Individual Differences in Language Acquisition and Processing

Kidd, Evan; Donnelly, Seamus; Christiansen, Morten H.

doi:10.1016/j.tics.2017.11.006

Cited by 307 publications

(210 citation statements)

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“…In line with Kidd et al (2018), the framework presented in this article may function as a useful research agenda for studying individual differences in L1ers and L2ers and for comparing L2ers with L1ers to help answer the question concerning complete/native bilingualism (Q1) and the age question in L2 acquisition (Q2). The framework rests on the distinction between shared language cognition (BLC) and nonshared/extended language cognition, proposed in BLC Theory.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 86%

“…Answers to the two questions cannot be found unless an individual‐differences approach is adopted. As Kidd, Donnelly, and Christiansen (, p. 154) noted, “Despite their ubiquity, IDs [individual differences] represent something of an inconvenient truth: their presence is undeniable but our theories and experimental methods overwhelmingly downplay their importance (e.g., by relegating them to error variance).” The framework is partially based on Shared/Basic Language Cognition (BLC) Theory, that is, the theory of basic linguistic cognition, the knowledge that is shared by all adult native speakers of a language (Hulstijn, ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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An Individual‐Differences Framework for Comparing Nonnative With Native Speakers: Perspectives From BLC Theory

Hulstijn

2018

Language Learning

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This article proposes basic (shared) and extended (nonshared) language cognition in native speakers as a function of two types of extralinguistic attributes: (a) degree of being multilingual and (b) variables related to amount and type of literacy experiences (e.g., level of education). This approach may throw new light on the question of whether bilinguals can attain complete or native proficiency in two (or more) languages and the question of whether both early and late second language (L2) learners can attain native levels of L2 proficiency. An adequate language acquisition theory should explain why some structures are and some other structures are not comprehended and produced by all native speakers and also describe the acquisition over time (development) of lexical‐grammatical structures comprehended or produced by all native speakers or only by some. It is argued that usage‐based linguistics stands a better chance of accomplishing this task than generative linguistics.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 86%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

An Individual‐Differences Framework for Comparing Nonnative With Native Speakers: Perspectives From BLC Theory

Hulstijn

2018

Language Learning

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“…Over the past two decades, evidence has amassed documenting the extent to which language cognition depends on learning spatiotemporal regularities in a probabilistic manner (Jost & Christensen, 2017). Recent studies highlight the existence of individual differences within this ability (Kidd, Donnelly, & Christiansen, 2018) and discuss the possibility that statistical learning might not be a unitary learning mechanism but a set of domain‐general computational principles that operate in different modalities (Frost, Armstrong, Siegelman, & Christiansen, 2015). While the effects of pattern learning on language processing are well described, the way in which pattern learning shapes exploratory behavior more generally has long gone unnoticed.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Exploring and Exploiting Uncertainty: Statistical Learning Ability Affects How We Learn to Process Language Along Multiple Dimensions of Experience

Divjak

Milin

2020

Cognitive Science

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While the effects of pattern learning on language processing are well known, the way in which pattern learning shapes exploratory behavior has long gone unnoticed. We report on the way in which individual differences in statistical pattern learning affect performance in the domain of language along multiple dimensions. Analyzing data from healthy monolingual adults' performance on a serial reaction time task and a self-paced reading task, we show how individual differences in statistical pattern learning are reflected in readers' knowledge of linguistic co-occurrence patterns and in their exploration and exploitation of content-specific and task-general information. First, we investigated the extent to which an individual's pattern learning correlates with his or her sensitivity to systematic morphological and syntactic co-occurrences, as evidenced while reading authentic sentences. We found that the stream of morphological and syntactic information has a more pronounced effect on the reading speed of, as we will label them, content-sensitive learners in that the more probable the co-occurrence pattern, the faster their reading of that pattern will be. Next, we investigated how differences in pattern learning are reflected in the ways in which individuals approach the reading task itself and adapt to it. Casting this relation in terms of exploration/exploitation strategies, known from Reinforcement Learning, we conclude that content-sensitive learners are also more likely to initially probe (explore) a wider range of directly relevant patterns, which they can later use (exploit) to optimize their reading performance further. By affecting exploratory behavior, pattern learning influences the information that is gathered and becomes available for exploitation, thereby increasing the effect pattern learning has on language cognition. Correspondence should be sent to

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“…However, this view of L1 learning is simplistic. Although most children learn to communicate—that is, talk effectively, in their L1—there is normal variation not only in their rate of acquisition but also in their communication skills at every point in development, for example, size of vocabulary and complexity of sentence structures (Gilkerson et al, ; Hoff, , ; Huttenlocher, Waterfall, Vasilyeva, Vevea, & Hedges, ; Kidd, Donnelly, & Christiansen, ). In addition, individual differences (IDs) in L1 skills are large and stable across development (Bates, Dale, & Thal, ; Bornstein & Putnick, ).…”

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confidence: 99%

Individual differences in L2 achievement mirror individual differences in L1 skills and L2 aptitude: Crosslinguistic transfer of L1 to L2 skills

Sparks

Patton

Luebbers

2019

Foreign Language Annals

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Studies with U.S. secondary second language (L2) learners have revealed individual differences (IDs) in first language (L1) skills and L2 aptitude and shown that these IDs are related to L2 achievement and proficiency. In this study, U.S. students were administered measures of L1 achievement, L1 cognitive processing, and L2 aptitude; followed through 2 to 3 years of Spanish courses; and administered standardized measures of Spanish achievement at the end of each year. Students were divided into high‐, average‐, and low‐achieving groups according to their scores on the Spanish measures and compared on the L1 measures and L2 aptitude test. Findings showed significant overall group differences on most L1 measures and significant between‐group differences on most L1 measures and the L2 aptitude test. IDs in L1 literacy, L1 working memory, and L2 aptitude best discriminated among students who completed 2 versus 3 years of Spanish. Results support claims that IDs in L2 achievement mirror IDs in L1 skills and provide evidence for the crosslinguistic transfer of L1 to L2 skills.

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Individual Differences in Language Acquisition and Processing

Cited by 307 publications

References 132 publications

An Individual‐Differences Framework for Comparing Nonnative With Native Speakers: Perspectives From BLC Theory

An Individual‐Differences Framework for Comparing Nonnative With Native Speakers: Perspectives From BLC Theory

Exploring and Exploiting Uncertainty: Statistical Learning Ability Affects How We Learn to Process Language Along Multiple Dimensions of Experience

Individual differences in L2 achievement mirror individual differences in L1 skills and L2 aptitude: Crosslinguistic transfer of L1 to L2 skills

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