scholarly journals Processing similarities between native speakers and non-balanced bilinguals

2021 ◽  
pp. 136700692110336
Author(s):  
Marina Sokolova ◽  
Roumyana Slabakova
Keyword(s):  
Sentence Processing ◽  
Native Speakers ◽  
Multiple Sources ◽  
Native Languages ◽  
Social Conventions ◽  
Syntactic Information ◽  
The Matrix ◽  
L1 And L2 ◽  
Syntactic Cues ◽  
Human Sentence Processing

Aims and objectives: The study investigates human sentence processing and argues that information from multiple sources is considered equally in native and non-native languages. Non-syntactic information does not overrule the parsing decisions prompted by syntactic cues. Methodology: The experiment used ambiguous relative clauses (RC) in a self-paced reading task with 20 native and 45 non-native adult speakers of English and Russian. The software Linger recorded participants’ answers to comprehension questions and the time they spent reading each word. Data and analysis: Mixed linear analysis performed in R checked for the effect of a matrix verb, RC length, social conventions, the native language and the language of testing on RC processing and interpretation. Findings: Both native and non-native speakers followed social conventions in deciding on the interpretation of the RC. However, this information never overruled the attachment decision prompted by the matrix predicate or by the length of the RC which entails certain sentence prosody. Originality: The study is innovative in investigating the extent to which each factor affected RC processing. It shows that social conventions enhance processing when they conspire with the structural parse prompted by linguistic cues. When they do not, syntactic information governs sentence parsing in both L1 and L2. Significance/implications: The study provides evidence that sentence processing uses linguistic structure as a first parsing hypothesis, which can then be adjusted to incorporate the incoming information from multiple sources. Limitations: The findings need further support from testing L2 learners of Russian in various socio-cultural contexts.

PARSING STRATEGIES IN L1 AND L2 SENTENCE PROCESSING

2003 ◽  
Vol 25 (4) ◽  
pp. 501-528 ◽  
Author(s):  
Despina Papadopoulou ◽  
Harald Clahsen
Keyword(s):  
Sentence Processing ◽  
Relative Clause ◽  
Native Speakers ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Native Languages ◽  
Advanced Learners ◽  
L2 Learners ◽  
On Line ◽  
L1 And L2 ◽  
Lexical Cues

To contribute to a better understanding of second language (L2) sentence processing, the present study examines how L2 learners parse temporarily ambiguous sentences containing relative clauses. Results are reported from both off-line and on-line experiments with three groups of advanced learners of Greek whose native languages (L1s) were Spanish, German, or Russian as well as from corresponding experiments with a control group of adult native speakers of Greek. We found that, despite their nativelike mastery of the construction under investigation, the L2 learners showed relative-clause attachment preferences that were different from those of the native speakers. Moreover, the L2 learners did not exhibit L1-based preferences in their L2 Greek, as might be expected if they were directly influenced by L1 attachment preferences. We suggest that L2 learners integrate information relevant for parsing differently from native speakers, with the L2 learners relying more on lexical cues than the native speakers and less on purely structurally based parsing strategies.

How multiple sources of experience influence bilingual syntactic choice: Immediate and cumulative cross-language effects of structural priming, verb bias, and language dominance

2016 ◽  
Vol 19 (4) ◽  
pp. 710-732 ◽  
Author(s):  
GERRIT JAN KOOTSTRA ◽  
WILLEMIJN J. DOEDENS
Keyword(s):  
Language Change ◽  
Structural Priming ◽  
Multiple Sources ◽  
Priming Effects ◽  
Language Dominance ◽  
Verb Bias ◽  
Syntactic Information ◽  
Language Effects ◽  
Cross Language ◽  
L1 And L2

We investigated trial-by-trial and cumulative cross-language effects of structural priming and verb bias on L1 and L2 dative syntactic choices (e.g., ‘boy-give-ball-to-girl’ [PO structure] vs. ‘boy-give-girl-ball’ [DO structure]). Dutch-dominant Dutch–English bilinguals listened to a prime sentence with a DO or PO structure in one language and then described a picture in the other language, using verbs that varied in their bias towards the PO or DO structure in Dutch and English. We found effects of cross-language structural priming and verb bias on syntactic choice, some of which were influenced by the participants’ language dominance. In addition, we found cumulative forms of structural priming, leading to cross-language priming effects between experimental blocks. We discuss these results in terms of models on the representation of lexical and syntactic information in bilinguals, and point out how the observed effects can be related to experience-based mechanisms of language use and contact-induced language change.

Do non-native languages have an effect on word order processing in first language Turkish?

