The role of L1 and L2 frequency in cross-linguistic structural priming: An artificial language learning study

Abstract We investigated L1 and L2 frequency effects in the sharing of syntax across languages (reflected cross-linguistic structural priming) using an artificial language (AL) paradigm. Ninety-six Dutch speakers learned AL with either a prepositional-object (PO) dative bias (PO datives appeared three times as often double-object [DO] datives) or DO (DOs POs). Priming was assessed from to (a strongly PO-biased language). There weak immediate priming for DOs, but not POs both conditions. This suggests that L1, AL, influenced priming. Furthermore, group produced 10% more DOs than PO group, showing cumulative by frequency. discuss different on terms lexicalist implicit learning accounts.