The development of pragmatic meaning inference in typically developing children
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.31074/gyntf.2022.1.94.112Keywords:
pragmatic development, information processing, conversational implicatures, metaphor, speech act, ironyAbstract
This paper discusses the development of pragmatic knowledge in preschool children from a cognitive psychological perspective. It reviews the development of the understanding of different pragmatic phenomena and the relationship of developmental processes to non-linguistic information processing abilities. Four topics receive special attention: (1) the ability to infer conversational implicatures and the cognitive resources required to do so, (2) the understanding of metaphorical meanings and its relation to cognitive flexibility, (3) the role of peer cognition and intention acquisition in understanding speech acts, and (4) the recognition of others' knowledge and beliefs and the contribution of metapragmatic knowledge to the understanding of irony.
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