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Semin Speech Lang
DOI: 10.1055/a-2662-8184
Research Article: Pediatric

What of It? Coding the Unmarked Of-Preposition in Language Samples from Young AAE Speakers

Denise A. Finneran
1   Department of Communication Disorders and Sciences, SUNY Cortland, Cortland, New York
,
Maura J. Moyle
2   Department of Speech Pathology and Audiology, Marquette University, Milwaukee, Wisconsin
,
Alaina Nash
3   Moore Public School District, Moore, Oklahoma
,
Sixia Chen
4   Department of Biostatistics and Epidemiology, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
› Author Affiliations
Funding This work was supported by the Nancy Carolyn Gullatt Professorship in Speech Pathology, University of Oklahoma and U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, National Institutes of Health, National Institute of General Medical Sciences (U54GM104938).
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Abstract

We examined the of-preposition in language samples because it is a highly variable feature that can be marked or unmarked (e.g., “out [of] the door”) depending on context. Children who speak African American English (AAE) produce unmarked of-prepositions in contexts that are universal across AAE and General American English (GAE; e.g., “out [of] the window”) and in contexts specific to the AAE dialect (e.g., “out [of] the car”). Guidance in the literature on this variability is limited for language sample analysis. Participants included 113 children who spoke AAE. We examined contexts with unmarked of-prepositions in narrative language samples in a subset of 72 children (mean age = 53.57 months). Samples were coded for AAE features based on the published literature. Contexts with an unmarked of-preposition were coded as universal (present in AAE and GAE) or as a feature of AAE. We calculated an estimate of AAE feature use in two ways: one that erroneously assumed that all of-preposition variability (including universal) is AAE, and one that more precisely identified AAE features. Analyses revealed significant differences in the measurement of AAE use. Careful analysis of dialect-specific and universal features of AAE grammar, including the of-preposition, is needed for reliable assessments.

Keywords

African American English - preposition - narrative - language sample analysis - child language


Publication History

Article published online:
27 August 2025

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