perceptual and task-related brain networks but recruited the same language areas. The semantic content of the stimuli did not influence this process, but phonological structure did, with nonsigns being associated with longer RTs and stronger activations in an action observation network in all participants and in the supramarginal gyrus exclusively in deaf signers. These results suggest higher processing demands for stimuli that contravene the phonological rules of a signed language, independently of previous knowledge of signed languages. We suggest that the phonological characteristics of a language may arise as a consequence of more efficient neural processing for its perception and production.

scholarly journals Shrinking Your Deictic System: How Far Can You Go?

2020 ◽  
Vol 11 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mila Vulchanova ◽  
Pedro Guijarro-Fuentes ◽  
Jacqueline Collier ◽  
Valentin Vulchanov
Keyword(s):  
First Language ◽  
Group Living ◽  
Spanish Speakers ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Language Attrition ◽  
Native Spanish Speakers ◽  
Language Competence ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Language Exposure ◽  
Open Question

Languages around the world differ in terms of the number of adnominal and pronominal demonstratives they require, as well as the factors that impact on their felicitous use. Given this cross-linguistic variation in deictic demonstrative terms, and the features that determine their felicitous use, an open question is how this is accommodated within bilingual cognition and language. In particular, we were interested in the extent to which bilingual language exposure and practice might alter the way in which a bilingual is using deictic demonstratives in their first language. Recent research on language attrition suggests that L2 learning selectively affects aspects of the native language, with some domains of language competence being more vulnerable than others. If demonstratives are basic, and acquired relatively early, they should be less susceptible to change and attrition. This was the hypothesis we went on to test in the current study. We tested two groups of native Spanish speakers, a control group living in Spain and an experimental group living in Norway using the (Spatial) Memory game paradigm. Contra to our expectations, the results indicate a significant difference between the two groups in use of deictic terms, indicative of a change in the preferred number of terms used. This suggests that deictic referential systems may change over time under pressure from bilingual language exposure.

Development of an Auditory Passage Comprehension Task for Swedish Primary School Children of Cultural and Linguistic Diversity

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-11
Author(s):  
Johanna Carlie ◽  
Birgitta Sahlén ◽  
Jens Nirme ◽  
Ketty Andersson ◽  
Mary Rudner ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Primary School ◽  
School Children ◽  
Linguistic Diversity ◽  
Primary School Children ◽  
Similar Response ◽  
Cultural And Linguistic Diversity ◽  
Comprehension Task ◽  
Language Groups ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Language Exposure

Purpose This study reports on the development of an auditory passage comprehension task for Swedish primary school children of cultural and linguistic diversity. It also reports on their performance on the task in quiet and in noise. Method Eighty-eight children aged 7–9 years and showing normal hearing participated. The children were divided into three groups based on presumed language exposure: 13 children were categorized as Swedish-speaking monolinguals, 19 children were categorized as simultaneous bilinguals, and 56 children were categorized as sequential bilinguals. No significant difference in working memory capacity was seen between the three language groups. Two passages and associated multiple-choice questions were developed. During development of the passage comprehension task, steps were taken to reduce the impact of culture-specific prior experience and knowledge on performance. This was achieved by using the story grammar principles, universal topics and plots, and simple language that avoided complex or unusual grammatical structures and words. Results The findings indicate no significant difference between the two passages and similar response distributions. Passage comprehension performance was significantly better in quiet than in noise, regardless of language exposure group. The monolinguals outperformed both simultaneous and sequential bilinguals in both listening conditions. Conclusions Because the task was designed to minimize the effect of cultural knowledge on auditory passage comprehension, this suggests that compared with monolinguals, both simultaneous and sequential bilinguals have a disadvantage in auditory passage comprehension. As expected, the findings demonstrate that noise has a negative effect on auditory passage comprehension. The magnitude of this effect does not relate to language exposure. The developed auditory passage comprehension task seems suitable for assessing auditory passage comprehension in primary school children of linguistic and cultural diversity.

scholarly journals Deaf children need language, not (just) speech

2019 ◽  
Vol 39 (4) ◽  
pp. 367-395 ◽  
Author(s):  
Matthew L. Hall ◽  
Wyatte C. Hall ◽  
Naomi K. Caselli
Keyword(s):  
Sign Language ◽  
Cochlear Implants ◽  
Research Evidence ◽  
Spoken Language ◽  
Deaf Children ◽  
Full Potential ◽  
Sign Languages ◽  
Language Deprivation ◽  
Language Exposure ◽  
Harmful Effects

Deaf and Hard of Hearing (DHH) children need to master at least one language (spoken or signed) to reach their full potential. Providing access to a natural sign language supports this goal. Despite evidence that natural sign languages are beneficial to DHH children, many researchers and practitioners advise families to focus exclusively on spoken language. We critique the Pediatrics article ‘Early Sign Language Exposure and Cochlear Implants’ (Geers et al., 2017) as an example of research that makes unsupported claims against the inclusion of natural sign languages. We refute claims that (1) there are harmful effects of sign language and (2) that listening and spoken language are necessary for optimal development of deaf children. While practical challenges remain (and are discussed) for providing a sign language-rich environment, research evidence suggests that such challenges are worth tackling in light of natural sign languages providing a host of benefits for DHH children – especially in the prevention and reduction of language deprivation.

