二语复杂句法加工的ERP研究——以英语现在分词为例

An ERP study of complicated syntactic processing in L2

本文以英语现在分词为切入点,通过ERP技术考察了中国大学生对英语句子中复杂成分的认知加工特征。具体句法结构为S-V-O+V-ing,即完整的S-V-O结构后接现在分词作为宾语O的伴随状态,如Tom talked with the girl sitting at the corner,其中的sitting at the corner作后置定语用。这一句法形式在汉语中并不存在,因而具有独特性,同时也是中国学生句法学习的一大难点。实验中对句法、语义和二语熟练度进行了操控,结果发现:1)中国二语者在英语现在分词的加工中未引发典型的ERP句法成分,如LAN和P600,熟练度有一定的调节作用,但未产生根本上的差异;2)高低水平被试在现在分词加工中都受到句法和语义作用的影响,二语中带有独特结构的复杂句加工更多地体现了一般的认知功能。

This research probes into the cognitive processing of the present participle as the complex composition in English sentences with the manipulation of semantics, syntax and proficiency in the ERP experiment. The structure investigated was S- V-O ＋ V-ing, in which V-ing functiones as a modifier for the object（O） in S-V-O. For instance, in ＂Tom talked with the girl sitting at the comer＂, ＂sitting at the comer＂ was an attribute modifying ＂the girl＂. With no such grammatical framework in the Chinese language, it would be more liable for Chinese students to handle difficulties in comprehension, especially for the low-proficient ones. The findings are as follow： 1 ） Chinese second-language learners do not elicit typical ERP components such as ELAN and P600 in the syntactic violation. Though proficiency exerts some influence on the processing but with no es- sential change ; 2） For both high-proficiency and low-proficiency learners, semantics and syntax are two major factors that contribute to the differences in ERP presentation, which indicats that the processing of unique structures in L2 sentences is more related to the general cognitive function rather than the specific linguistic reactions in the native language.