The Critical Period of First Language Acquisition in Isolated Situations

Angelina Vita

This research project explores the results of missing out on the critical period of first language acquisition. Through studying non-human primates, children experiencing COVID-19 related restrictions, and infant responses to correct physical stimulus, I suggest that severe childhood isolation can cause a permanent inability to learn a first language.

• A member of the Lander University Honors College and the Alpha Chi National Collegiate Honor Society, Angelina Vita will graduate in May 2022 with an English major and history minor. She is a current editor for New Voices, the SGA Representative for the College of Arts and Humanities, and a journalist for the Honor Roll Newsletter. She has had multiple pieces published, has worked as a tutor at the LU Writing Center, and was the 2020 Featured Student in the Blue Granite Review Magazine.