Doctoral Dissertation Research Improvement Grant: Morphosyntactic Development in a Second Language: An eye tracking study of the role of attention

了解影响语言习得的因素--不仅在学习者的第一(或母语)语言的情况下，而且在第二语言习得的情况下--是人类语言和交际研究的一个重要目标。学习第二语言可以说是成年人大脑中最复杂的学习任务之一，这会导致第二语言的获得存在很大的差异，特别是在语法方面。造成这种差异的一个认知因素可能是注意力。在第二语言学习的理论和应用视角下，人们普遍认为，对语法形式的关注会导致这些形式的习得。然而，在这一领域，几乎没有直接的经验证据来支持这一说法。相比之下，认知科学领域的研究提供了大量证据，表明注意力对包括学习在内的各种类型的认知操作至关重要。因此，我们对第二语言学习中的注意的理解可以通过采用理论观点来进一步阐明，例如外部注意(由对象本身的属性提示)和内部注意(由与对象相关的任务操作提示)之间的区别，以及使用认知科学的实验方法，如眼球跟踪，来检验这一区别。在Kara Short博士的指导下，Bernard Issa的论文项目采用了这样一种创新的方法来解决以下问题：(I)对特定的第二语言语法形式的关注是否会导致对这些形式的学习增加？(2)外部注意和内部注意对第二语言学习是否有不同的影响？为了回答这些问题，西班牙语初学者的眼动将被记录下来，作为在外部或内部注意力操纵下学习新语法形式时的注意力指数。这一跨学科项目的结果有望为注意力在第二语言学习中的作用提供新的、直接的证据，使人们更广泛地理解注意力在学习中的作用，并对教育学产生直接的影响。最后，这个项目将为研究生和本科生的研究助理提供更多的参与、培训和跨学科合作的机会，他们可能来自认知科学中代表性不足的群体。

Understanding the factors that influence language acquisition--not only in the case of a learner's first (or native) language, but also in the case of second language acquisition--is an important goal of research on human language and communication. Learning a second language is arguably one of the most complex learning tasks for the adult mind and results in great variability in attainment of the second language, particularly for grammar. One cognitive factor that may account for this variability is attention. It has been widely assumed, under both theoretical and applied perspectives on second language learning, that attention to grammatical forms leads to acquisition of those forms. However, there is scant direct empirical evidence to support this claim in the field. In contrast, research in the field of cognitive science has produced ample evidence that suggests that attention is crucial for various types of cognitive operations, including learning. Thus, our understanding of attention in second language learning may be further elucidated by adopting theoretical perspectives, such as the distinction between external attention (cued by properties of the object itself) and internal attention (cued by task manipulations related to the object), and by the use of experimental methods from cognitive science, such as eye tracking, to examine this distinction. Under the direction of Dr. Kara Short, Bernard Issa's dissertation project implements such an innovative approach to address the following questions: (i) Does increased attention to particular second language grammatical forms lead to increased learning of those forms? (ii) Are there differential effects of external and internal attention on second language learning? To answer these questions, the eye-movements of novice learners of Spanish will be recorded as an index of attention while learning a new grammatical form under either external or internal manipulations of attention. The results from this interdisciplinary project are expected to provide novel, direct evidence for the role of attention in second language learning, lead to a greater understanding of attention in learning more generally, and have direct implications for pedagogy. Finally, this project will further opportunities for involvement, training, and interdisciplinary collaborations in research for a graduate student and for undergraduate researcher assistants, who are likely to come from underrepresented groups in cognitive science.