2017 ◽  
Vol 23 (4) ◽  
pp. 804-816
Author(s):  
Gülay Cedden ◽  
Özgür Aydın
Keyword(s):  
Sentence Processing ◽  
Word Order ◽  
Native Speakers ◽  
First Language ◽  
Native Languages ◽  
Order Processing ◽  
Area Of Interest ◽  
Complement Clause ◽  
L1 Influence ◽  
Positive Effect

Aims and Objectives/Purpose/Research Questions: Existing studies on sentence processing in bi-/multilinguals are typically centred on the first language (L1) influence on second language sentence processing. However, there is almost no evidence of influence in the other direction. The aim of this study is to find out whether being mono-, bi-, tri- or plurilingual has an effect on reading times (RTs) in the native language. To this end, Turkish native speakers’ RTs are measured when processing Turkish canonical subject–object–verb sentences, subject–verb–object (SVO) sentences where constituents move to post-verbal positions and SVO– ki sentences where post-verbal constituents are base generated. Design/Methodology/Approach: A non-cumulative self-paced reading task is used in order to measure the RTs of a sentence. The area of interest contains (i) the critical verb, (ii) the verb of the complement clause and (iii) the argument or adjunct of the complement clause (32 sentences + 12 filler sentences). All elements are matched according to their frequency of occurrence and their syllable structure. Data and Analysis: Analyses of variance are performed on RTs of the area of interest. Findings/Conclusions: One of the main findings in this study is that all three sentence types are processed significantly slower by the monolingual group than by the bi- and multilingual groups. We infer that non-native languages have a positive effect on processing the word order in the L1, which might lead to a faster processing in the three sentence types. The findings are discussed in terms of working memory and the “gap-driven strategy”. Originality and Significance/Implications: The results are interpreted from psycholinguistic and syntactic points of view.

A short discourse on reflexives: a reply to Cunnings (2016)

2016 ◽  
Vol 20 (4) ◽  
pp. 679-680 ◽  
Author(s):  
BRIAN DILLON
Keyword(s):  
Working Memory ◽  
Sentence Processing ◽  
Memory Retrieval ◽  
Sentence Comprehension ◽  
Future Research ◽  
State Of Affairs ◽  
Retrieval Interference ◽  
L1 And L2 ◽  
Syntactic Cues

In his article, Parsing and working memory in bilingual sentence processing, Cunnings invites us to consider the hypothesis that important differences in how L1 and L2 populations process sentences stem from differences in how these speakers store and retrieve linguistic encodings in memory during the course of sentence comprehension (Cunnings, 2016). Specifically, he proposes that L2 speakers are more susceptible to similarity-based retrieval interference than their L1 counterparts, and L2 speakers weight discourse cues more heavily than syntactic cues when resolving open linguistic dependencies via memory retrieval. I find these to be interesting hypotheses that merit further investigation, especially in light of the prominence that these issues currently enjoy in L1 processing research. Nonetheless, I sound a note of caution: these claims go quite a bit beyond what is currently known, either theoretically or empirically. This makes support for these claims weak at present, but happily, this state of affairs offers clear directions for future research.

scholarly journals Antecedent contained deletions in native and non-native sentence processing

2016 ◽  
Vol 7 (5) ◽  
pp. 554-582 ◽  
Author(s):  
Oliver Boxell ◽  
Claudia Felser ◽  
Ian Cunnings
Keyword(s):  
Eye Movement ◽  
Sentence Processing ◽  
Native Speakers ◽  
English Speakers ◽  
Real Time Processing ◽  
Verb Phrase ◽  
Movement Data ◽  
German Speaking ◽  
Quantifier Raising ◽  
L1 And L2

Abstract We report the results from an eye-movement monitoring study investigating native (L1) and non-native (L2) speakers’ real-time processing of antecedent-contained deletion (ACD), a type of verb phrase ellipsis in which the ellipsis gap forms part of its own antecedent. The resulting interpretation problem is traditionally thought to be solved by quantifier raising, a covert scope-shifting operation that serves to remove the gap from within its antecedent. Our L2 group comprised advanced, native German-speaking L2 learners of English. The analysis of the eye-movement data showed that both L1 and L2 English speakers tried to recover the missing verb phrase after encountering the gap. Only the native speakers showed evidence of ellipsis resolution being affected by quantification, however. No effects of quantification following gap detection were found in the L2 group, by contrast, indicating that recovery of the elided material was accomplished independently from the object’s quantificational status in this group.

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.

scholarly journals Bilingual deaf readers’ use of semantic and syntactic cues in the processing of English relative clauses

2016 ◽  
Vol 20 (5) ◽  
pp. 980-998 ◽  
Author(s):  
PILAR PIÑAR ◽  
MATTHEW T. CARLSON ◽  
JILL P. MORFORD ◽  
PAOLA E. DUSSIAS
Keyword(s):  
Sentence Processing ◽  
Relative Clauses ◽  
Native Speakers ◽  
Reading Speed ◽  
Syntactic Complexity ◽  
Processing Strategies ◽  
Deaf Readers ◽  
Syntactic Cues ◽  
Processing Difficulty ◽  
Object Relative

Eye fixation measures were used to examine English relative clause processing by adult ASL–English bilingual deaf readers. Participants processed subject relative clauses faster than object relative clauses, but expected animacy cues eliminated processing difficulty in object relative clauses. This brings into question previous claims that deaf readers’ sentence processing strategies are qualitatively different from those of hearing English native speakers. Measures of English comprehension predicted reading speed, but not differences in syntactic processing. However, a trend for ASL self-ratings to predict the ability to handle syntactic complexity approached significance. Results suggest a need to explore how objective ASL proficiency measures might provide insights into deaf readers’ ability to exploit syntactic cues in English.

