The Robustness of Critical Period Effects in Second Language Acquisition

Tested the fundamental difference hypothesis, which states that while children are known to learn a language almost completely through domain-specific mechanisms, adults have largely lost the ability to learn a language without reflecting on its structure and have to use alternative mechanisms, draw...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inStudies in second language acquisition Vol. 22; no. 4; p. 499
Main Author DeKeyser, Robert M
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published 01.12.2000
Subjects
Adults
Age
Children
Hypothesis Testing
Linguistic Theory
Second Language Instruction
Second Language Learning
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Summary:Tested the fundamental difference hypothesis, which states that while children are known to learn a language almost completely through domain-specific mechanisms, adults have largely lost the ability to learn a language without reflecting on its structure and have to use alternative mechanisms, drawing especially on their problem-solving capacities. Findings lead to a reconceptualization of the critical period hypothesis. (Author/VWL)
ISSN:0272-2631
DOI:10.1017/S0272263100004022