Selective transfer in the acquisition of English double object constructions by Brazilian learners (original) (raw)
Related papers
Selective transfer in the acquisition of english double object constrctions by brazilian learners
Alfa Revista De Linguistica, 2013
The present study investigates the acquisition of the English double object constructions (GOLDBERG, 1995) by Brazilian learners. We hypothesize that, due to first language (L1) influences, the prepositional ditransitive construction (John gave a book to Mary) will be acquired earlier, while the ditransitive construction (John gave Mary a book) will be part of the learner's interlanguages (SELINKER, 1972) only at the advanced level of proficiency. We also hypothesize that learners may transfer (ODLIN, 1989) the placement of the object pronoun in pre-verbal position from their L1 to their interlanguage in early stages of acquisition (João me deu um livro / *John me gave a book). We test our hypotheses by comparing the performance of three groups of learners (beginning, intermediate, and advanced) and native speakers of English on an acceptability judgment task used as a measure of learnability and generalization. Results confirm the order of acquisition of the English double object constructions predicted for native speakers of Brazilian Portuguese. Moreover, results suggest that, although mother tongue influences may have taken place, they do not do so pervasively, but rather selectively, corroborating the proposal by Kellerman (1983).
Selective transfer in the acquisition of double object constructions by Brazilian learners
The present study investigates the acquisition of the English double object constructions (GOLDBERG, 1995) by Brazilian learners. We hypothesize that, due to first language (L1) influences, the prepositional ditransitive construction (John gave a book to Mary) will be acquired earlier, while the ditransitive construction (John gave Mary a book) will be part of the learner’s interlanguages (SELINKER, 1972) only at the advanced level of proficiency. We also hypothesize that learners may transfer (ODLIN, 1989) the placement of the object pronoun in pre-verbal position from their L1 to their interlanguage in early stages of acquisition (João me deu um livro / *John me gave a book). We test our hypotheses by comparing the performance of three groups of learners (beginning, intermediate, and advanced) and native speakers of English on an acceptability judgment task used as a measure of learnability and generalization. Results confirm the order of acquisition of the English double object constructions predicted for native speakers of Brazilian Portuguese. Moreover, results suggest that, although mother tongue influences may have taken place, they do not do so pervasively, but rather selectively, corroborating the proposal by Kellerman (1983).
Psycholinguistics: implications for the classroom, 2019
his study aims to add to the body of evidence regarding the linguistic structures that seem to be more challenging in L2 acquisition than in L1 acquisition (DeKeyser, 2005; Ellis, 2008; Inagaki, 2001; Slabakova, 2014; Sorace, 2011). he Negative Evidence Hypothesis (NEH) (Oliveira, 2016) predicts that bilinguals are less sensitive than native speakers to violations resulted from the overgeneralization of an L2-speciic rule. We tested this hypothesis by analyzing the behavior of Brazilian Portuguese-English bilinguals with diferent proiles towards the double-object construction in English with unlicensed verbs in two acceptability judgment tasks. he results corroborate the NEH by conveying that bilinguals gain sensitivity as they become more proicient, yet, the data suggest that not even when immersed in the L2, they become as sensitive as native speakers.
Cross-Linguistic Transfer of Object Clitic Structure: A Case of L3 Brazilian Portuguese
Languages, 2017
This study examines the role of previously known language in L3 Brazilian Portuguese (BP) object expression acquisition. It investigates the claims of the main models of L3 transfer, the cumulative enhancement model (CEM) (Flynn et al. 2004), the L2 status factor (Bardel and Falk 2007) and the typological proximity model (TPM) (Rothman 2011) in both comprehension and production tasks. It also aims at measuring the extent of transfer effects in comprehension and production. Participants (N = 33) were divided into three groups, a mirror image group of L3 BP learners who already knew English and Spanish, and a native control group. They performed a self-paced reading task and a story telling task, which focused on object clitics in BP. Results indicate early convergence to the BP grammar by the L3 learners in what refers to object expression. They also suggest that, although no major effects of transfer were obtained, clitic placement errors in the production task and preference for inanimate and non-specific contexts for null objects can be traced to Spanish, independent of order of acquisition, providing evidence in favor of the TPM. Finally, comprehension seems to override the effects of language transfer earlier than production.
International Journal of Research Studies in Language Learning, 2014
This study reports the results obtained through a stride to explore the type and extent of syntactic transfer in the early stages of adult L3 and L4 acquisition. Null-subject parameter (NSP) is a well-known and highly studied syntactic feature in generative studies on third language (L3) acquisition. Following a principles and parameters framework, the underlying principle of language is that languages have pronouns and the parametric variation is that Persian and Italian allow the pronouns to be dropped when in subject position. OV property of embedded clauses has also set itself as the basis of some formal studies on the realm of learning multiple languages. Whereas, the former set the languages with values of [+null-subject] and [-null-subject], the latter creates the language pairings as OV and non-OV languages. The syntactic licensing of null L3 and overt L4 pronominal subjects in declarative main clauses and the OV property in relative clauses were investigated to provide us with new insights on the true architecture of incipient multilingualism and, as such, to clarify the situation of a polyglot. The present instrumental case study was set to challenge the role of transfer during the acquisition of syntax in the initial state of adult L3 and L4. To quantify the cases of correct/incorrect suppliance of the features under investigation, the spontaneous, audio-recorded, productions of a Persian (L1)-speaking learner of L3 Italian and L4 German with advance L2 English proficiency were analyzed using obligatory occasion analysis and target like use analysis formulas. Based on the accuracy percentages generated via the formulas, the L2 status factor was consistently identified to play a significant role in the acquisition of L3 Italian and L4 German initial grammar.
International Journal of English Studies, 2014
The present study examines the acquisition of double object constructions (DOCs) (Susan gave Peter an apple) by 90 Basque/Spanish learners of English as a third language (L3). The aim of this study was to explore whether (i) learners established a distinction when accepting DOCs vs. prepositional phrase constructions (PPCs) (Susan gave an apple to Peter), (ii) they were sensitive to the morphological and semantic constraints found in English DOCs and (iii) proficiency effects could be observed. Results from a self-paced reading task and an auto-paced reading task showed that Basque/Spanish learners were more accurate in morphosyntactic properties than in semantic ones. Even though learners showed difficulties in both morphological and semantic constraints, these seem to be overcome by increasing proficiency.
Bilingualism: Language and Cognition, 2004
The findings from a number of recent studies indicate that, even in cases of successful bilingual first language acquisition, the possibility remains of a certain degree of crosslinguistic influence when the choice between syntactic options is affected by discourse pragmatics. In this study we focussed on the use of referring expressions, prime candidates to test the interaction between syntax and pragmatics, and we compared the distribution of subjects and objects in the Italian and English of a bilingual child (1;10-4;6) with that of two groups of MLUw-matched monolinguals. All arguments were coded for syntactic function and for a number of discourse pragmatic features predicted to affect their realisation. Our main prediction was that unidirectional crosslinguistic influence might occur for the English-Italian bilingual child with respect to pronominal subject and object use after the instantiation of the C system. Specifically we predicted that in Italian the bilingual child might use overt pronominal subjects in contexts where monolinguals would use a null subject, and that he might use postverbal strong object pronouns in Italian instead of preverbal weak pronominal clitics. Conversely, we did not expect the overall proportion of overt objects, whether noun phrases or pronouns, to vary crosslinguistically as objects are always obligatorily overt in both languages regardless of discourse pragmatics. Our results confirmed these predictions, and corroborated the argument that crosslinguistic influence may occur in bilingual first language acquisition in specific contexts in which syntax and pragmatics interact.