Syntactic movement and access to Universal Grammar: Evidence from Chinese second language learners

The issue of access to Universal Grammar (UG) in adults has been an enduring one in the field of second language acquisition. In fact, there is considerable variation as to positions of UG access among those who seek to characterize its existence in adult second language learners. In order to disentangle competing claims concerning adult acquisition of second language grammars, this study illustrates that, contrary to previous research, a group of highly proficient English learners of Chinese have acquired characteristics of movement. Although many studies point to a deficient English-like movement system in advanced Chinese learners of English, it is suggested that the lack of movement may be due to the way it is investigated in second language contexts. It is established that although the principle of subjacency may not be a relevant indicator of UG access, there are still reliable ways of testing for the availability of movement. The results of two separate tests of movement indicate that: (1) Adult second language learners are sensitive to the structural difference between wh-relative pronouns and that/ø relatives in English restrictive relative clauses with respect to preposition stranding and that this should be taken as evidence of syntactic movement. (2) A test of strong crossover knowledge establishes further evidence of movement, which suggests that the learners have demonstrated sensitivity to the structural differences between extraction from matrix positions and embedded extraction in embedded positions. A precise characterization of the status of movement in both the native language (Chinese) as well as the target language (English) reveals that the source of this knowledge is not entirely consistent with the properties of the native language, yet it is also not entirely consistent with the target language. This novel grammatical system is a strong indicator of continued UG access throughout the acquisition process. The main finding of this study is that second language learners abide by a system of grammatical principles that should be described in its own right as the grammatical system adult learners employ is constrained by the principles of universal grammar related to syntactic movement.