Frequency effects in acquisition and processing of complex verbal constructions in Romance: Experimental and corpus perspectives on Spanish as well as potential implications for foreign language acquisition

Abstract

This article investigates the effects frequency of usage may have on the acquisition and processing of complex verbal constructions in Romance. Based on a constructivist view of language and language learning, the study combines data from a reading experiment (with acceptability judgements) and corpus analyses (on general usage frequencies, combinatorial preferences as well as regional and thematic distribution patterns) by means of periphrastic verbal constructions in Spanish. Results show that frequency effects are reflected both in L1 and (highly proficient) L2 speakers. The findings, however, also suggest the necessity to ‘fine-tune’ the input learners receive in order to enhance their sensitivity and understanding for the specific ‘patterning behaviour’ of the target language. The article thus concludes with some potential implications for instructed foreign language acquisition based on frequency-related data such as skewed input, structured input floods or data-driven learning.