LINGUIST List 15.2456

Sat Sep 4 2004

Review: Language Acquisition: White (2003)

Editor for this issue: Naomi Ogasawara <naomilinguistlist.org>

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  • Lisa DeWaard Dykstra, Second Language Acquisition and Universal Grammar

    Message 1: Second Language Acquisition and Universal Grammar

     Date: Fri, 3 Sep 2004 23:39:36 -0400 (EDT)
    From: Lisa DeWaard Dykstra <lisa-dewaarduiowa.edu>
    Subject: Second Language Acquisition and Universal Grammar


    AUTHOR: White, Lydia TITLE: Second Language Acquisition and Universal Grammar SERIES: Textbooks in Linguistics PUBLISHER: Cambridge University Press YEAR: 2003 Announced at http://linguistlist.org/issues/14/14-3243.html

    Lisa DeWaard Dykstra, University of Iowa

    This textbook is designed to provide the advanced undergraduate student and graduate students in linguistics with a thorough understanding of the role of Universal Grammar (UG) in Second Language Acquisition (SLA). First, the ''logical problem of second language acquisition'' is examined. Next, White turns to the initial state of the learner's grammar, and then focuses on the grammar beyond that initial state. Triggering, morphological variability, argument structure, and the steady state are also examined in the light of UG.

    The volume provides both new research insights into UG and SLA while also containing elements of a textbook. At the end of each chapter there are questions for reflection, which can be utilized for self- study or in the classroom. At the end of the book there is a helpful glossary.

    Beginning with first language acquisition (L1A), White details the role of UG in the development of the native tongue. Research on the Overt Pronoun Constraint is used to flesh out an understanding of the logical problem of second language acquisition. Parameters are briefly explained, and the traditional approaches to UG access are evaluated: direct access, indirect access, and no access. Finally, the distinction between competence and performance is visited, as well as the implications that it has on methodology.

    The purpose of chapter two is to examine relevant studies to determine whether or not interlanguage grammars (ILG) are constrained by UG. Attempts on the part of researchers to propose that there are 'wild grammars' which preclude the availability of UG to the learner are shown to be faulty; alternate analyses are possible which argue strongly for UG-constrained ILGs. White concludes that ''[r]esults from several experiments suggest that learners of a variety of L2s demonstrate unconscious knowledge of subtle distinctions that are unlikely to have come from the L2 input (including instruction) or from the L1, consistent with the claim that principles of UG constrain interlanguage grammars'' (p. 56).

    The 'initial state' is something that has only recently begun to be investigated in-depth. There are two primary views on what can constitute the initial state: the grammar of the L1 and UG. Advocates of the first view, or Schwartz and Sprouse's ''Full Transfer Full Access Hypothesis'' claim that the initial state is the actual L1 steady state grammar, and that changes occur when the learner's L1 analysis of a string fails and grammar change is triggered. The idea that the L1 influences the developing ILG also provides an explanation for why many L2 learners do not achieve a near-native steady state (discussed further in chapter eight). The second view, that UG with a weak or neutral set of parameters settings constitutes the initial state, claims that there is no L1 role influence. Theorists that advocate for this position are unclear as to whether the whole grammar is involved, or simply a part.

    In moving beyond the initial state, White examines how the ILG develops over time, including what the role of parameters is in grammar change. The implications of the initial state theories are discussed to determine what changes in representation each allows. In addition, the question of how parameters function in grammar development is addressed, specifically whether they are at work at all, and if so, how this takes place.

    Much of the research into UG over the past several decades has focused on the issue of representations in interlanguage. White details the need for a theory of development/change often referred to in the literature as triggering. The role of parsing is discussed, as well as what triggering is and what form it can take (e.g., triggering in the form of morphological cues). A case is made for 'indirect negative evidence,' in which ''the learner somehow determines that certain structures or cues are absent or non-occurring'' (p. 165). While White acknowledges that the learner must have some idea of what to look for, she goes on to say that it may be possible for the grammar to search for cues if a particular parameter setting is not found, that could provide motivation for the changing of a parameter setting.

    In chapter six, White studies the morphology/syntax interface to determine to what if any interdependence there may be between the two systems in the light of interlanguage restructuring. Theories that propose a syntax-before-morphology or a morphology-before-syntax orientation are discussed. Problems may arise when learners are unable to map from the abstract to the surface systems.

    In discussing argument structure, White addresses properties of the L2 lexicon in detail, specifically semantic constraints and crosslinguistic differences that the learner may encounter (among others). Lexical entries are complex, encoding enormous amounts of information, including which semantic primitive set a particular word may belong to, as well as what kind of argument structure it requires. For the learner, the move to map a lexical entry to the syntax is complex. White shows how UG is involved, and discusses evidence that is contrary to the No Parameter Resetting theory outlined in chapter four. Methodological issues related to the studies presented are also considered.

    Ultimate attainment, or the steady state learners achieve, is the subject of the last chapter. Central to discussions of UG is the question of why some learners attain a more native-like steady state than others, if UG is available to them. Competence and performance factors are revisited, as well as the methodological considerations making investigations in this area difficult.

    This volume is an excellent review of the most central questions related to UG, in particular: the logical problem of language acquisition, access to UG, ILG restructuring, and ultimate attainment. Written in clear and interesting prose, White artfully provides balanced evidence for each of the central issues, and succinctly exposes the strengths and weaknesses of the recent literature. In addition to providing thorough descriptions of the studies examined, important works are offset in gray boxes that contain (1) the languages involved in the study, (2) the task participants completed, (3) sample stimuli, and (4) statistical results. These snapshot views of significant studies are a handy reference guide for students. This book achieves its goal of providing the reader with a better understanding of how UG is active in the many facets of SLA.

    ABOUT THE REVIEWER

    Lisa DeWaard Dykstra is a Doctoral Candidate in Second Language Acquisition at the University of Iowa. Her primary research area is interlanguage pragmatics. She is currently working on a project on the acquisition of the formal and informal 'you' distinction by native English-speaking learners of Russian and Spanish.