Hostname: page-component-cb9f654ff-kl2l2 Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2025-09-02T09:17:51.495Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Cross-linguistic evidence for the nature of age effects in second language acquisition

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  04 June 2010

ROBERT DEKEYSER ,
IRIS ALFI-SHABTAY  and
DORIT RAVID
ROBERT DEKEYSER*
Affiliation:
University of Maryland at College Park
IRIS ALFI-SHABTAY
Affiliation:
Tel-Aviv University
DORIT RAVID
Affiliation:
Tel-Aviv University
*
ADDRESS FOR CORRESPONDENCE Robert DeKeyser, Department of Linguistics, University of Maryland, 3215 Jimenez Hall, College Park, MD 20742. E-mail: rdk@umd.edu
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Few researchers would doubt that ultimate attainment in second language grammar is negatively correlated with age of acquisition, but considerable controversy remains about the nature of this relationship: the exact shape of the age-attainment function and its interpretation. This article presents two parallel studies with native speakers of Russian: one on the acquisition of English as a second language in North America (n = 76), and one on the acquisition of Hebrew as a second language in Israel (n = 64). Despite the very different nature of the languages being learned, the two studies show very similar results. When age at testing is partialed out, the data reveal a steep decline in the learning of grammar before age 18 in both groups, followed by an essentially horizontal slope until age 40. This is interpreted as evidence in favor of the critical period. Both groups show a significant correlation between ultimate attainment and verbal aptitude for the adult learners, but not for the early learners. This is interpreted as further evidence that the learning processes in childhood and adulthood not only yield different levels of proficiency but are also different in nature.

Information

Type
Articles
Information
Applied Psycholinguistics , Volume 31 , Issue 3 , July 2010 , pp. 413 - 438
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2010

