Why Sentence Structure Difficulty Varies in Agrammatism: Evidence from Italian Relative Clauses

What is it about?

This study investigated how ten Italian speakers with aphasia (an acquired language disorder) process complex sentences, comparing two theoretical accounts. Participants performed comprehension and production tasks on subject, object, and passive relative clauses, with and without grammatical number mismatch between nouns. Results showed high interindividual variability, but an overall disadvantage for object relatives and some facilitation when number differed. Overall, Generalized Minimality emerged as the most convincing explanation, although it did not fully capture the variability observed.

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Photo by Axel Ruffini on Unsplash

Photo by Axel Ruffini on Unsplash

Why is it important?

This research is important because it clarifies why people with aphasia struggle with specific sentence structures, linking clinical symptoms to underlying linguistic mechanisms. These findings can inform language assessment and rehabilitation by targeting both syntax (especially complex sentences) and morphology, which is often underexplored.