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Second language (L2) learners often have difficulties acquiring grammatical features which do not exist in their first language (e.g. inflectional morphology, number agreement etc.), and exhibit real-time production and comprehension errors when these features are involved. What are the causes behind such errors? Moreover, what do they tell us about second language processing in general? The primary aim of this thesis was to examine the nature of second language production errors and to scrutinise them with reference to each stage of accepted models of language production, specifically, whether there are consistent error patterns which reveal the source(s) of erroneous production in L2 learners. The second aim of this thesis was to examine the comprehension of novel grammatical features in the second language, more specifically, whether L2 learners could acquire the ability to consistently apply L2 grammatical knowledge relating to newly acquired grammatical features in real-time. The third aim of this thesis was to examine whether L2 learners have fundamental perceptual deficiencies or biases concerning selective L2 phonological features as a result of first language experience, and whether this would affect the perception of specific grammatical features in the L2. This thesis addressed these questions in seven experiments by examining the acquisition of inflectional morphology among L1 Mandarin speakers of L2 English. Experiments 1, 2 and 3 investigated spoken and written production of inflectional morphology via an elicited production paradigm. The results argued against representational accounts and supported activation processing accounts of erroneous second language production. Information complexity and production modality were also found to contribute to low production accuracy. Experiments 4 and 5 investigated L2 learners’ auditory and visual sensitivity to inflectional omissions using self-paced listening and self-paced reading paradigms, where auditory cues were found to facilitate the detection of inflectional omissions. Experiments 6 and 7 investigated perceptual sensitivity to phonologically variable inflectional morphemes in an auditory discrimination paradigm. Second language learners exhibited no perceptual deficiency to novel phonological features, and no consistent perceptual biases favouring L1 phonological features relative to native speakers. Taking these findings as whole, the results favoured a processing account of errors in language production and comprehension, whilst recognising the role of phonological constraints in both processes. Importantly, these conclusions are drawn from a broad analysis of multiple aspects of language processing, recognising the role of conceptual distinctions, grammatical representations, lexical forms, and phonological factors in second language production and comprehension. Additionally, this thesis recognises the value of both psycholinguistic models of language processing and linguistic theories of second language processing.

This study of the motivation to learn English as L2 (as a second/foreign language) provides a local model of L2 motivation which employs a new contextualised perspective. It is based on the socio-cultural backgrounds of the learners and their social relations. This model not only incorporates insights from major debates in the field, but it is also in harmony with recent trends of L2 motivation research. The study had three major objectives. First, it sought to identify the factors that represent Omani students’ motivation to learn English in Oman. Second, it attempted to verify the effects of social relations on motivation. Third, it examined the mechanisms employed by the learners which influence their motivation through personal relations. Since this study views motivation as a complex bundle of constructs, it was more feasible to adopt its most significant factors as determined by the immediate socio-cultural context. Interest and Self-efficacy (SE) were established as the two main constructs representing Omani students’ motivation to learn English as L2. The ‘L2 Motivation Osmosis Model’ was suggested to offer an explanation of the workings of influence on students’ L2 motivation in Oman. This study employed a mixed methodology. A quantitative method was used to confirm the importance of Interest and SE for Omani students. A qualitative study was then designed to further verify this and ascertain the devices employed to influence learners’ motivation. The first question was answered using quantitative and qualitative data. Correlation and Linear Regression statistics were used to verify the importance of Interest and SE. This question was also examined through the students’ depictions of motivated English as L2 learners and the reasons they provided for liking English and why people in Oman learn it. The second question inspected the role of social relations in influencing students’ motivation. The third question studied the devices used by people which influence students’ motivation. The analysis also revealed the importance of the affective dimension expressed through the concept of ‘closeness’, which explains the type and strength of the influence initiated through social relations. This study emphasised the need to consider the socio-cultural context of learners in designing programs and recruiting teachers and the necessity of providing help, encouragement and emotional support. Instead of simply giving recommendations of good practice, the findings of this study provide practitioners with guidelines on how to devise their own plans and guiding principles.