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

Article purchase

Temporarily unavailable

References

REFERENCES

Abrahamsson, N., & Hyltenstam, K. (2008). The robustness of aptitude effects in near-native second language acquisition. Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 30, 481–509.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Allalouf, A., Bastari, B., Sieci, S. G., & Hambleton, R. K. (1997). Comparing the dimensionality of a test administered in two languages. Paper presented at the Meeting of the Northeastern Educational Research Association, Ellenville, NY.Google Scholar
Allalouf, A., Hambleton, R. K., & Sireci, S. G. (1999). Identifying the causes of DIF in translated verbal items. Journal of Educational Measurement, 36, 185–198.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ball, J. (1996). Age and natural order in second language acquisition. Unpublished doctoral dissertation, University of Rochester.Google Scholar
Berman, R. A. (1980). The case of an (S)VO language: Subjectless constructions in modern Hebrew. Language, 56, 759–776.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Berman, R. A. (1999). Relevant features of spoken and written English. In Aisenman, R. (Ed.), Working papers in “developing literacy across genres, modalities, and languages” (pp. 4–19). Tel Aviv: Tel Aviv University.Google Scholar
Bialystok, E. (2002). On the reliability of robustness: A reply to DeKeyser. Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 24, 481–488.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bialystok, E., & Hakuta, K. (1994). In other words. The science and psychology of second-language acquisition. New York: Basic Books.Google Scholar
Bialystok, E., & Hakuta, K. (1999). Confounded age: Linguistic and cognitive factors in age differences for second language acquisition. In Birdsong, D. (Ed.), Second language acquisition and the critical period hypothesis (pp. 161–181). Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum.Google Scholar
Bialystok, E., & Miller, B. (1999). The problem of age in second-language acquisition: Influences from language, structure, and task. Bilingualism: Language and Cognition, 2, 127–145.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Birdsong, D. (2004). Second language acquisition and ultimate attainment. In Davies, A. & Elder, C. (Eds.), The handbook of applied linguistics (pp. 82–105). Oxford: Blackwell.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Birdsong, D. (2005). Interpreting age effects in second language acquisition. In Kroll, J. F. & de Groot, A. M. B. (Eds.), Handbook of bilingualism: Psycholinguistic approaches (pp. 109–127). Oxford: Oxford University Press.Google Scholar
Birdsong, D. (2006). Age and second language acquisition and processing: A selective overview. Language Learning, 56 (Suppl. 1), 1–49.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Birdsong, D., & Molis, M. (2001). On the evidence for maturational constraints in second-language acquisition. Journal of Memory and Language, 44, 235–249.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bylund, E. (2008). Age differences in first language attrition. A maturational constraints perspective. Stockholm: Stockholm University.Google Scholar
Bylund, E. (2009). Maturational constraints and first language attrition. Language Learning, 59, 687–715.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Carroll, J. B. (1981). Twenty-five years of research on foreign language aptitude. In Diller, K. C. (Ed.), Individual differences and universals in language learning aptitude (pp. 83–118). Rowley, MA: Newbury House.Google Scholar
Carroll, J. B., & Sapon, S. (1959). Modern Language Aptitude Test. Form A. New York: Psychological Corporation.Google Scholar
Chesterman, A. (1991). On definition. A study with special reference to English and Finnish. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
DeKeyser, R. M. (2000). The robustness of critical period effects in second language acquisition. Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 22, 499–533.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
DeKeyser, R. M. (2006). A critique of recent arguments against the critical period hypothesis. In Abello-Contesse, C., Chacón-Beltrán, R., López-Jiménez, M. D., & Torreblanca-López, M. M. (Eds.), Age in L2 acquisition and teaching (pp. 49–58). Bern: Peter Lang.Google Scholar
DeKeyser, R. M., & Larson-Hall, J. (2005). What does the critical period really mean? In Kroll, J. F. & de Groot, A. M. B. (Eds.), Handbook of bilingualism: Psycholinguistic approaches (pp. 89–108). Oxford: Oxford University Press.Google Scholar
Dörnyei, Z. (2005). The psychology of the language learner. Individual differences in second language acquisition. Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum.Google Scholar
Dörnyei, Z., & Skehan, P. (2003). Individual differences in second language learning. In Doughty, C. J. & Long, M. H. (Eds.), Handbook of second language acquisition (pp. 589–630). Oxford: Blackwell.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ellis, R. (2004). Individual differences in second language learning. In Davies, A. & Elder, C. (Eds.), The handbook of applied linguistics (pp. 525–551). Oxford: Blackwell.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Eubank, L., & Gregg, K. R. (1999). Critical periods and (second) language acquisition: Divide et impera. In Birdsong, D. (Ed.), Second language acquisition and the critical period hypothesis (pp. 65–99). Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum.Google Scholar
Flege, J. E., Yeni-Komshian, G. H., & Liu, S. (1999). Age constraints on second-language acquisition. Journal of Memory and Language, 41, 78–104.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hakuta, K. (2001). A critical period for second language acquisition? In Bailey, D., Bruer, J., Symons, F., & Lichtman, J. (Eds.), Critical thinking about critical periods (pp. 193–205). Baltimore, MD: Paul H. Brookes.Google Scholar
