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Behaviorist vs. Nativist Because the acquisition of language is extremely complex, many theorists have studied and researched it meticulously. Through countless hours of observation and tests, there have been five theories created. Amongst those five are two that are very compound; the behaviorist theory and the nativist theory. There were two theorists, Skinner and Watson, who studied the development of language in young children, which became known as the behaviorist theory. Thus, they and others …

…on the nature side. Another difference is that the behaviorist theory spreads all the way across to all species, therefore, saying that all species can learn to speak. However, nativists believe that only humans can acquire language. Both theories have evidence and explicit examples to support their beliefs. However, theories remain theories because they have criticisms as well. Both of these theories have criticisms much like the three other theories of language acquisition. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ **Bibliography**