The Role of Stress in Language Processing and Intervention

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Abstract
The question examined in this article is whether certain prosodic modifications within the linguistic input provided to children can influence their ability to process and learn language. Based on a limited capacity framework, the argument is made that use of emphatic stress on selected target forms may help focus an individual's attention so that cognitive resources can be directed toward processing new linguistic information. A brief review is provided of prior research that has examined the role of stress in language processing. Findings are summarized from recent investigations of the effect of emphatic stress on novel word learning by children with normal language and those with specific language impairment (SL1). These results indicate that use of emphatic stress on modeled target forms can improve children's lexical learning. Implications for language intervention are discussed.

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