Morphological variability in the comprehension of agreement
An Argument for Representation Over Computation
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 8046258 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Corrine McCarthy (George Mason University, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2008 |
| Volume | 24 |
| Issue | 4 |
| Pages | 459-486 |
| Publication date | 2008-10-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Second language Research (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0267-6583 • E-ISSN: 1477-0326 |
| Publisher | SAGE Publishing (PUBLISHER • US) |
| DOI | 10.1177/0267658308095737 |
| OpenAlex | W1978366370 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 78 |
| References cited | 19 |
Previous accounts of morphological variability disagree over whether its cause is representational or computational in nature. Under a computational account, variability is confined to production; under a representational account, variability extends to comprehension and is qualitatively similar to variability in production. This article presents experimental evidence from the comprehension and production of gender and number agreement in second language (L2) Spanish clitics and adjectives. Intermediate-level participants show variability across comprehension and production; across tasks, masculine defaults are adopted. Advanced-level participants show less variability, although evidence for masculine defaults emerges across tasks. Number agreement proved relatively unproblematic, except in the production of adjective agreement where singular defaults are systematically adopted by intermediate- and advanced-level speakers. The qualitative similarity of variability across comprehension and production supports a representational account; however, previous research disfavours an account based in syntactic deficits. This article argues for a theory of morphological variability that places the representational cause in the morphology, rather than the syntax
Adjective · Agreement · Argument (complex analysis · Language production · Representation · EFL/ESL Teaching and Learning · Neurobiology of Language and Bilingualism · Syntax, Semantics, Linguistic Variation
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| Unique citing works | 78 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 4,59 |
| Citation span | 2009 - 2026 (18) |
| Citation velocity | current |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 78 |