Lexical Processing in Sentence Context

This current study investigated bilingual and second language (L2) lexical processing in sentence context. There is overwhelming evidence from bilingual word recognition studies to support the notion that both languages are active during lexical processing (e.g., Van Heuven, Dijkstra, & Grainger, 1998; Dijkstra, Timmermans, & Schriefers, 2000, etc.). While the 'default' setting for lexical access may be non-selective in nature, there are instances in which lexical access is more selective. Past research found that bilinguals process more selectively when sentences are constrained for semantics. Other studies found that individuals use grammatical class information (i.e., noun or verb status) to guide lexical access. While it appears the semantic context of a sentence or word class effects may constrain selectivity, an often-overlooked dimension that could potentially affect selectivity is syntax. The current study examined how the cues of semantics and syntax interact and jointly affect lexical processing. In the first experiment, I investigated whether bilinguals and L2 learners processed words selectively or non-selectively in sentences constrained for semantics and syntax. The results showed cross-linguistic effects for intermediate L2 learners only. In the second experiment, I examined whether bilinguals and L2 learners showed sensitivity to grammatical class in sentences constrained for semantics. The findings showed that verbs were processed differently than nouns regardless of sentence context. The results from these experiments give implications for models of bilingual word processing, such as the Bilingual Interactive Activation+ (BIA+) model (Dijkstra & Van Heuven, 2002).