Mapping different developmental paths in the acquisition of /l, ɾ/ in simple and complex onsets: speech production data

Abstract

The goal of this study is to map the paths taken by children when producing the liquids /l, ɾ/ in simple and complex onsets in Brazilian Portuguese. By mapping those paths, we aim to outline the interaction between segmental acquisition and syllabic acquisition along the phonological development. We conducted an experimental study comparing the production of 71 children between 2;0 and 5;11 years old in order to answer three questions: i) will the acquisition of /l, ɾ/ in CCV only occur after their acquisition in CV, or can it be simultaneous?; ii) is CCV development a mirror of CV development?; iii) which acquisition order(s) and developmental curve(s) are possible in the production of /l, ɾ/ in CV and CCV? Data averages and children’s individual paths reveal that /l, ɾ/ do not necessarily emerge in CCV only after their stabilization in CV. Furthermore, there is not necessarily a parallelism between the phenomena applied to /l, ɾ/ in CCV and CV: it is possible to have systematic substitutions or deletions in CCV but not in CV, or in CV but not in CCV. That is, the deletion or substitution of /ɾ, l/ in CCV is not always caused by gaps or instabilities in CV. Finally, six different stabilization paths were observed in the data collected. Two acquisition orders stand out for their higher frequency: /l/V>/ɾ/V>C/l/V>C/ɾ/V and /l/ V>/ɾ/V>C/ɾ/V>C/l/V.