scholarly journals EXPLORING LEXICAL EFFECTS IN SECOND LANGUAGE INTERPRETATION

2017 ◽  
Vol 40 (3) ◽  
pp. 579-603 ◽  
Author(s):  
Matthew Kanwit ◽  
Kimberly L. Geeslin
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Native Speakers ◽  
Nonnative Speakers ◽  
Test Case ◽  
Good Test ◽  
Morphosyntactic Variation ◽  
Language Interpretation ◽  
Lexical Effects ◽  
Lexical Items ◽  
Adverbial Clauses

AbstractThe Spanish mood contrast is a good test case for research on acquiring form-meaning connections in contexts where input is variable and multiple areas of the grammar are implicated (e.g., syntax, semantics, pragmatics). Nevertheless, research on interpretation of this contrast lags and little is known about how individual lexical items and patterns of co-occurrence of adverbial clauses with subjunctive forms influence interpretation. Addressing this void, we compare interpretation of the present subjunctive by native speakers (NSs) and nonnative speakers (NNSs) at three relatively high levels of experience. Participants completed an interpretation task containing clauses with indicative and subjunctive forms paired with one of six adverbial conjunctions, categorized as co-occurring with subjunctive, indicative, or both forms. Our analysis suggests individual lexical items play a role in morphosyntactic variation and that nuanced differences in interpretation exist for NSs and highly advanced NNSs, even on items that prescriptively co-occur with only one form.

scholarly journals Agreement attraction in native and nonnative speakers of German

2018 ◽  
Vol 39 (3) ◽  
pp. 619-647 ◽  
Author(s):  
SOL LAGO ◽  
CLAUDIA FELSER
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Language Learners ◽  
Second Language Learners ◽  
Native Speakers ◽  
Nonnative Speakers ◽  
Verb Agreement ◽  
Russian Speakers ◽  
Second Language Speakers ◽  
Linear Distance ◽  
The Subject

ABSTRACTSecond language speakers often struggle to apply grammatical constraints such as subject–verb agreement. One hypothesis for this difficulty is that it results from problems suppressing syntactically unlicensed constituents in working memory. We investigated which properties of these constituents make them more likely to elicit errors: their grammatical distance to the subject head or their linear distance to the verb. We used double modifier constructions (e.g., the smell of the stables of the farmers), where the errors of native speakers are modulated by the linguistic relationships between the nouns in the subject phrase: second plural nouns, which are syntactically and semantically closer to the subject head, elicit more errors than third plural nouns, which are linearly closer to the verb (2nd-3rd-noun asymmetry). In order to dissociate between grammatical and linear distance, we compared embedded and coordinated modifiers, which were linearly identical but differed in grammatical distance. Using an attraction paradigm, we showed that German native speakers and proficient Russian speakers of German exhibited similar attraction rates and that their errors displayed a 2nd-3rd-noun asymmetry, which was more pronounced in embedded than in coordinated constructions. We suggest that both native and second language learners prioritize linguistic structure over linear distance in their agreement computations.

scholarly journals Processing reflexives in a second language: The timing of structural and discourse-level constraints

2011 ◽  
Vol 33 (3) ◽  
pp. 571-603 ◽  
Author(s):  
CLAUDIA FELSER ◽  
IAN CUNNINGS
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Native Speakers ◽  
Native Speaker ◽  
First Language ◽  
Nonnative Speakers ◽  
Binding Condition ◽  
Reflexive Pronouns ◽  
German Speaking ◽  
Nonnative Speakers Of English ◽  
Language Influence

ABSTRACTWe report the results from two eye-movement monitoring experiments examining the processing of reflexive pronouns by proficient German-speaking learners of second language (L2) English. Our results show that the nonnative speakers initially tried to link English argument reflexives to a discourse-prominent but structurally inaccessible antecedent, thereby violating binding condition A. Our native speaker controls, in contrast, showed evidence of applying condition A immediately during processing. Together, our findings show that L2 learners’ initial focusing on a structurally inaccessible antecedent cannot be due to first language influence and is also independent of whether the inaccessible antecedent c-commands the reflexive. This suggests that unlike native speakers, nonnative speakers of English initially attempt to interpret reflexives through discourse-based coreference assignment rather than syntactic binding.

