台灣兒童中文名詞組省略之母語習得

Abstract

本研究旨在探討中文名詞組省略(null noun phrases)之第一語言習得。研究議題包括主詞與受詞省略的不對稱性(null subject/object asymmetry)、「指涉性」效應(referetiality)、年齡組別效應(age effects)、三類子句類型以及題型效應(task effects)。本研究設計了兩種實驗題型，其一是句型選擇題(Sentence Selection Task)，其二是故事重述題(Story Retelling Task)。研究對象為四十五名以中文為母語的幼稚園生和十五名成人中文母語人士，並從中分為以下四組：第一組(三到四歲)、第二組(四到五歲)、第一組(五到六歲)、第四組(成人；十八到二十四歲)。 實驗結果主要如下：第一、主詞與受詞省略的不對稱性在兩個實驗題型中均可觀察到：受試者在選擇或使用「名詞組省略」的結構上，空主詞比空受詞來的多。第二、「指涉性」效應：空填補代詞(null expletive pronoun)的選擇或使用比實填補代詞(overt expletive pronoun)“它”來得多。第三、幼稚園學童的名詞省略在三大子句類型(主要子句、包孕子句和副詞子句)(matrix clauses, embedded clauses, and adverbial clauses)間，以統計看來並無顯著之相關，但成人母語人士則是使用副詞子句中的名詞省略高於另二種子句類型中的名詞省略。第四、結果呈現以下習得次序：第一階段包括主詞與受詞省略的不對稱性、主要子句和包孕子句中的名詞組省略；第二階段包含「指涉性」效應；第三、副詞子句中的名詞組省略。最後一點乃是有關於題型效應，該名詞組省略的習得次序在理解性測驗(comprehension task)中，比起在口說測驗(production task)中，更容易觀察到而且易於分析。

The present study aims to investigate the first language acquisition of null Chinese noun phrases (NPs). The issues examined included the null subject / object asymmetry, referentiality, the clausal types, age effects, and task effects. The present study designed a comprehension task, i.e., a sentence selection task, and a production task, i.e., story-retelling task. The participants of the present study consisted of forty-five Chinese-speaking preschoolers and fifteen Chinese native adults, who were further divided into Group 1 (three-to-four-year-olds), Group 2 (four-to-five-year-olds), Group 1 (five-to-six-year-olds), Group 4 (adults aged from eighteen to twenty-four). The major results were as follows. Firstly, the null subject-object asymmetry was found in both tasks where null subjects were much more chosen or produced than null objects by both the preschoolers and the adults. Secondly, referentiality was found to play a role in the participants’ choices or uses of null expletive pronouns rather than the overt expletive ta ‘it’. Thirdly, while the kindergarten children performed insignificantly differently for null NPs in the three clausal types (i.e., matrix, embedded, and adverbial clauses), null NPs in adverbial phrases produced by the adults outnumbered null NPs in the other two clausal types. Fourthly, the following acquisition sequence for different properties or types that were found: 1) the subject-object drop asymmetry, null NPs in matrix clauses, and null NPs in embedded clauses; 2) null expletives; 3) null NPs in adverbial phrases. Finally, with respect to task effects, the acquisition sequence would be observed and analyzed better in the comprehension task than in the production task consistent with the idea that comprehension might precede production in the acquisition of null NPs.