Syntactic processing in L2 depends on perceived reliability of the input: Evidence from P600 responses to correct...

Area of Science:

• Psycholinguistics
• Second Language Acquisition
• Neuroscience of Language

Background:

• Experienced L2 speakers process syntactic input, but may rely on idiosyncratic grammars.
• Previous research used incorrect sentences, unlike realistic L2 input.
• Native-like syntactic processing in L2 speakers is not fully understood when input is correct.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate L2 syntactic processing of correct input deviating from L2 speakers' grammars.
• To examine event-related potential (ERP) responses to subjective grammatical errors in L2 Dutch speakers.
• To determine conditions under which L2 speakers exhibit native-like syntactic processing.

Main Methods:

• Three ERP experiments were conducted with German speakers of Dutch.
• Participants read Dutch sentences, some containing subjective determiner errors.
• Tasks included reading for comprehension, learning, and grammaticality judgments.

Main Results:

• No syntax-related ERPs were observed for subjective errors during comprehension or learning tasks.
• A significant P600 ERP component emerged only during explicit grammaticality judgments.
• Subjective processing relies on task demands and perceived input grammaticality.

Conclusions:

• L2 speakers' native-like syntactic processing (P600) is modulated by task context.
• Full use of subjective grammars requires a reason to doubt input correctness.
• Findings highlight the role of explicit grammatical monitoring in L2 processing.