二语熟练度和二语工作记忆容量对晚期英-汉二语者句法加工的影响:以主谓一致关系判断为例

The Influence of Second Language Proficiency and Second Language Working Memory on Late Chinese-English Learners' Syntactic Processing:The Evidence from Subject-Verb Agreement

通过测查晚期英-汉二语者高熟练者、中等熟练者和低熟练者的二语工作记忆容量,初步发现二语者的工作记忆容量的个体差异受到二语熟练度的影响,表现为二语熟练度水平越高,二语工作记忆容量越大。在此基础上,通过设置英语句子主谓一致性违例与否的判断任务,同时操纵二语熟练度和二语工作记忆容量,考察了工作记忆和二语熟练度各自对二语句法加工的影响及其可能的交互作用。结果表明,当工作记忆容量一致时,二语熟练度对于准确性和加工速度均有影响;当熟练度趋同时,工作记忆容量对于二语句法加工速度有着极其显著的影响。

This study first tested the working memory capacity of late Chinese-English language learners with high or intermediate second language proficiency. The results showed that there were individual differences in their capacity and at the same time, the working memory capacity was influenced by second language proficiency, and that the high- er language proficiency, the higher working memory capacity. Based on the above findings, language proficiency and working memory capacity were manipulated and the judgment task on the subject-verb agreement was designed to in- vestigate the influence of working memory and language proficiency on English syntactic processing as well as the po- tential interaction among them. It was revealed that when working memory capacity was similar, language proficiency exerted influence on the accuracy and processing speed of syntactic processing; when language proficiency was at the same level, working memory influenced the speed of syntactic processing.