FORM–MEANING MAPPING IN VOCABULARY ACQUISITION IN A SECOND LANGUAGE

2002 ◽  
Vol 24 (4) ◽  
pp. 617-637 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nan Jiang
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Vocabulary Acquisition ◽  
Native Speakers ◽  
First Language ◽  
Nonnative Speakers ◽  
Semantic Relatedness ◽  
Semantic Content ◽  
English Word ◽  
Nonnative English Speakers ◽  
Semantic Judgment

The mapping of lexical form to meaning is an important part of vocabulary acquisition in a second language (L2). This study examines the proposition that L2 lexical forms are often mapped to the existing semantic content of their first language (L1) translations rather than to new semantic specifications of their own. Native and nonnative English speakers were asked to perform two semantic judgment tasks in which they had to determine the degree of semantic relatedness of English word pairs (experiment 1) or to decide whether two English words were related in meaning (experiment 2). The nonnative speakers, but not the native speakers, were found to provide higher rating scores on or responded faster to L2 word pairs sharing the same L1 translations than to L2 word pairs that do not. The finding is interpreted as strong evidence in support of the presence of L1 semantic content in L2 lexical entries.

scholarly journals The Acquisition of Community Speech Norms by Asian Immigrants Learning English as a Second Language

1991 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-22 ◽  
Author(s):  
H. D. Adamson ◽  
Vera M. Regan
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Social Factors ◽  
Program Analysis ◽  
Native Speakers ◽  
Native Speaker ◽  
Nonnative Speakers ◽  
Noun Phrases ◽  
Asian Immigrants ◽  
Anterior Segments ◽  
Cambodian Immigrants

We investigate Vietnamese and Cambodian immigrants' acquisition of the variable (ing), which occurs in progressive tenses, participles, noun phrases, etc., and which can be pronounced [iŋ] or [In]. A VARBRUL 2 program analysis of native speaker speech shows that the production of (ing) is constrained by phonological, grammatical, stylistic, and social factors. An analysis of the nonnative speakers' acquisition of these norms shows that [In] is more frequent before anterior segments (reflecting ease of articulation), and that males use [In] more frequently than females, especially in monitored speech (perhaps reflecting their desire to accommodate to a male native speaker norm rather than to an overall native speaker norm). The analysis also shows evidence of grammatical constraints which are different from those in the native speakers' speech. This difference may reflect the fact that it is easier to acquire the [In] variant in “frozen forms,” such as prepositions, than in productive rules.

scholarly journals Second language learners’ divergence from target language pragmatic norms

2016 ◽  
Vol 6 (2) ◽  
pp. 249-269 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maria Pia Gomez-Laich
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Language Learners ◽  
Second Language Learners ◽  
Native Speakers ◽  
Nonnative Speakers ◽  
Target Language ◽  
Pragmatic Competence ◽  
L2 Pragmatics ◽  
Direct Explanation ◽  
The Individual

Pragmatic competence is an indispensable aspect of language ability in order for second and foreign language (L2/FL) learners to understand and be understood in their interactions with both native and nonnative speakers of the target language. Without a proper understanding of the pragmatic rules in the target language, learners may run the risk of coming across as insensitive and rude. Several researchers (Bardovi-Harlig, 2001; Kasper & Rose, 2002) suggest that L2 pragmatics not only can be taught in the L2/FL classroom, but, more importantly, that explicit approaches that involve direct explanation of target pragmatic features are beneficial for learning pragmatics. Just as native speakers of a language acquire a “set of dispositions to act in certain ways, which generates cognitive and bodily practices in the individual” (Watts, 2003, p. 149), instructors can help learners to become aware of the pragmatic features that characterize the target language. Although the importance of explicit teaching of pragmatics is well recognized in the literature, learning norms and rules of pragmatics largely depends on learners’ subjectivity. Learners’ convergence or divergence from the L2 pragmatic norms, both consciously and out of awareness, sometimes depends on whether these norms fit their image of self and their L1 cultural identity. Since identity-related conflict can have significant consequences for the acquisition of second language pragmatics, failing to consider the centrality of learners’ identities will produce an inadequate understanding of SLA. This paper synthesizes studies that document the reasons why learners opt to remain foreign by resisting certain L2 practic-es. The following synthesis question was proposed: Why do language learners resist the pragmatic norms of the target language?

