Chafe's theory of generative semantics, which uses spoken language for illustration, can be applied to American Sign Language in two ways: to combat the erroneous assumption that sign languages simply represent spoken language in visible form and to explain various parts of the grammar of American Sign Language. (MSE)

Two approaches for analyzing the measures reflected in children's early word combinations are described and illustrated. The first interpretive approach involves detailed analysis of spontaneous speech. The second approach uses individualized probes that are designed to isolate the semantic factors involved in children's word combination patterns.…

The Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI) and an acculturation inventory consisting of 15 semantic differential and sociocultural items were administered to Chicano college students. Factor analysis produced a four-dimensional measure of acculturation. Implications for future cross-cultural research and the difficulties in the…

It was found that those who read English as a second language (ESL), like L1 individuals, use their knowledge of the world and contribute to information found in the text. However, ESL readers' contributions to the text may be marred by language interference, lack of background knowledge, faulty inferencing, and certain data- and…

Contrasts two theories about the use of semantic context information and reports data that support the theory that readers can use certain semantic strategies in dealing with context. (AEA)

Presents results of a study of fifth-grade students' ability to interpret novel metaphors and similes when provided with a subschemata of semantic attributes. (AEA)

Reviews several references focusing on words and phrases in the American language which have nautical origins (sailing, whaling, navigation, ship-building and others) and have since lost their nautical connections. Also includes examples from the references such as "slush fund", "posh", and "windfall." (JN)

Children listened to stories which contained anomalies produced by violating semantic restrictions or based on conflicting propositions at two points in a story. The capacity to detect violations of sentences developed more rapidly than detection of violation of discourse. Children's developing capacity to integrate and store story structure is…

One hundred high school students completed semantic differential ratings of themselves in general and in four roles: student, athlete, son/daughter, and best friend. Results suggest that self-concept is better conceptualized as multiple and differentiated rather than as unitary and global. (Author/RH)

Details a study showing that for young children, proactive semantic cues were the most helpful in reading. Reveals also that the children made miscues displaying semantic associations across cue types. (FL)

Discusses a sequential, three-stage model of how nonliteral expressions are understood, as proposed in recent linguistic, philosophical, and psychological studies. Testing the model's implication that nonliteral meanings of sentences are ignored whenever literal meanings are plausible, finds evidence that both meanings are processed simultaneously…

For 235 ninth-grade students, intercorrelations of Guilford's structure-of-intellect (SOI) tests and of three measures of critical thinking were factor analyzed. The study reveals the viability of using SOI constructs involving cognition and evaluation of semantic content as likely explanatory components of critical thinking. (Author/AL)

Explores the meaning of the term "communication" vs. "mere talk" in selected instances of American speech about interpersonal life. Analyzes two case studies and transcripts of the Phil Donahue Show. Also discusses communication as ritual and ethnography as a form of communication inquiry. (PD)

The kind of semantic information that facilitates relearning was investigated. The paradigm consisted of three stages: (1) learn a list of number-word pairs; (2) return for a retention test; and (3) relearn a new list of pairs that have various kinds of semantic relatedness to the originally learned pairs. (Author/CTM)

A sample of boys of Australian and Italian descent was divided into groups according to silent reading comprehension scores. The students' oral reading was recorded and the resulting miscues categorized. When oral reading accuracy was examined, the lowest level Italian group read more accurately than the equivalent Australian students. (Author/MLW)