scholarly journals Nominal Groups? Ok Boomer! A future-oriented agenda for brainstorming studies

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ricardo Sosa ◽  
Keyword(s):  
2021 ◽  
Vol 55 (1) ◽  
pp. 231-263
Author(s):  
Timothy Osborne

Abstract The so-called ‘Big Mess Construction’ (BMC) frustrates standard assumptions about the structure of nominal groups. The normal position of an attributive adjective is after the determiner and before the noun, but in the BMC, the adjective precedes the determiner, e.g. that strange a sound, so big a scandal, too lame an excuse. Previous accounts of the BMC are couched in ‘Phrase Structure Grammar’ (PSG) and view the noun or the determiner (or the preposition of) as the root/head of the BMC phrase. In contrast, the current approach, which is couched in a ‘Dependency Grammar’ (DG) model, argues that the adjective is in fact the root/head of the phrase. A number of insights point to the adjective as the root/head, the most important of which is the optional appearance of the preposition of, e.g. that strange of a sound, so big of a scandal, too lame of an excuse.


MANUSYA ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 17 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-21
Author(s):  
Jeamjai Jeeraumporn ◽  
Pattama Patpong

The objective of this study was to compare experiential grammar in the narrative discourse of thirty typically developing Thai children and thirty Thai children with autism in elementary grades 1 to 3. Data was compiled by asking subjects to tell a narrative discourse from a wordless storybook "A Boy, a Dog, and a Frog” (Mayer 1967). Data was analyzed based on the Systemic Functional Linguistics approach and focused on experiential mode of meaning concerned with the system of Transitivity. The results revealed that children with autism used fewer clause complexes and clause simplexes than typically developing children. For the system of Transitivity, it was found that children with autism used less modified nominal groups as the Participant especially in grade 2 and 3 and they used a smaller number and less variety of process types; used a lower percentage of mental, behavioral and verbal processes; and used a lower percentage of serial verb constructions. Children with autism, especially those in grades 2 and 3, used a smaller variety of circumstance types; and used a lower percentage of clauses with complex circumstances.


Author(s):  
Timothy Osborne

AbstractThis paper considers the NP vs. DP debate from the perspective of dependency grammar (DG). The message is delivered that given DG assumptions about sentence structure, the traditional NP-analysis of nominal groups is preferable over the DP-analysis. The debate is also considered from the perspective of phrase structure grammar (PSG). While many of the issues discussed here do not directly support NP over DP given PSG assumptions, some do. More importantly, one has to accept the widespread presence of null determiner heads for the DP analysis to be plausible on PSG assumptions. The argument developed at length here is that the traditional NP-analysis of nominal groups is both more accurate and simpler than the DP-analysis, in part because it does not rely on the frequent occurrence of null determiners.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Fergus Bolger ◽  
Gene Rowe ◽  
Ian Belton ◽  
Megan M Crawford ◽  
Iain Hamlin ◽  
...  

Groups provide several benefits over individuals for judgment and decision making, but they suffer from problems too. Structured-group techniques, like Delphi, use strictly controlled information exchange between individuals to retain positive aspects of group interaction, while ameliorating negative. These methods regularly use ‘nominal’ groups that interact in a remote, distributed, and often anonymous manner, thus lending themselves to internet applications, with a consequent recent increase in popularity. However, evidence for the utility of the techniques is scant, major reasons for which being difficulties maintaining experimental control and logistical problems in recruiting sufficient empirical ‘groups’ to produce statistically meaningful results. As a solution, we present the Simulated Group Response Paradigm, where individual responses are first elicited in a pre-study – or created by the experimenter – then subsequently fed back to highly-controlled simulated groups. This paradigm facilitates investigation of factors leading to virtuous opinion change in groups, and subsequent development of structured-group techniques.


2021 ◽  
pp. 141-158
Author(s):  
Rubicelia Valencia-Ortiz ◽  
Julio Cabero-Almenara ◽  
Urtza Garay Ruiz

Addictions to online social networks is a problem facing technological societies, and those most affected by this phenomenon are young people and teenagers. Among its effects are the decrease in academic performance and the increase in violent behavior. Given these facts, governments around the world are adopting mechanisms for their prevention. The present work describes the results of research focused on investigating the proposals that would be adopted by the members of the educational community to carry out preventive actions against the addiction and abuse of online social networks. The methodological design has been based on the intensive use of the Nominal Groups technique developed by Delbecq and Andrew in 1971 and which facilitates reaching consensus in a structured group process. The results show the high degree of coincidence among the participants stands out, which validates the usefulness of the measures, and that the addiction to social networks perceives it as a direct consequence of the addition to mobile phones and the Internet. Therefore, it seems necessary that prevention plans should have a generalized perspective that encompasses all three technologies


1968 ◽  
Vol 23 (3) ◽  
pp. 757-758 ◽  
Author(s):  
Herman S. Napier

The pooling of abilities or nominal groups technique was used in the present experiment to compare individuals with two-person groups on a picture-puzzle task. When size of the task was limited to a part (one-fourth) of the puzzle or the duration of the task was restricted to a few (four) trials, no difference between individuals and groups was evident. However, as task size and number of trials increased, groups performed at a significantly higher level than individuals. The difference was discussed in terms of information available to group members and the time required for group formation.


2019 ◽  
Vol 19 (2) ◽  
pp. 83-102
Author(s):  
Mirjana Borucinsky ◽  
Jana Kegalj

Complex nominal groups are common in technical English (i.e. English for Specific Purposes, ESP) as they allow lexical items to be tightly packed into a clause. This leads to increased lexical density and syntactic ambiguity. In this paper we analyze (complex) nominal groups in technical English, assuming that it is not only the context and extralinguistic knowledge (i.e. shared technical background that the ESP teacher does not necessarily possess) that help solve the syntactic ambiguity, but that the structure of the nominal group, or more precisely the position of modifiers within the group can help disambiguate the meaning. Thus, modifiers standing farthest from the head have the least specifying potential and are followed by those which restrict the meaning of the entire nominal group. In the example steam reciprocating engine (vs.*reciprocating steam engine) the participle reciprocating has a more specific meaning and is thus closer to the head of the nominal group. The results show how the type of modification (linear or non-linear) can help disambiguate complex nominal groups. The main contribution of the paper is to help the ESP teacher, who is not a specialist in the field of (marine) engineering, process, understand and successfully teach complex nominal groups.


2008 ◽  
Vol 29 (1) ◽  
pp. 93-113 ◽  
Author(s):  
JILL MANTHORPE ◽  
STEVE ILIFFE ◽  
JO MORIARTY ◽  
MICHELLE CORNES ◽  
ROGER CLOUGH ◽  
...  

ABSTRACTImproving access to culturally-appropriate services and enhancing responses to the needs of older people from black and minority ethnic backgrounds were among the aims of theNational Service Framework for Older People(NSFOP) that was introduced in England in 2001. Progress in meeting the aims of the NSFOP was evaluated by a mid-term independent review led by the Healthcare Commission, the body responsible for regulating health-care services in England. This paper reports the consultation with older people that underpinned the evaluation. It focuses on the views and experiences of older people from black and minority ethnic (BME) groups and of the staff that work in BME voluntary organisations. A rapid appraisal approach was used in 10 purposively selected local councils, and plural methods were used, including public listening events, nominal groups and individual interviews. In total 1,839 older people participated in the consultations and 1,280 (70%) completed a monitoring form. Some 30 per cent defined themselves as of a minority ethnic background. The concerns were more about the low recognition of culturally-specific and language needs than for the development of services exclusively for BME older people.


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