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Prediction in Second Language Processing and Learning
Edited by Edith Kaan and Theres Grüter
[Bilingual Processing and Acquisition 12] 2021
► pp. 47–68

Chapter 3
Second language prediction ability across different linguistic domains

Evidence from German

| University of Potsdam
| University of Potsdam

Previous research suggests that second language (L2) speakers can reliably use lexical-semantic cues for predictive processing but have difficulty using morphosyntactic ones. Here we report the results from a visual-world eye-tracking study that tested first language (L1) Russian/L2 German speakers in two parallel experiments, asking whether morphosyntactic prediction is indeed more limited in an L2 compared to semantic prediction. In Experiment 1 both the L2 speakers and L1 German-speaking controls showed evidence of using selectional restriction information to anticipate an upcoming direct object. Unlike what was reported previously, in Experiment 2 the same group of L2 speakers also showed evidence of using morphological case information predictively. However, between-group differences suggested that L2 speakers had more difficulty integrating competing cues during processing than L1 speakers.

Article outline
  • Introduction
    • Semantic prediction
    • Morphosyntactic prediction
  • The current study
    • Method
      • Participants
      • Design and materials
      • Apparatus and experimental procedure
      • Data analysis procedure
    • Results
      • Truth value judgement and questionnaire data
      • Eye-tracking data
      • Summary
  • Discussion
  • Acknowledgments
  • Notes
  • References
Published online: 22 September 2021
DOI logo
https://doi.org/10.1075/bpa.12.03sch
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