TRANSITIVITY IN THE PROCESSING OF INTRANSITIVE CLAUSES

2016 ◽  
Vol 39 (3) ◽  
pp. 527-552
Author(s):  
Laurent Dekydtspotter ◽  
Hyun-Kyoung Seo
Keyword(s):  
Sentence Processing ◽  
Mixed Model ◽  
Linear Mixed Model ◽  
Native Speakers ◽  
First Language ◽  
Intransitive Verbs ◽  
Post Hoc ◽  
L1 And L2 ◽  
Korean Learners ◽  
Rule Out

We document weak garden paths after intransitive verbs, modulated by intransitivity type, in the treatment of DP1 Vintransitive DP2 V2 sequences as in As the journalist arrived the editor postponed the meeting in first language (L1) and second language (L2) sentence processing. In a noncumulative moving-window experiment, 25 English native speakers and 22 low-intermediate Korean learners of English with no naturalistic exposure read critical items in which a subordinate clause was either headed by an intransitive verb (unaccusative vs. unergative) or by a copular predicate. A linear mixed model revealed greater processing loads evidenced in longer reading times on V2 after intransitive verbs than after copular predicates. This finding echoes post hoc observations in Juffs (2004). These asymmetries were driven by significantly greater loads after unaccusative verbs than after copular predicates and unergative verbs. These asymmetries, found in both L1 and L2, are unexpected on the basis of valence information only, as one-place predicates should rule out a second argument. However, we argue that they receive an explanation if parsing involves the interaction of lexically encoded intransitivity information with a transitivity prediction.

Cross-linguistic influence in the second language processing of Korean morphological and syntactic causative constructions

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sun Hee Park ◽  
Hyunwoo Kim
Keyword(s):  
Language Processing ◽  
Sentence Processing ◽  
Native Speakers ◽  
Judgment Task ◽  
Target Structure ◽  
Second Language Processing ◽  
Causative Constructions ◽  
Japanese Speakers ◽  
Syntactic Information ◽  
Acceptability Judgment

Abstract This study investigated the effects of cross-linguistic influence in Japanese speakers’ integration of morphological and syntactic information during the processing of Korean transitive causative constructions. We examined whether Japanese speakers would process two types of Korean causative constructions as efficiently as native speakers: (a) when one target structure was instantiated differently from learners’ L1 correspondents and (b) when the other type was unique to the L2. Although the learners showed native-like performance during an acceptability judgment task, they had difficulties with the integration of morphological and syntactic information during a self-paced reading task when the target construction gave rise to cross-linguistic competitions with the L1 correspondent, but not when the target construction was unique to the L1. Our findings support the claim that cross-linguistic cue competitions are a major source of difficulties in L2 sentence processing.

The activation of grammaticalized meaning in L2 processing: Toward an explanation of the morphological congruency effect

2016 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
pp. 81-98 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nan Jiang ◽  
Guiling Hu ◽  
Anna Chrabaszcz ◽  
Lijuan Ye
Keyword(s):  
Sentence Processing ◽  
Positive Response ◽  
Native Speakers ◽  
Reaction Times ◽  
Critical Conditions ◽  
Matching Task ◽  
English Sentence ◽  
L2 Processing ◽  
L1 And L2

Objectives: The study was intended to test the hypothesis that L2 speakers have difficulty in automatically activating a grammaticalized L2 meaning that is not morphologically marked in L1. Methodology: The study consisted of three experiments. A sentence–picture matching task was designed to assess the activation of grammaticalized meaning. The participants were asked to judge if a sentence correctly described the physical relationships of three objects in a picture. Hidden in the stimuli that required a positive response was a number agreement manipulation whereby a noun phrase in the sentence may agree or disagree with the number of objects in the picture. A number disagreement effect, as shown in a delay in producing a positive response on items of number disagreement was used to assess automatic activation of number meanings. Data and Analysis: The data constituted reaction times and accuracy rates from 32 English native speakers, 36 Chinese native speakers, 54 Chinese–English bilinguals, and 26 Russian–English bilinguals. Analyses of variance were performed in analyzing these data. Findings: The results showed a number disagreement effect in L1 and L2 among Russian English as a second language (ESL) speakers only. Chinese ESL speakers showed no difference between the two critical conditions in either language. A follow-up experiment showed that Chinese ESL speakers had no difficulty in automatically activating number meanings which were expressed lexically in English sentence processing. These findings provided support for the idea that the well documented difficulty L2 learners have in learning incongruent L2 inflectional morphemes may have to do with their difficulty in automatically activating a grammaticalized meaning that is not grammaticalized in their L1. Originality: The sentence–picture matching task represented a unique and effective approach to the study of the activation of grammaticalized meanings. Significance: The findings from the study represented some first psycholinguistic evidence regarding the activation of grammaticalized meanings among non-native speakers.

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