This study examines the usage of English swearwords by L1 German speakers and poses the following three questions: (1) Which English swearwords do native-speakers of German use? (2) In which situations do German speakers use English swearwords? Why do they use English swearwords instead of their German counterparts? (3) What emotional weight do they apply to swearwords in English (i.e. How taboo are they)? In an effort to understand Germans’ use of swearwords today, potential attributing factors were assessed and evaluated in a 15-question survey comprised of both qualitative and quantitative components that was taken by 403 participants from Germany and Austria. The potential contributing factors to English swearword usage that were assessed were: proficiency level, number of years spent studying English, instructional setting type, English instructor’s origin and native-language, frequency of swearing in German, and media interaction. These variables were applied to other questions that sought information about (1) the German swearwords Germans use most frequently and their personal perception about swearing in English; (2) qualitative and quantitative information regarding the social settings in which English swearwords are encountered; and (3) emotional-force responses by Germans to nine English swearwords. The findings of this study show that the more media German speakers interacts with, the more likely they are to use English swearwords. The study also shows that German speakers interact with a multitude of English-language media that go beyond mainstream social media platforms like Facebook and Instagram. The majority of respondents indicated that film and music were the most influential English-language media sources. Furthermore, the study found that German speakers are more likely to use English swearwords in spoken language than in written language, use English swearwords more often with other German speakers than with English speakers, and find English swearwords useful when referencing pop-culture. The study then hypothesizes why German speakers perceived English swearwords differently than U.S.-American speakers. In sum, implications for the ESL classroom are discussed, urging instructors to reevaluate the way in which taboo language is handled in the ESL classroom in the globalizing world.

This multiple case study examined the experiences of elementary L2 learners who received instruction in either reciprocal teaching or the think aloud strategy (TAS), and identified patterns of use that emerged from participants' employment of the strategies. The three L2 participants took a pre- test and a posttest, were recorded using the strategies, and responded to interview questions about the strategies. Using qualitative data analysis techniques, four themes emerged from analysis of the data, including; talking like a teacher, I know what I know, established strategies, and declines to use the steps in the strategy. Implications from these findings suggest that the discussion facilitated by reciprocal teaching assists elementary L2 participants in better understanding the text and also supports their language acquisition, whereas TAS does not facilitate discussion. Further, even though reciprocal teaching promotes discussion, teacher assistance during discussion is necessary. Finally, it is essential that teachers are mindful of students' understandings of topics and the difficulty of texts used when students are learning the strategies.

This dissertation research investigates real-time second language (L2) sentence processing, with a focus on L2 Mandarin Chinese. It seeks to reveal how adult L2 learners (“L2ers”) exploit different sources of information (morphosyntactic, lexical-semantic, and discourse-context) and hence illuminates the issue of whether L2ers are capable of fully specified processing. The research employs two different processing tasks: comprehension-focused self-paced reading (CFSPR) and acceptability-judgment self-paced reading (AJSPR); there are four main studies: one in English comparing native English speakers with L1-Chinese L2ers of English, and three in Chinese comparing native Chinese speakers with learners of Chinese whose native language (L1) is English (or Japanese). The first study assesses whether AJSPR is more sensitive than CFSPR in detecting deep-level processing by examining L1 and L2 processing of English subject-verb number agreement in an AJSPR task in comparison to Wen’s (2007) study employing a CFSPR task. The second study compares L1 and L2 processing of (grammatical vs. ungrammatical) negation–aspect interactions in Chinese to test whether L2ers whose L1 lacks such morphosyntax can ultimately acquire it and use it in online sentence processing. The third study investigates use of lexical-semantic information in Chinese to test whether L2ers, in comparison to Chinese natives, over-depend on lexical-semantic information in sentence processing; this is achieved by comparing L1 and L2 participants’ sensitivity to temporary violations of the selectional restrictions of Chinese transitive verbs. The fourth study examines whether L2ers rely more on discourse-context information in processing Chinese sentences that contain null objects than Chinese natives do. The results of these studies reveal that (a) L2ers are able to access and use the different sources of information (morphosyntactic, lexical-semantic, discourse-context) in online sentence processing as L2 proficiency rises; (b) they do not always over-rely on lexical-semantic or contextual information in L2 sentence processing; (c) they are capable of fully specified processing. The research suggests that L2 processing difficulties are not necessarily indicative of deficient grammatical representations; rather, L2 sentence processing is subject to the influences of task demands, L2 proficiency, and L1 transfer. In addition, the research establishes AJSPR as an appropriate tool for gauging deep-level L2 processing.