Linguistic Approaches to Bilingualism - Volume 4, Issue 4, 2014

We used free association tasks to investigate second language (L2) verb-argument constructions (VACs) and the ways in which their access is sensitive to statistical patterns of usage (verb type-token frequency distribution, VAC-verb contingency, verb-VAC semantic prototypicality). 131 German, 131 Spanish, and 131 Czech advanced L2 learners of English generated the first word that came to mind to fill the V slot in 40 sparse VAC frames such as ‘he __ across the …’, ‘it __ of the …’, etc. For each VAC, we compared these results with corpus analyses of verb selection preferences in 100 million words of usage and with the semantic network structure of the verbs in these VACs. For all language groups, multiple regression analyses predicting the frequencies of verb types generated for each VAC show independent contributions of (i) verb frequency in the VAC, (ii) VAC-verb contingency, and (iii) verb prototypicality in terms of centrality within the VAC semantic network. L2 VAC processing involves rich associations, tuned by verb type and token frequencies and their contingencies of usage, which interface syntax, lexis, and semantics.

This study examines the interpretation of constituent wh-questions in L2 English by learners whose L1 is Austrian German. Austrian German and English share identical surface word order patterns for a range of question forms, but with distinct semantic interpretations. Non-target patterns of interpretation show that the learners ay high levels of proficiency continue to optionally parse English questions with the L1 syntax. The continued presence of thematic verb movement and head-final VP syntax in L1 German-L2 English interlanguagechallenges previous findings that headedness is reset very early and that V2 is realised by auxiliary verbs. This is analysed as an instance of Variational Learning (Yang, 2002), whereby the L1 grammar is accessed to parse L2 input where possible. The L1 syntactic representation thus continues to be available at high proficiency levels to parse input strings that are linearly compatible, giving rise in the case of L1 German-L2 English to non-target parses and interpretation of wh-questions.

This study investigates the combined effects of Age of Onset of Acquisition (AOA) and quality and quantity of input on the development of three grammatical structures in French. In a longitudinal and multiple case study including successive (L2) Swedish-French bilingual children (n = 3), simultaneous (2L1) Swedish-French bilingual children (n = 3) and monolingual French children (n = 3), we examine the development of finite verb forms, object pronouns and subject-verb agreement. A distinction is made between structures that are early/late in different modes of acquisition and less/more difficult. The operationalization of quantity and quality of input is based on individual input profiles. The results show that AOA affects the development of less difficult and early grammatical structures whereas AOA has no influence on more difficult structures that are acquired late. An effect of input is found in the 2L1 children, and in some of the L2 children. This effect is most clear with more difficult and late structures.

By analyzing the empirical data from two experiments that test Spanish psych-verb properties (e.g. gustar ‘to like’), this article assesses the empirical adequacy of the Interface Hypothesis (IH), which claims that external interfaces (i.e. interfaces between a linguistic module and a cognitive module) are more problematic for learners than internal interfaces/narrow syntax (Sorace & Filiaci, 2006; Sorace, 2011; inter alia). Because my findings were inconsistent with the IH (i.e. target-like pragmatics knowledge can precede syntactic awareness of the same construction), I turned to the Integrative Model of Bilingual Acquisition (Pires & Rothman, 2011), which accounts for non-native divergence by resorting to the interplay of a series of factors (i.e. formal complexity, L1-L2 parameter mapping, processing resources, and PLD). This more articulated model is not only able to account for the patterns in these experiments but it also constitutes a more integrated explanation for the intricacies of the acquisition process.