scholarly journals Vision-based Pakistani Sign Language Recognition Using Bag-of-Words and Support Vector Machines

2022 ◽  
Author(s):  
Muhammad Shaheer Mirza ◽  
Sheikh Muhammad Munaf ◽  
Shahid Ali ◽  
Fahad Azim ◽  
Saad Jawaid Khan
Keyword(s):  
Sign Language ◽  
Recognition System ◽  
Support Vector ◽  
Bag Of Words ◽  
Language Recognition ◽  
Sign Language Recognition ◽  
Sign Languages ◽  
Vector Machines ◽  
Rgb Images ◽  
Native Signers

Abstract In order to perform their daily activities, a person is required to communicating with others. This can be a major obstacle for the deaf population of the world, who communicate using sign languages (SL). Pakistani Sign Language (PSL) is used by more than 250,000 deaf Pakistanis. Developing a SL recognition system would greatly facilitate these people. This study aimed to collect data of static and dynamic PSL alphabets and to develop a vision-based system for their recognition using Bag-of-Words (BoW) and Support Vector Machine (SVM) techniques. A total of 5,120 images for 36 static PSL alphabet signs and 353 videos with 45,224 frames for 3 dynamic PSL alphabet signs were collected from 10 native signers of PSL. The developed system used the collected data as input, resized the data to various scales and converted the RGB images into grayscale. The resized grayscale images were segmented using Thresholding technique and features were extracted using Speeded Up Robust Feature (SURF). The obtained SURF descriptors were clustered using K-means clustering. A BoW was obtained by computing the Euclidean distance between the SURF descriptors and the clustered data. The codebooks were divided into training and testing using 5-fold cross validation. The highest overall classification accuracy for static PSL signs was 97.80% at 750×750 image dimensions and 500 Bags. For dynamic PSL signs a 96.53% accuracy was obtained at 480×270 video resolution and 200 Bags.

scholarly journals Age of sign language acquisition has lifelong effect on syntactic preferences in sign language users

2020 ◽  
pp. 016502542095819
Author(s):  
Julia Krebs ◽  
Dietmar Roehm ◽  
Ronnie B. Wilbur ◽  
Evie A. Malaia
Keyword(s):  
Language Acquisition ◽  
Sign Language ◽  
Word Order ◽  
First Language ◽  
Spoken Language ◽  
Sign Languages ◽  
Simple Sentences ◽  
Age Range ◽  
Effect Of Age ◽  
Deaf Signers

Acquisition of natural language has been shown to fundamentally impact both one’s ability to use the first language and the ability to learn subsequent languages later in life. Sign languages offer a unique perspective on this issue because Deaf signers receive access to signed input at varying ages. The majority acquires sign language in (early) childhood, but some learn sign language later—a situation that is drastically different from that of spoken language acquisition. To investigate the effect of age of sign language acquisition and its potential interplay with age in signers, we examined grammatical acceptability ratings and reaction time measures in a group of Deaf signers (age range = 28–58 years) with early (0–3 years) or later (4–7 years) acquisition of sign language in childhood. Behavioral responses to grammatical word order variations (subject–object–verb [SOV] vs. object–subject–verb [OSV]) were examined in sentences that included (1) simple sentences, (2) topicalized sentences, and (3) sentences involving manual classifier constructions, uniquely characteristic of sign languages. Overall, older participants responded more slowly. Age of acquisition had subtle effects on acceptability ratings, whereby the direction of the effect depended on the specific linguistic structure.

Seeing sentence boundaries

2007 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 177-200 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jordan Fenlon ◽  
Tanya Denmark ◽  
Ruth Campbell ◽  
Bencie Woll
Keyword(s):  
Comparative Analysis ◽  
Sign Language ◽  
Visual Cues ◽  
Prosodic Structure ◽  
Sign Languages ◽  
British Sign Language ◽  
Signed Language ◽  
Native Signers ◽  
Syntactic Boundaries ◽  
British Sign

Linguists have suggested that non-manual and manual markers are used in sign languages to indicate prosodic and syntactic boundaries. However, little is known about how native signers interpret non-manual and manual cues with respect to sentence boundaries. Six native signers of British Sign Language (BSL) were asked to mark sentence boundaries in two narratives: one presented in BSL and one in Swedish Sign Language (SSL). For comparative analysis, non-signers undertook the same tasks. Results indicated that both native signers and non-signers were able to use visual cues effectively in segmentation and that their decisions were not dependent on knowledge of the signed language. Signed narratives contain visible cues to their prosodic structure which are available to signers and non-signers alike.