scholarly journals Comprehension of grammatically modified and nonmodified sentences by second language learners

1992 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 147-171 ◽  
Author(s):  
Diana C. Issidorides ◽  
Jan H. Hulstijn
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Language Learners ◽  
Second Language Learners ◽  
Native Speakers ◽  
Nonnative Speakers ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Grammatical Structure ◽  
L2 Acquisition ◽  
L2 Learners ◽  
State Of Affairs

ABSTRACTAt issue in the present research is whether native speakers' “simplified” or modified utterances, as in foreigner-talk (FT), actually facilitate comprehension for nonnative speakers hearing such utterances. It was hypothesized that (grammatical) Dutch inversion sentences (AdvVSO) that have proven to be problematic in studies on Dutch second language (L2) acquisition - as reflected both in the (ungrammatical) output of L2 learners and in the (ungrammatical) FT input to L2 learners - would not be problematic in terms of comprehension, when compared with modified, ungrammatical AdvSVO and AdvSOV sentences, as long as such sentences do not express an implausible state of affairs. Three subject groups participated in the experiment: 20 English and 22 Turkish L2 learners of Dutch and 30 Dutch native speakers (control group). Subjects heard and interpreted declarative Dutch sentences, in which word order (NVN, VNN, NNV) and animacy configurations (Al [i.e., animate/inanimate], AA, LA) were systematically manipulated. Subjects had to name the noun (first or second) that functions as actor/subject of the sentence. Positive evidence was found for the hypotheses. It is concluded from the present study, as well as from a previous study (Issidorides, 1988), that linguistically more complex input will not necessarily impede comprehension. The fact that normative speakers have difficulties in producing a certain grammatical structure (e.g., the AdvVSO structure) does not imply that such a structure is also more difficult to understand in the speech of others.

English idioms in the first language and second language lexicon: a dual representation approach

2003 ◽  
Vol 19 (4) ◽  
pp. 329-358 ◽  
Author(s):  
Beate Abel
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Native Speakers ◽  
Empirical Studies ◽  
First Language ◽  
Nonnative Speakers ◽  
Lexical Representation ◽  
Dual Representation ◽  
Figurative Meaning ◽  
Conceptual Representations

In two empirical studies, judgements that native speakers of German make about the decomposability of English idioms were investigated. A decomposable idiom is an idiom whose individual components contribute to its figurative meaning, whereas the constituents of a nondecomposable idiom do not make such a contribution. The findings were analysed and compared to native judgements. The Model of Dual Idiom Representation is introduced in order to explain the differences between the two groups. At the lexical level, the model postulates the parallel existence of idiom entries and constituent entries. The degree of decomposability and the frequency with which the idiom is encountered determine its lexical representation. If there is no idiom entry for a particular idiom, conceptual representations are accessed during comprehension. Because nonnative speakers encounter idioms less often than native speakers, the first language (L1) and second language (L2) lexicon vary with regard to the number of idiom entries.

When alphabets collide: Alphabetic first-language speakers’ approach to speech production in an alphabetic second language

2011 ◽  
Vol 27 (3) ◽  
pp. 391-417 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gabriela Vokic
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Phonological Awareness ◽  
Speech Production ◽  
Native Speakers ◽  
First Language ◽  
Visual Code ◽  
Negative Effects ◽  
Distributional Properties ◽  
Lexical Items ◽  
L2 Speech Production

