Dr Giulia Bovolenta: "Recall, generalisation and declarative memory in L2 morphology learning"

Learning a language is a complex task, whether we are learning our native language (L1) or a foreign language (L2). Two memory systems have been singled out as potentially playing a role in language learning: procedural memory (which supports skill learning, e.g., learning how to ride a bike) and declarative memory (which underpins our memory for events and knowledge of facts).

Evidence suggests declarative memory plays a greater role in L2 learning compared to L1 learning, especially at the initial stages. However, the nature of its contribution not clear: it may reflect either chunk learning (i.e., memory for studied forms), analogical processing (transfer from known to new similar forms) or the use of explicit grammatical rule knowledge.

In my current project, I am using artificial grammar learning experiments to tease apart the relative contribution of different learning mechanisms to L2 grammar learning, and investigate how they relate to declarative and procedural memory systems. In this talk, I will present data from a pilot study on declarative memory in the acquisition of plural forms, showing how it can support different learning mechanisms; I will then discuss future developments of the project.