Typological perspectives on second language acquisition: ‘Thinking for Speaking’ in L2 (original) (raw)
Related papers
Linguistic relativity in SLA : thinking for speaking
2010
Over the past few decades, Second Language Acquisition (SLA) research has shown a growing interest in linguistic relativity, specifically in Slobin's (1987, 1996) thinking-for-speaking hypothesis. The thinking-for-speaking hypothesis posits that language-specific structures direct the speaker's attention to specific aspects of objects and events; such perceived information is then organized according to what can be grammatically coded in the speaker's first language (L1s). This volume probes a possible interference of L1-based cognition with second language (L2) development. As pointed out by ZhaoHong Han, the first editor, this volume regards Slobin's thinking-for-speaking hypothesis as one of the several promising accounts for such SLA phenomena as inter-and intra-learner variability, as well as fossilization. This edited volume comprises six studies and two theoretical papers, preceded by a preface and followed by a reference list and an index. One strength of the volume is the variety of articles selected. Building on the typical scope of thinking-for-speaking studiesnamely the lexicalization patterns studies within Talmy's (1985, 2000a, 2000b) typological framework, they utilize different methodological designs, such as longitudinal case studies (Chapters 3, 6, and 7), as well as qualitative (especially Chapters 6 and 7) and quantitative methods (all chapters). The constructs under scrutiny range from the lexicalization patterns of motion events (Chapters 1, 2, and 3), gesture (Chapter 3), memory for spatial relations vis-à-vis English prepositions (Chapter 4), and use and representation of grammatical morphemes (Chapters 2, 6, and 7). The chapters address different issues within the thinking-for-speaking framework: the varying degrees of L1 constraints on the process of L2 acquisition vis-à-vis L1-L2 typological differences (Chapters 1 and 4); the developmental aspects of interlanguage concepts (Chapters 3, 6, and 7); issues of ultimate attainment (Chapters 2, 3, and 8); and conceptual works that define the role of linguistic relativity in SLA (Chapters 5 and 8). In the following review, I am going to take a critical look at the chapters in terms of their themes, the order of lexicalization pattern studies, (Chapters 1-3) and that of morphological studies, (Chapters 6 and 7), conceptual works defining the role of relativity in SLA (Chapters 5 and 8), and the study of the possible influences of L1 on one's cognition (Chapter 4), a fundamental issue of relativity in the study of SLA.
International Journal of Language & Linguistics
Research into how a universal semantic domain like motion is narrated differently by speakers of typologically different languages (i.e., SATELLITE-FRAMED and VERB-FRAMED) led Slobin (1996a, 1996b, 2000, 2014) and his colleagues (Berman and Slobin, 2004) to make informed predictions about the influence of grammatical categories on the learning of first languages (L1) and second languages (L2): (a) Language-induced thoughts are determined by the typological characteristic of L1 (Slobin, 1996a, p. 89). (b) Language induced-thought processes develop into habits of thinking-for-speaking (TfS) (Slobin, 1996a, p. 89). (c) L1 TfS habits are difficult to change whena typologically distinct L2 is learned in adulthood (Slobin, 1996a, p. 89) Research into how motion events are expressed in different languages lent support to predictions (a) and (b) (e.g.,
Typological Universals and Second language Acquisition.
2008
In the first part of this paper I deal with some points concerning the relationship between typology and Second Language research that were touched upon by Joseph Greenberg in his 1991 article: the contribution of L2 research to linguistic theorizing, the nature vs. history dichotomy, the relation between second languages and pidginization processes. Next, I point out the relevance of typological universals to accounts of learner behavior. Finally, the issue of tense and aspect marking in second languages is addressed in the light of the theoretical proposal known as the "Primacy of aspect hypothesis". The explanatory power of this hypothesis is discussed by drawing on the notion of prototype, which is in turn argued to be in need of further refinements.