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Article published In: Revista Española de Lingüística Aplicada/Spanish Journal of Applied Linguistics
Vol. 33:2 (2020) ► pp.588–617

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A story-writing based study on the acquisition of aspect in Spanish by Mandarin Chinese learners

 | Nanjing Normal University
 | Universitat Pompeu Fabra
 | University of Barcelona
Published online: 10 February 2021
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https://doi.org/10.1075/resla.18031.sun
Abstract
In this paper, we analyze the acquisition of Spanish past tense aspect by Mandarin Chinese learners of Spanish by means of three semi-guided writing tests. Specifically, we analyze the choice of pretérito indefinido and pretérito imperfecto, taking into account lexical aspect, grounding information, and the combination of both as variables. Moreover, we analyze whether transfer from Mandarin Chinese, the students’ first language (L1), occurs in the acquisition process. Our results partly support the Lexical Aspect Hypothesis (Andersen, R. W. (1991). Developmental sequences: The emergence of aspect marking in second language acquisition. In T. Huebner & C. Ferguson (Eds.), Cross currents in second language acquisition and linguistic theories (pp. 305–324). Amsterdam: John Benjamins. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar; Andersen, R. W., & Shirai, Y. (1996). The primacy of aspect in first and second language acquisition: The pidgin-creole connection. In W. Ritchie & T. Bhatia (Eds.) Handbook of second language acquisition (Vol. 21, pp. 527–570). Bingley: Emerald.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar) and the Discourse Hypothesis (Bardovi-Harlig, K. (1994). Anecdote or evidence? Evaluating support for hypotheses concerning the development of tense and aspect. In E. Tarone, S. Gass & A. Cohen (Eds.), Research methodology in second-language acquisition (pp. 41–60). Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar). According to these hypotheses, verbal properties and grounding information play a role in the selection of pretérito indefinido or pretérito imperfecto. Finally, our data support the existence of L1 transfer at the semantic level only.
Resumen
Estudio de la adquisición del aspecto en español a partir de redacciones de historias por aprendices sinohablantes
En este trabajo, analizamos la adquisición del aspecto de los tiempos de pasado simples en español por hablantes de chino mandarín mediante tres pruebas escritas semiguiadas. Concretamente, analizamos la selección entre pretérito indefinido y pretérito imperfecto teniendo en cuenta el aspecto léxico, la información de fondo y foco en el discurso, así como la combinación de estas dos variables. Además, analizamos si la transferencia de la primera lengua (L1), chino mandarín, ocurre en el proceso de adquisición. Nuestros resultados apoyan parcialmente la Hipótesis del Aspecto Léxico (Andersen, R. W. (1991). Developmental sequences: The emergence of aspect marking in second language acquisition. In T. Huebner & C. Ferguson (Eds.), Cross currents in second language acquisition and linguistic theories (pp. 305–324). Amsterdam: John Benjamins. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar; Andersen, R. W., & Shirai, Y. (1996). The primacy of aspect in first and second language acquisition: The pidgin-creole connection. In W. Ritchie & T. Bhatia (Eds.) Handbook of second language acquisition (Vol. 21, pp. 527–570). Bingley: Emerald.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar) y la Hipótesis de Discurso (Bardovi-Harlig, K. (1994). Anecdote or evidence? Evaluating support for hypotheses concerning the development of tense and aspect. In E. Tarone, S. Gass & A. Cohen (Eds.), Research methodology in second-language acquisition (pp. 41–60). Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar), según las cuales, las propiedades verbales y la información de fondo y foco desempeñan un papel relevante en la selección de los tiempos de pasado pretérito indefinido y pretérito imperfecto. Finalmente, nuestros datos apoyan la existencia de la transferencia de la L1 sólo en el nivel semántico.
Article outline
  • 1.Introduction
  • 2.Grounding information and the aspectual system in Spanish and Mandarin Chinese
    • 2.1Lexical aspect
    • 2.2Grammatical aspect
  • 3.Related work on the acquisition of L2 aspect
  • 4.Research questions and hypotheses
  • 5.Methodology
    • 5.1Participants
    • 5.2Instruments
    • 5.3Data analysis
  • 6.Results
    • 6.1Grounding information contrast
    • 6.2Contrast between aspectual classes
    • 6.3Grounding information and aspectual class parameters combined
    • 6.4L1 transfer
  • 7.Discussion and conclusions
  • Notes
  • References
References (37)
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Cited by one other publication

Sun, Yuliang & Lourdes Díaz Rodríguez
2023. A study of the distribution of classes of lexical aspect in Spanish by Chinese learners of Spanish in oral narration. Poznan Studies in Contemporary Linguistics 59:2 ► pp. 455 ff. DOI logo

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