Communication Dans Un Congrès Année : 2024

The impact of tool-use training on syntactic learning in a new language

Résumé

Tool use and syntactic skills engage the same resources in the basal ganglia, allowing for mutual transfer of learning between these functions (Thibault et al., 2021). Tool-use training has been shown to improve syntactic comprehension in the first language (L1). The neurocognitive characteristics of syntactic processing in a second language (L2) (Friederici, 2011), particularly the involvement of the basal ganglia in the procedural circuit (Ullman, 2020), suggest that similar transfer might occur in L2. This could be advantageous for novice L2 learners who, unlike expert L2 speakers, struggle to mobilize the procedural system for syntactic processing in L2 (Ullman & Lovelett, 2018). This study aimed to evaluate whether tool-use training can impact learning a new language syntax. Neurotypical French native adults were instructed to learn an artificial language via a computer-based linguistic training application, using an implicit learning protocol over two weeks, with daily syntactic assessments. Before each learning session, one group (n=22) engaged in a motor training with a tool, while a control group (n=22) watched videos. The tool group was less accurate compared to the control group in detecting syntactic violations in the new language, suggesting an interference effect of the motor training. The control group displayed longer reaction times when evaluating correct sentences than incorrect ones, suggesting a greater reliance on the declarative system (explicit rule processing). These results might indicate that tool use stimulated procedural processing during the learning of the new language, but the temporal coupling between the tasks may have been detrimental due to insufficient language exposure. This study corroborates the functional link between tool use and syntax learning and encourages further research to optimize the integration of these methods for enhancing L2 syntactic acquisition.

Domaines

Fichier non déposé

Dates et versions

hal-04913496 , version 1 (27-01-2025)

Identifiants

  • HAL Id : hal-04913496 , version 1

Citer

Audrey Adida, Véronique Boulenger, Alice Catherine Roy, Claudio Brozzoli. The impact of tool-use training on syntactic learning in a new language. Embodied and Situated Language Processing (ESLP), Oct 2024, Berlin, Germany. ⟨hal-04913496⟩
108 Consultations
0 Téléchargements

Partager

  • More