On the Complexity of Transfer in Multilingualism

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On the Complexity of Transferin Multilingualism
Patricia Bayona PhD Candidate The University of
Western Ontario
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• Transfer phenomena has mainly been approached
  from the generative and psycholinguistic
  perspectives.
• Theoretical proposals on transfer imply specific
  assumptions regarding the nature of languages
  -and interlanguages- mental representation, as
  well as regarding the nature of the acquisition
  process.

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• .

Role of previously acquired languages
Motivation for transfer
On transfer
Directionality of transfer
Nature of interlanguage
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• It will be discussed

Transfer viewed from
Pavlenko Jarvis (2002)
Müller (1998)
Füller (1999)
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Generative perspective

• Both UG and L1 grammar are determining influences
  on the form and functioning of the interlanguage
  grammar.

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Generative

• Full Transfer-Full Access (SchwartzSprouse
  1986) L1 representation is fully implicated in
  the interlanguage lexicon lexical entries can be
  restructured on the basis of L2 input.
• Minimal Trees Hypothesis (Vainikka and
  Young-Scholten 1994) Initial grammars contain
  lexical categories, but lack of functional
  categories. They would subsequently emerge.
• Valueless Features Hypothesis (Eubank 1996)
• L1s features strength do not transfer. They are
  inert.

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Müller (1998)

• Reviews longitudinal studies on the acquisition
  of word order in German subordinate clauses.
• Children encounter great amount of variability in
  adult German word order in subordinate clauses
  that accept verb-final and non-verb-final order
  as well.

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Müller (1998)

• The children who produce word order errors have
  two separate grammatical systems.
• Errors made in bilingual language development are
  due to transfer of features from the other
  language

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Müller (1998)

• Transfer emerges as a relief strategy in
  bilinguals who face ambiguous input
• The learner, due to economy principles, develops
  a new generalization which outranks the old
  generalization -the parameter.
• This new subrutine occurs based on positive
  evidence the child may have of grammatical
  analysis in the recipient language (not blind
  transfer).

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Müller (1998)

• Hulk (1998).
• This relief strategy not only takes the form of
  transfer, or involves subparameters.
• Term crosslinguistic influence instead of
  transfer.
• Schlyter (1998)
• Possibility of bidirectional transfer.

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Psycholinguistic perspectives

• Social-psychological factors influence the
  production of languages

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Füller (1999)

• MLF model on L2 acquisition.
• Bilingual interlanguage is comparable to
  codeswitching, where lexical structure may be
  split and recombined to construct interlanguage.

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Füller (1999)

• Case study based on telephonic conversations
  between a young female L1 English, and L2s
  Spanish and German, and her grandmother L1s
  Spanish and German, and L2 English.
• German-English-Spanish codeswitching

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Füller (1999)

• The speaker creates a composite ML with bilingual
  interlanguage.
• Transferred knowledge from previously learned
  languages will provide the speaker with the
  lexical complexity required in communication.
• Language structures are not assumed to be
  hierarchical, but evenly linked according to
  structural convergence.

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Pavlenko Jarvis (2002)

• Study framed within multicompetence framework
• Individuals who know more than one language
  have a distinct compound state of mind that is
  not equivalent to two monolingual states (Cook
  1991)

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Pavlenko Jarvis (2002)

• Narratives collected in Russian and English, by
  Russian individuals who had lived in English
  speaking environments between 3 and 8 years.
• Transfer can be bidirectional, with influence in
  both L1 and L2.
• Transfer can be simultaneous or synchronic

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Pavlenko Jarvis (2002)

• Syntagmatic and paradigmatic transfer extends
  beyond semantic representations to areas of
  formal linguistic competence that were thought to
  be part of an adult speakers steady state.
• These findings open the possibility of
  exploration on bidirectional transfer, transfer
  between more than two languages, and attrition of
  one or more of the languages involved under the
  influence of another language.

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• It will be discussed

Transfer viewed from
Pavlenko Jarvis (2002)
Müller (1998)
Füller (1999)
Bilingual interlanguage Comparable to
codeswitching
Relief strategy for ambiguous input
Bidirectional transfer
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References

• Eubank, Lynn. "Negation in Early German-English
  Interlanguage More Valueless Features in the L2
  Initial State."Second Language Research 12.1
  (1996) 73-106.
• Fuller, Janet M. "Between Three Languages
  Composite Structure in Interlanguage."Applied
  Linguistics 20.4 (1999) 534-61.
• Hulk, Aafke and Elizabeth Ven Der Linden.
  "Evidence for Transferin Bilingual Children?"
  Bilingualism Language and Cognition 1.3 (1998)
  177-80.
• Muller, Natasha. "Transfer in Bilingual First
  Language Acquisition." Bilingualism Language and
  Cognition 1.3 (1998) 151-71.
• Muller, Natasha. "Really Transfer?"
  Bilingualism Language and Cognition 1.3 (1998)
  189-92.
• Pavlenko, Aneta and Scott Jarvis. "Bidirectional
  Transfer." Applied Linguistics 23.2 (2002)
  190-214.
• Schlyter, Suzanne. "Directionality in Transfer?"
  Bilingualism Language and Cognition 1.3 (1998)
  183-84.
• Schwartz, Bonnie and Rex Sprouse. "L2 Cognitive
  States and the Full Transfer/Full Access Model."
  Second Language Research 12.1 (1996) 40-72.
• Vainikka, Anne and Martha Young-Scholten.
  "Gradual Development of L2 Phrase Structure."
  Second Language Research 12.1 (1996) 7-39.
• White, Lydia. Second Language Acquisition and
  Universal Grammar. Cambridge Textbooks in
  Linguisitics. Cambridge Cambridge University
  Press, 2003.