This monograph is a comprehensive study of the various ways in which genericity can be expressed in Dutch, dialects of Dutch, and languages related to Dutch. On the basis of empirical (corpus- and questionnaire-based) data, a wide range of topics are discussed which have been addressed in the literature on the semantics and pragmatics of generics. The empirical data presented in this book shed new light on issues crucial to the study of genericity. A number of widely accepted ideas are shown to be problematic. For example, arguments are presented against the well-known claim that progressive forms typically exclude characterizing interpretations. Furthermore, the author shows that speakers do not agree in their judgements of the acceptability of bare plurals (as well as other noun phrase types) in generic contexts. Such data are a problem for the influential thesis that bare plurals refer to kinds unambiguously.

Research Methods in Second Language Acquisition “With its cornucopia of information, both thorough and practical, this book is a must for our methodology shelves. Its study questions and project suggestions will be a boon for many research methods courses.” Robert M. DeKeysevr, University of Maryland “This guide to collecting, coding and analyzing second language acquisition data will be an essential reference for novice and experienced researchers alike.” Peter Robinson, Aoyama Gakuin University “Comprehensive and technically up-to-date, yet accessible and cogent! This remarkable textbook is sure to become a premier choice for the research training of many future SLA generations.” Lourdes Ortega, University of Hawaii “Alison Mackey and Susan Gass’ valuable new book offers hands-on methodological guidance from established experts on all kinds of second language research.” Michael H. Long, University of Maryland Research Methods in Second Language Acquisition: A Practical Guide is an informative guide to research design and methodology in this growing and vibrant field. Utilizing research methods and tools from varied fields of study including education, linguistics, psychology, and sociology, this collection offers complete coverage of the techniques of second language acquisition research. This guide covers a variety of topics, such as second language writing and reading, meta-analyses, research replication, qualitative data collection and analysis, and more. Each chapter of this volume offers background, step-by-step guidance, and relevant studies to create comprehensive coverage of each method. This carefully selected and edited volume will be a useful text for graduate students and scholars looking to keep pace with the latest research projects and methodologies in second language acquisition.

Throughout much of the history of linguistics, grammaticality judgments - intuitions about the well-formedness of sentences - have constituted most of the empirical base against which theoretical hypothesis have been tested. Although such judgments often rest on subtle intuitions, there is no systematic methodology for eliciting them, and their apparent instability and unreliability have led many to conclude that they should be abandoned as a source of data. Carson T. Schütze presents here a detailed critical overview of the vast literature on the nature and utility of grammaticality judgments and other linguistic intuitions, and the ways they have been used in linguistic research. He shows how variation in the judgment process can arise from factors such as biological, cognitive, and social differences among subjects, the particular elicitation method used, and extraneous features of the materials being judged. He then assesses the status of judgments as reliable indicators of a speaker's grammar. Integrating substantive and methodological findings, Schütze proposes a model in which grammaticality judgments result from interaction of linguistic competence with general cognitive processes. He argues that this model provides the underpinning for empirical arguments to show that once extragrammatical variance is factored out, universal grammar succumbs to a simpler, more elegant analysis than judgment data initially lead us to expect. Finally, Schütze offers numerous practical suggestions on how to collect better and more useful data. The result is a work of vital importance that will be required reading for linguists, cognitive psychologists, and philosophers of language alike.

The first of its kind, this Handbook provides an in-depth overview of all current issues and trends in experimental syntax.

Outlines a theory which centers a principle that requires all grammatical dependencies to be Merge mediated.

This book contains eight studies on Functional Discourse Grammar (FDG), with work by FDG's foremost proponents, who provide both an introduction to the theory and a glimpse of current research projects. FDG derives its name from taking the discourse act as the basic unit of linguistic analysis. Each such unit receives four parallel analyses displaying its interpersonal, representational, morphosyntactic and phonological characteristics respectively. What is striking about the emergence of FDG is that it enters into lively debate with various other contemporary frameworks that share its functionalist orientation. This facet of FDG is highlighted in this book, every chapter of which brings out the interconnectedness of current theoretical trends.

This book examines the status and use of native speakers' intuitions in theorizing about language, drawing on the most recent work in both philosophy and linguistics. Chapters explore both the theoretical rationale for the evidential use of linguistic intuitions and the question of how this data should best be elicited.

The book provides a methodological blueprint for the study of constructional alternations – using corpus-linguistic methods in combination with different types of experimental data. The book looks at a case study from Estonian. This morphologically rich language is typologically different from Indo-European languages such as English. Corpus-based studies allow us to detect patterns in the data and determine what is typical in the language. Experiments are needed to determine the upper and lower limits of human classification behaviour. They give us an idea of what is possible in a language and show how human classification behaviour is susceptible to more variation than corpus-based models lead us to believe. Corpora and forced choice data tell us that when we produce language, we prefer one construction. Acceptability judgement data tell us that when we comprehend language, we judge both constructions as acceptable. The book makes a theoretical contribution to the what, why, and how of constructional alternations.