A Case of Structural Interference across Sensory Modalities in Second-Language Learning

Abstract

Victor, a biologically normal child of normal hearing and good intelligence, had almost no exposure to spoken language until he was three years old; his only language until that time was the sign language which he learned from his deaf-mute parents. Three structural features of sign language are described, and evidence is presented that Victor structured his sentences in those ways when his speech development began. It is argued that the presence of structural interference from sign language in Victor's speech suggests that the manner of functioning of our innate capacity to acquire speech may differ depending on the nature of prior linguistic experience.