In this article, I present a longitudinal study of a child's (male, aged 3;0-3;4) acquisition of intervocalic consonants characterized within the framework of Optimality Theory (OT). At Stage I, the child presents with unusual error patterns, weakening and labial substitution, and shows evidence of phonologically opaque surface forms. These…

Presents a longitudinal case study of a child with a phonological disorder. Demonstrates an asymmetrical pattern of consonant cluster development with two different reduction strategies. Argues that the child first represents all clusters as single underlying units, later representing only certain clusters as single units. Formulated within…

A case study of a 3-year-old with a phonological disorder is used to demonstrate the application of optimality theory to the assessment and treatment. A tutorial of the theory is provided and then several prototypical error patterns evident in the child's productions are analyzed within the framework. (Contains references.) (Author/CR)