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The communicative competence of mildly retarded adults1

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  28 November 2008

Leonard Abbeduto  and
Sheldon Rosenberg
Leonard Abbeduto*
Affiliation:
University of Illinois at Chicago Circle
Sheldon Rosenberg
Affiliation:
University of Illinois at Chicago Circle
*
Leonard Abbeduto, Department of Psychology, University of Illinois at Chicago Circle, Box 4348, Chicago, IL 60680
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Abstract

This study examined the communicative behavior of mildly retarded adults engaged in conversation with peers. Contemporary models of pragmatic interaction were applied to samples of triadic naturally occurring conversation. The subjects made few errors in turn-taking; moreover, the rule system involved was consistent with that posited for nonretarded adults. They recognized those illocutionary acts that obligated them to respond as well as the specific responses required. That they were actively involved in information exchange was indicated by the observation that the majority of their turns were responses to the preceding turns of others, even when under no obligation to respond. Individual differences on most measures were observed, and the measures appeared related to each other, but not to IQ. Unexpectedly, the subjects produced few indirect speech acts.

Type
Research Article
Information
Applied Psycholinguistics , Volume 1 , Issue 4 , November 1980 , pp. 405 - 426
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1980

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Footnotes

1

The present research was supported in part by funds from Grant HD 10321, National Institute for Child Health and Human Devolepment, Professor Gershon Berkson, principal investigator, and from the Illinois Institute for Developmental Disabilities, Professor Arnold Sameroff, research director. The authors are indebted to Professors Berkson and Sameroff for their interest in this research.

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