Max Wolpert (Zhejiang University): ‘Word order as an unreliable cue–Argument structure and adjective placement in Mandarin native and L2 processing’

Seminari del CLT

Divendres, 2 d’octubre de 2026
Hora 15:30
Aula 203, Facultat de Filosofia i Lletres

Abstract:
Mandarin Chinese has been described as a “typologically hybrid” language—despite having minimal inflection, it permits quite flexible word order. This talk presents ERP and behavioral evidence from studies of agent assignment in verb-final sentences and adjective–noun order, comparing native speakers and second-language learners of Mandarin. The first study examines how competing cues guide agent assignment before the verb, and how their interaction may contribute to crosslinguistic differences in the processing of semantic role reversals. The second asks why apparently similar adjective–noun ordering in English and Mandarin does not necessarily lead to native-like L2 processing, while also highlighting Mandarin-specific questions concerning lexicalization and wordhood. Together, these studies demonstrate how apparently simple binary outcomes, such as adjective–noun order and agent–patient assignment, are shaped by multiple, sometimes competing cues.