Forming a children’s monologue discourse: use of anaphoric means in spontaneous children’s speech

Aleksandra A. Aisanova and Aleksandra S. Morozova
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Aleksandra A. Aisanova: Irkutsk State University
Aleksandra S. Morozova: Irkutsk State University

Russian Social and Humanitarian Studies, 2025, vol. 17, issue 2, 81-102

Abstract: Background. The article examines the features of the use of anaphoric means in the spontaneous oral speech of preschool children. Traditionally, children’s speech is studied from the point of view of occasional formations, and the construction of children’s discourse is studied to a much lesser extent. At the same time, in modern linguistics, various features of the structuring of children’s monological speech remain insufficiently studied, related, in particular, to the formation of a repertoire of anaphoric means and the specifics of their use. The study of this issue will help expand the understanding of both children’s speech and its features, as well as the universal mechanisms of generating oral unprepared discourse. The purpose of the article is to identify and describe the distinctive features of the use of anaphoric means by children aged 5-6 years. Materials and methods. The research material was the transcription of monologues of preschool children. Eleven people aged 5-6 years old became informants. To obtain the necessary research material, an experiment was conducted: the informants watched the cartoon Zhiharka, and then they had to retell the plot of this cartoon. The research methods used are the quantitative method, the method of discursive analysis, and the comparative method. Results. The results of the study showed that the most actively used anaphoric means in the speech of children aged 5-6 years are the forms of the pronoun "he" and the forms of the same word, while the zero anaphora and the forms of other pronouns are almost not used. Index groups and compound nominations turned out to be the lowest‑frequency means, which is probably due to the difficulties that may arise when using them. It has been established that from the point of view of the use of anaphoric means, the speech of children aged 5-6 years differs from that of adults, since the index group of the latter occurs much more often as an anaphor, while in the speech of children this anaphoric means is one of the least frequent. Scope of application. The results of the research can be used in psychological and pedagogical practice when working with preschoolers, as well as for the development of training courses in such disciplines as ontolinguistics, discursive analysis, etc.

Keywords: discourse; oral speech; ontolinguistics; children’s speech; anaphora; anaphoric relations; anaphoric means (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:cxm:russhs:17:2:2025:81-102

DOI: 10.12731/2077-1770-2025-17-2-493

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