Theories of Language Acquisition and Development

Comprehensive vocabulary flashcards covering the major theories, researchers, characteristics, developmental stages, and common difficulties in first and second language acquisition.

B. F. Skinner (Burrhus Frederic Skinner)

An American psychologist, behaviorist, and inventor (1904–1990) famous for developing radical behaviorism and the theory of operant conditioning.

Behaviorism

A theory of language and behavior proposed by B. F. Skinner asserting that learning occurs through reinforcement, imitation, and conditioning.

Nurture (Skinner)

Environmental influences and experiences that shape an individual's development.

Nature (Chomsky)

Biological and genetic factors that shape who we are.

Noam Chomsky

An American linguist, philosopher, and political activist (1955–2023) widely known as the father of modern linguistics.

Jean Piaget

A pioneer of cognitive development theory and constructivism (1896–1980) who stated that children actively build their knowledge through interactions with their environment.

Cognitivism

A learning theory focusing on mental processes such as thinking, understanding, remembering, and processing information to explain how learners comprehend word meanings, recall vocabulary, and recognize grammar patterns.

Stephen Krashen

A pioneer in second language acquisition theory during the 1970s who argued that conscious learning and grammar drills alone cannot explain true language proficiency.

Stephen Krashen's Theory of Second Language Acquisition

A theory proposing that people learn a second language effectively when exposed to comprehensible language and when using it in meaningful situations.

John Schumann

A researcher known for developing the Acculturation Model of Second Language Acquisition in 1978.

Acculturation Theory

A theory stating that second language acquisition can be affected by a learner's relationship with the culture and community where the target language is spoken.

Roger Andersen

A scholar known for developing the Nativization Model in 1979.

Nativization Model

A model developed in 1979 explaining how learners acquire a second language by first relying on existing linguistic knowledge and then gradually adapting to the target language.

Howard Giles

A professor born in 1946 who developed Communication Accommodation theory.

Accommodation Theory

A theory stating that people change their speech style depending on whom they address, showing that language is linked to social identity and interaction.

Convergence

An accommodation strategy where speakers adjust their communication style to be more similar to the person they are addressing.

Divergence

An accommodation strategy where speakers deliberately emphasize differences in their communication style.

Maintenance

An accommodation strategy where speakers keep their usual communication style without making adjustments.

Michel Foucault

A theorist born in 1926 who explored how language, knowledge, power, and society influence the way people think.

Discourse Theory

A theory holding that language is learned not just by memorizing rules, but through participation in conversations and using language in real situations.

Lev Vygotsky

A developmental theorist who emphasized social interaction in language development and introduced concepts like the Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD).

Social Interaction Theory

A theory emphasizing that children and learners develop language through communication and social interaction with parents, teachers, classmates, friends, and society.

Jerome Bruner

A psychologist who expanded social interaction theory in Western psychology in 1961 and introduced the Language Acquisition Support System (LASS).

Language Acquisition Support System (LASS)

A framework introduced by Jerome Bruner in 1961 explaining how adults and social routines assist children in learning language.

Rod Ellis

A well-known second language acquisition researcher whose research and publications examine how individuals acquire an additional language.

Variable Competence Model

A model explaining why second-language learners use their linguistic knowledge differently depending on the situation, focusing on process and product.

Process of Language

A category in the Variable Competence Model describing how learners apply their language knowledge during communication, divided into primary and secondary processes.

Product of Language

A category in the Variable Competence Model describing the type of communication produced by learners, categorized as planned or unplanned discourse.

Primary Process

Language processes applied in unplanned communication that rely on automatic language knowledge.

Secondary Process

Language processes applied in planned communication that provide additional time to think and organize language.

Unplanned Discourse

Communication produced without extensive preparation, such as answering a question immediately.

Planned Discourse

Communication prepared in advance, such as delivering a formal report.

John T. Lamendella

A researcher known for studying in 1977 how the brain's neurofunctional organization relates to first- and additional-language acquisition.

Neurofunctional Theory

A theory focusing on the relationship between language and the brain, examining how diverse brain functions cooperate during listening, speaking, reading, and writing.

Language Acquisition

The process through which humans acquire the capacity to perceive, comprehend, produce, and use words and sentences for communication.

First Language Acquisition

The unconscious process by which a child learns their native language or mother tongue from birth without formal instruction.

Subconscious and Natural Acquisition

A characteristic of first language acquisition where children absorb language through daily exposure and an innate drive without formal homework or study.

No Formal Instruction

A characteristic of first language acquisition where grammar rules are not explicitly taught; children internalize linguistic structure solely by listening to spoken or signed input.

Universal Development Sequence

A characteristic of first language acquisition where all children generally pass through similar developmental stages, though the timing may vary individually.

Innate Biological Capacity

The natural, inborn human abilities that enable infants to recognize speech sounds, acquire words, and develop communication skills.

Critical Period

An early phase in life when the human brain is uniquely receptive to acquiring language naturally.

Overregularization and Rule Formation

A developmental phenomenon wherein a child applies a general grammatical rule to an irregular word that does not follow the standard rule.

Pre-linguistic Stage

The initial developmental stage occurring up to 12 months before recognizable words appear, during which infants communicate via crying, facial expressions, body movements, and vocalizations.

Babbling Stage

The stage between 4 and 12 months where infants produce consonant-vowel syllable combinations such as "ba-ba-ba", "da-da-da", or "Ma-ma-ma".

One-Word Stage (Holophrastic Stage)

The stage between 10 and 18 months where a child uses single recognizable words (such as "Milk" or "Up") to express complete ideas or sentences.

Two-Word Stage

The stage occurring between 18 and 24 months where children combine two words to communicate basic ideas, such as "More milk" or "Mommy go".

Telegraphic Stage

The stage occurring at 2–3 years characterized by abbreviated sentences retaining essential words while omitting non-essential grammatical elements, resembling a telegram (e.g., "Daddy go work").

Early Multiword Stage

The stage occurring between 3 and 5 years where children produce longer, more grammatical sentences, such as saying "Mommy is cooking food".

Biological Maturation

The natural growth of a child's brain, nervous system, and speech organs that enables sound processing, word comprehension, and sentence formulation.

Second Language Acquisition (SLA)

The acquisition of an additional language once a learner's first language or mother tongue has been established.

Acquisition (Hoque, 2017)

A subconscious process where individuals pick up a language naturally through meaningful interaction, analogous to first language development.

Learning (Hoque, 2017)

A conscious process involving the explicit study of formal rules, vocabulary, and grammar in a classroom environment.

Silent/Receptive Stage

An SLA stage lasting from several hours to several months where learners focus on acquiring vocabulary and practicing word pronunciation with little speaking.

Early Production Stage

An SLA stage lasting approximately six months where learners acquire up to 1,000 words and begin speaking in short, potentially ungrammatical phrases.

Speech Emergence Stage

An SLA stage where learners build a vocabulary of up to 3,000 words, communicate using short phrases, sentences, and questions, and begin reading and writing.

Intermediate Fluency Stage

An SLA stage lasting one year or more after speech emergence where learners acquire up to 6,000 words and communicate using complex spoken and written sentences.

Advance Fluently Stage

The final stage of SLA requiring at least two years to reach and up to 10 years to achieve full mastery of language nuances and complexities.

Pronunciation

The way a spoken word sounds when articulated aloud.

Vocabulary Development

The process of acquiring, expanding, and utilizing words within a target language.

Grammar Interference (L1 Interference)

A difficulty in SLA (also called language transfer) where native language grammatical structures intrude upon the brain, causing errors in the second language.