De Ontwikkeling Van Het Gebarentaal-Onderzoek

1986 ◽  
Vol 24 ◽  
pp. 118-126
Author(s):  
Bernard T. Tervoort
Keyword(s):  
Sign Language ◽  
First Language ◽  
Deaf Children ◽  
Sign Languages ◽  
Local Varieties ◽  
Research And Teaching ◽  
Hearing Parents ◽  
Language Research ◽  
History Of ◽  
Initial Interaction

In the recent history of scientific endeavour with signing deaf people and the attitudes towards it of society at large, four periods can be distinguished, (1) until about 1950: signing is either a primitive, sublinguistic system or a derivation of spoken language, or a combination of the two; (2) until about 1965: it could be a language provided it shows enough parallels with the structure of languages based on speech; (3) until about 1980: no matter how one looks at it, it shows striking parallels with these real languages; (4) until now: forget the criteria for spoken languages and the parallellism; sign languages have a structure and a function sui generis and ought to be investiga-ted in their own true linguistic value. Of all the disciplins that have gone through this development in the periods mentioned, the following are the most important ones and are dealt with in some detail (1) linguistics, specifically phonology, syntax and lexicology; (2) psycholinguistics, including first language acquisition of deaf children of both deaf and hearing parents; (3) sociolinguistics, with some accent on the relation to creóle studies, the discourse analysis, and the bilingual situation of the deaf as a minority of a unique kind; (4) other disciplins, very shortly, like otology, audiology, neurology, neuropsychology and psychiatry. Finally, the following four speakers in the section on sign language research are introduced with some information on their backgrounds and interests (1) Trude Schermer, with lexicography, syntax and sociolinguistic comparison of local varieties as main interest; (2) Filip Loncke as the main representant of sign language research in Flemish Belgium whose specialty is sign phonology; (3) Rita Harder who has specialized in both hand shape phonology and initial interaction and communication between young deaf children and their hearing mothers; (4) Harry Knoors who as a psycholinguist and a teacher of the deaf combines research and teaching.

De Nederlandse Gebarentaal En Taalonderwijs

1991 ◽  
Vol 39 ◽  
pp. 75-82
Author(s):  
Beppie van den Bogaerde
Keyword(s):  
The Netherlands ◽  
Sign Language ◽  
Spoken Language ◽  
Language Teachers ◽  
Deaf Children ◽  
Deaf People ◽  
Teaching Materials ◽  
Sign Languages ◽  
Language Courses ◽  
Native Signers

Sign Language of the Netherlands (SLN) is considered to be the native language of many prelingually deaf people in the Netherlands. Although research has provided evidence that sign languages are fully fletched natural languages, many misconceptions still abound about sign languages and deaf people. The low status of sign languages all over the world and the attitude of hearing people towards deaf people and their languages, and the resulting attitude of the deaf towards their own languages, restricted the development of these languages until recently. Due to the poor results of deaf education and the dissatisfaction amongst educators of the deaf, parents of deaf children and deaf people themselves, a change of attitude towards the function of sign language in the interaction with deaf people can be observed; many hearing people dealing with deaf people one way or the other wish to learn the sign language of the deaf community of their country. Many hearing parents of deaf children, teachers of the deaf, student-interpreters and linguists are interested in sign language and want to follow a course to improve their signing ability. In order to develop sign language courses, sign language teachers and teaching materials are needed. And precisely these are missing. This is caused by several factors. First, deaf people in general do not receive the same education as hearing people, due to their inability to learn the spoken language of their environment to such an extent, that they have access to the full eduational program. This prohibits them a.o. to become teachers in elementary and secondary schools, or to become sign language teachers. Althought they are fluent "signers", they lack the competence in the spoken language of their country to obtain a teacher's degree in their sign language. A second problem is caused by the fact, that sign languages are visual languages: no adequate system has yet been found to write down a sign language. So until now hardly any teaching materials were available. Sign language courses should be developed with the help of native signers who should be educated to become language-teachers; with their help and with the help of video-material and computer-software, it will be possible in future to teach sign languages as any other language. But in order to reach this goal, it is imperative that deaf children get a better education so that they can contribute to the emancipation of their language.

Two agreement markers in Austrian Sign Language (ÖGS)

2017 ◽  
Vol 20 (1) ◽  
pp. 27-54 ◽  
Author(s):  
Julia Krebs ◽  
Ronnie B. Wilbur ◽  
Dietmar Roehm
Keyword(s):  
Data Analysis ◽  
Sign Language ◽  
Online Questionnaire ◽  
Sign Languages ◽  
Syntactic Position ◽  
Different Types ◽  
Native Signers

Abstract For many of the sign languages studied to date, different types of agreement markers have been described which express agreement in transitive constructions involving non-inflecting (plain) verbs and sometimes even inflected agreement verbs. Austrian Sign Language (ÖGS) belongs to the group of sign languages employing two different agreement markers (agrm-bc/agrm-mf), which will be described in this paper. In an online questionnaire, we focused on two questions: (i) whether both forms of agreement markers are rated as equally acceptable by Deaf ÖGS-signers and hearing native signers, and (ii) whether there is a preferred syntactic position (pre- vs. postverbal) for these markers. Data analysis confirmed that both agreement markers are accepted by ÖGS-signers and that both agreement markers are slightly preferred in preverbal position. Further, possible origins of both agreement markers are discussed.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document