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Anticipatory processing of cataphora is constrained by binding principles in L2 English

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  22 March 2024

Jun Lyu Open the ORCID record for Jun Lyu [Opens in a new window] ,
Zuzanna Fuchs Open the ORCID record for Zuzanna Fuchs [Opens in a new window]  and
Elsi Kaiser Open the ORCID record for Elsi Kaiser [Opens in a new window]
Jun Lyu*
Affiliation:
Peking University, Beijing, China
Zuzanna Fuchs
Affiliation:
University of Southern California, Los Angeles, United States
Elsi Kaiser
Affiliation:
University of Southern California, Los Angeles, United States
*
Corresponding author: Jun Lyu; Email: junlyu@pku.edu.cn
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Abstract

Language processing studies show that native speakers anticipate linguistic elements before their occurrence. However, it is debated to what extent second language (L2) learners do the same. To address this question, this study examines the processing of cataphora by Chinese-speaking L2 English learners. Additionally, we query whether L2 learners’ expectations of upcoming antecedents are modulated by first language (L1) influence and constrained by Principle B of the Binding Theory (Chomsky, 1981). Two self-paced reading studies show that L1 English speakers’ anticipation of upcoming referents is active and strictly constrained by Principle B. Crucially, L2 English learners also actively predict upcoming referents and are sensitive to Principle B. However, L2 processing patterns suggest that Principle B competes with semantics at later processing stages. Together with data from L1 Chinese and English control participants, these results support the view that anticipatory processing in English is not fundamentally different between monolinguals and bilinguals.

Keywords

second language processinganticipatory processingcataphoraL1 influenceBinding Theory
Type
Research Article
Information
Bilingualism: Language and Cognition , First View , pp. 1 - 14
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Copyright © The Author(s), 2024. Published by Cambridge University Press

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