This study analysed the extent to which literate native speakers of a language with a phonemic alphabetic orthography rely on their first language (L1) orthography during second language (L2) speech production of a language that has a morphophonemic alphabetic orthography. The production of the English flapping rule by 15 adult native speakers of Spanish (NSS) was analysed. Flap production should not be problematic for NSS learning English as L2, since the flap [ ] exists in the Spanish phonemic inventory and it has similar acoustic, articluatory, and distributional properties in English and Spanish. However, this study hypothesizes that access to the flap is blocked by NSS participants’ lack of phonological awareness in English, which is brought about by the participants’ reliance on the Spanish orthographic system, since the graphs used to represent the English flap intervocalically have either different surface realizations in Spanish (such as <t> and <d>) or have no equivalents in the Spanish orthographic system (such as <tt> and <dd>). It was found that NSS relied on the Spanish orthographic system at a statistically significant level, despite both languages having alphabetic orthographies and sharing the same visual code. Less reliance on L1 orthography was observed in frequent L2 lexical items, demonstrating that negative effects of L1 orthography are inversely correlated to familiarity with L2 lexical items and that frequent lexical items promote L2 phonological awareness.

scholarly journals An Experimental Study on the Learning of Arbitrary and Non-Arbitrary Gender of Pseudo Dutch Nouns by Nonnative and Native Speakers of Dutch

1995 ◽  
Vol 53 ◽  
pp. 121-136
Author(s):  
Ahmed Zekhnini ◽  
Jan H. Hulstijn
Keyword(s):  
Experimental Study ◽  
Second Language ◽  
Language Learners ◽  
English Learners ◽  
Second Language Learners ◽  
Native Speakers ◽  
Nonnative Speakers ◽  
Inherent Feature ◽  
Gender Attribution ◽  
Made In

In this article we addres the question of whether, and to what exetent, noun gender attribution in languages such as French, German and Dutch can be formulated in terms of - semantic morphonological rules - competing semantic and morphonological cues - arbitrary idiosyncratic features In addressing this question we carried two learning experiments in which adult subjects, native speakers of Dutch and nonnative second language learners of Dutch, had to learn pseudo Dutch nouns. Our attempt was to provide some counter-evidence to falsify some claims Caroll (1989) made. In Caroll's view, L1 learners of French encode noun gender as an inherent feature of the noun in an obligatory fashion whereas English learners of French learn nouns as words distinct from their determiners. We argue, from the evidence we provide in our study, that the learning of gender values are equally difficult (or easy) for young native speakers, older native speakers, and nonnative speakers when these values are arbitrary. However, when learning the nonarbitrary gender values, it is easier for older native speakers to encode gender of nouns because they have already acquired many nouns from which cues or rules can be derived.

WE COULD HAVE LOVED AND LOST, OR WE NEVER COULD HAVE LOVE AT ALL

2010 ◽  
Vol 32 (4) ◽  
pp. 523-552 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mark A. Conroy ◽  
Linda Cupples
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Sentence Processing ◽  
Native Speakers ◽  
Nonnative Speakers ◽  
Judgment Task ◽  
Grammaticality Judgment ◽  
Processing Strategies ◽  
Syntactic Information ◽  
Late Closure ◽  
Category Frequency

This study investigated sentence-processing strategies adopted by advanced nonnative speakers (NNSs) and native speakers (NSs) of English in the context of an English structure with which NNSs reportedly have an acquisition difficulty (e.g., Swan & Smith, 2001)—namely, modal perfect (MP). Participants read MP sentences such as He could have worked at the shoe factory and closely related analogous sentences (e.g., He could have work at the shoe factory), and reading times and errors were measured in an online grammaticality-judgment task. It was hypothesized that NSs would have a processing preference for MP sentences compared to the analogues, reflecting the primacy of syntactic information in NS processing and a preference for late closure, whereas NNSs would show no such preference because they rely less on syntactic information when processing sentences. The results revealed, however, that both NSs and NNSs read MP sentences more quickly and with fewer errors than the closely related analogues, consistent with a processing preference for MP sentences. Both groups were also influenced by word-category frequency information, which moderated, but did not fundamentally alter, their syntactic preference for MP. The significance of these findings is discussed in terms of models of second-language sentence processing and NNSs’ reported MP acquisition difficulty.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document