L2 cognitive construal and morphosyntactic acquisition of pseudo-passive constructions

Yihang Zhong

doi:10.1515/lingvan-2023-0104

Article

L2 cognitive construal and morphosyntactic acquisition of pseudo-passive constructions

Yihang Zhong

Published/Copyright: June 11, 2024

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From the journal Linguistics Vanguard Volume 10 Issue 1

Abstract

Discussion of the theoretical underpinning of pseudo-passive constructions abounds in generative linguistics and comparative typology. However, the cognitive construal of and morphosyntactic acquisition of (un)grammatical English pseudo-passive constructions by Chinese-speaking L2-English users with different proficiency levels have never been investigated. It is worth examining whether proficiency level modulates constructional acceptability and cognitive construal, which would allow us to infer L2-English users’ morphosyntactic acquisition stages of pseudo-passive constructions. To fill this research gap, the study recruited 120 L2-English speakers with different levels of proficiency and 40 native English speakers to complete a grammaticality judgment test with an acceptance judgment scale from −2 to 2 for 40 ungrammatical pseudo-passive sentences and 40 fillers. Proficiency level significantly correlates with a firmer rejection of ungrammatical pseudo-passive sentences and cognitive construal which is more target-like. Significantly asymmetrical acceptance levels between two types of target ungrammatical constructions are also revealed for low (p = 0.002) and medium proficiency (p = 0.000) groups, demonstrating the type effect on grammaticality judgment and morphosyntactic acquisition.

Keywords: pseudo-passive construction; cognitive construal; morphosyntactic acquisition; formal L2 acquisition

Corresponding author: Yihang Zhong, Department of English, 26451 The Chinese University of Hong Kong , 7/F Yasumoto International Academic Park, Hong Kong, E-mail: yihang.zhong@foxmail.com

Research funding: No funding is received for conducting this study.
Data availability statement: Data are available through https://osf.io/mxrp6/files/osfstorage.
Conflict of interest statement: No conflict of interest is reported.

Appendix: Experimental constructions

Type	NP	VP	PP
Unnecessary conversion of active voice	I	was waited for	by Mary.
	Boston	was arrived	for a meeting.
	The sea	was sunk into	by a boat.
	The committee	was sat on	for a week.
	Jamie	was passed	in the exam.
	My friends	are held	by the hall.
	A fire	was broken out	during the night.
	My feet	are fitted	by these shoes.
	The grass	is jumped over	by Jack’s brother.
	The classmates	can be helped	by our family.
	The daughter	was benefited	by his advice.
	A card	is contained	in an envelope.
	The woods	are consisted	by the gift.
	The decision	was wished	by the leader.
	The marriage	was lasted	for two years.
	The children	are loved	by their mother.
	Spain	is belonged to	by some islands.
	The price	was risen	after autumn.
	The accident	was happened	in the yard.
	The ground	is lied on	by a baby.
Patient-to-be-agent movement lacking a passive marker	Tim’s items	place	in the kitchen.
	My company	lists	in the book.
	Most foods	cooked	in the room.
	New cars	keep	in the garage.
	The test	explains	in English.
	The letters	find	in the bathroom.
	The book	lends	to other visitors.
	His disease	cured	during June.
	The pizza	delivers	in a restaurant.
	The bike	repairs	at his home.
	The message	sends out	after his consent
	The computer	fixes	in the dining hall.
	The door	closed	after our arrival.
	An article	published	after last night.
	The wall	painted	in the toilet.
	The film	released	before October.
	The event	organized	in a town.
	The hotel	reserved	at midnight.
	The website	designed	in a shop.
	The software	developed	in a building.
Fillers	The cake	was baked	by my sister.
	The movie	was directed	by Steven
	The mistake	was made	by the employee.
	The window	was broken	by the storm.
	The plan	is cancelled	by the manager.
	The agreement	was signed	by both parties.
	The lesson	was taught	by the lady.
	The medal	is awarded	by the community.
	The error	is corrected	by the editor.
	The mails	were received	by a guest.
	The trees	are planted	by a worker.
	A document	was printed	by the printer
	The packages	were thrown	by the designer.
	The problem	was solved	by an engineer.
	A speech	is given	by the leader.
	The tickets	were sold	by the seller.
	A painting	was created	by an artist.
	The report	was translated	by a translator.
	The news	is recorded	by a team.
	A concern	is raised	by a scientist.
	I	developed my idea	in this month.
	Amy	has a suggestion	in her mind.
	You	prepared the paper	before the deadline.
	All students	completed an activity	on the playground.
	Some members	visited my office	on Tuesday.
	No soldier	lost their life	in that war.
	An elephant	eats a chocolate	in the zoo.
	Some learners	shouted his name	in the gym.
	We	took our sheets	after the holiday.
	Betty	sent an email	on her birthday.
	The waiter	served drinks	to the customers.
	The driver	took a nut	on his bed.
	They	fly a plane	over the mountains.
	The cat	catches a mouse	in the garden.
	The parents	speak French	in that bathroom.
	She	picked some flowers	across the river.
	A swimmer	raised his head	on the bridge.
	The walker	took a picture	with his camera.
	A singer	sings a song	for the audience.
	The doctor	checked my teeth	on that day.

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Received: 2023-05-27

Accepted: 2023-11-29

Published Online: 2024-06-11

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Articles in the same Issue

https://doi.org/10.1515/lingvan-2023-0104

Keywords for this article

pseudo-passive construction; cognitive construal; morphosyntactic acquisition; formal L2 acquisition