Hakuta, K., Bialystok, E., & Wiley, E. (2003). Critical evidence: A test of the critical-period hypothesis for second-language acquisition. Psychological Science, 14, 31–38.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Harley, B., & Hart, D. (1997). Language aptitude and second language proficiency in classroom learners of different starting ages. Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 19, 379–400.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Harley, B., & Hart, D. (2002). Age, aptitude, and second language learning on a bilingual exchange. In Robinson, P. (Ed.), Individual differences and instructed language learning (pp. 301–330). Philadelphia, PA: Benjamins.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Herschensohn, J. (2007). Language development and age. New York: Cambridge University Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hulstijn, J., & Bossers, B. (1992). Individual differences in L2 proficiency as a function of L1 proficiency. European Journal of Cognitive Psychology, 4, 341–353.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Humes-Bartlo, M. (1989). Variation in children's ability to learn second languages. In Hyltenstam, K. & Obler, L. (Eds.), Bilingualism across the lifespan (pp. 41–54). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hyltenstam, K. (1992). Non-native features of near-native speakers: On the ultimate attainment of childhood L2 learners. In Harris, R. J. (Ed.), Cognitive processing in bilinguals (pp. 351–368). New York: Elsevier.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hyltenstam, K., & Abrahamsson, N. (2003). Maturational constraints in second language acquisition. In Doughty, C. J. & Long, M. H. (Eds.), Handbook of second language acquisition (pp. 539–588). Oxford: Blackwell.Google Scholar
Ioup, G. (2005). Age in second language development. In Hinkel, E. (Ed.), Handbook of research in second language teaching and learning (pp. 419–435). Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum.Google Scholar
Jia, G., & Aaronson, D. (2003). A longitudinal study of Chinese children and adolescents learning English in the United States. Applied Psycholinguistics, 24, 131–161.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Johnson, J. S. (1992). Critical period effects in second language acquisition: The effect of written versus auditory materials on the assessment of grammatical competence. Language Learning, 42, 217–248.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Johnson, J. S., & Newport, E. L. (1989). Critical period effects in second language learning: The influence of maturational state on the acquisition of English as a second language. Cognitive Psychology, 21, 60–99.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Johnson, J. S., & Newport, E. L. (1991). Critical period effects on universal properties of language: The status of subjacency in the acquisition of a second language. Cognition, 39, 215–258.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Köpke, B., & Schmid, M. S. (2004). Language attrition: The next phase. In Schmid, M. S., Köpke, B., Keijzer, M., & Weilemar, L. (Eds), First language attrition. Interdisciplinary perspectives on methodological issues (pp. 1–43). Amsterdam: Benjamins.Google Scholar
Lee, D., & Schachter, J. (1997). Sensitive period effects in binding theory. Language Acquisition, 6, 333–362.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lenneberg, E. H. (1967). Biological foundations of language. New York: Wiley.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Long, M. (2005). Problems with supposed counter-evidence to the ritical period hypothesis. IRAL, 43, 287–316.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Long, M. (2007). Problems in SLA. Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum.Google Scholar
Lyons, C. (1999). Definiteness. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
McDonald, J. L. (2000). Grammaticality judgments in a second language: Influences of age of acquisition and native language. Applied Psycholinguistics, 21, 395–423.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
McDonald, J. L. (2006). Beyond the critical period: Processing-based explanations for poor grammaticality judgment performance by late second language learners. Journal of Memory and Language, 55, 381–401.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Montrul, S. A. (2008). Incomplete acquisition in bilingualism: Re-examining the age factor. Amsterdam: Benjamins.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
National Institute for Testing and Evaluation. (2001). Inter-University Psychometric Entrance Test [in Russian]. Jerusalem: Author.Google Scholar
Pimsleur, P. (1966). Pimsleur Language Aptitude Battery (PLAB). New York: Psychological Corporation.Google Scholar
Ravid, D. (1995a). Language change in child and adult Hebrew: A psycholinguistic perspective. New York: Oxford University Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ravid, D. (1995b). Neutralization of gender distinctions in Modern Hebrew numerals. Language Variation and Change, 7, 79–100.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Schachter, J. (1996). Maturation and universal grammar. In Ritchie, W. C. & Bhatia, T. K. (Eds.), Handbook of second language acquisition (pp. 159–193). San Diego, CA: Academic Press.Google Scholar
Schmid, M. S. (2006). Second language attrition. In Brown, K. (Ed.), Encyclopedia of language and linguistics (Vol. 11, pp. 74–81). Oxford: Elsevier.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Schumann, J. H. (1995). Ad minorem theoriae gloriam. Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 17, 59–65.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Seliger, H. W. (1978). Implications of a multiple critical periods hypothesis for second language learning. In Ritchie, W. C. (Ed.), Second language acquisition research. Issues and implications (pp. 11–19). New York: Academic Press.Google Scholar
Skehan, P. (1986). The role of foreign language aptitude in a model of school learning. Language Testing, 3, 188–221.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Skehan, P. (1990). The relationship between native and foreign language learning ability: Educational and linguisitic factors. In Dechert, H. (Ed.), Current trends in European second language acquisition research (pp. 83–106). Clevedon: Multilingual Matters.Google Scholar
Sorace, A. (1993). Incomplete vs. divergent representations of unaccusativity in non-native grammars of Italian. Second Language Research, 9, 22–47.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Sparks, R., Patton, J., Ganschow, L., Humbach, N., & Javorsky, J. (2006). Native language predictors of foreign language proficiency and foreign language aptitude. Annals of Dyslexia, 56, 129–160.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Stevens, G. (2004). Using census data to test the critical-period hypothesis for second-language acquisition. Psychological Science, 15, 215–216.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Stevens, G. (2006). The age-length-onset problem in research on second language acquisition among immigrants. Language Learning, 56, 671–692.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Thompson, S. A. (1978). Modern English from a typological point of view: Some implications of the function of word order. Linguistische Berichte, 54, 19–36.Google Scholar
Wexler, P. (1976). On the non-lexical expression of determinedness (with special reference to Russian and Finnish). Studia Linguistica, 30, 34–67.CrossRefGoogle Scholar