Processamento e aprendizagem de dependências não adjacentes por adultos falantes do português brasileiro

Abstract

This thesis aims to investigate the learning and processing of non-adjacent dependencies (hereinafter, NADs) by adults from a psycholinguistic perspective. In this regard, we seek to assess the extent to which adults are able to learn NADs in a new language and for how long this learning is maintained, in addition to exploring the different configurations of NADs in a natural language, as well as the existence of multiple NADs that would influence the processing of these structures. With regard to processing, research using artificial languages points to ordering restrictions in NAD processing by adults (DE VRIES et al., 2012). So, our study explores the difference in the processing of multiple non-adjacent dependencies as a function of the configuration in which the dependencies are organized in a L1. We adopted the hypothesis that the existence of multiple DNAs, common in natural languages, and the configuration in which they are organized are factors that generate memory overload, being relevant for language processing. To investigate the question experimentally, two online tests were performed using the maze task with adult BP speakers. The results suggest that, although NADs in a nested configuration are possible constructions in BP, their processing is comparatively more demanding. With regard to learning, previous research suggests that NAD learning occurs early in language development (SANTELMANN & JUSCZYK, 1998; VAN HEUGTEN & SHI, 2010, among others). However, the ability of adults to learn NADs unconsciously and after a short training phase and the permanence of this learning remains uncertain. Thus, our objective was to analyze to what extent learning mechanisms that allow identification, abstraction and generalization of NADs remain in adults after consolidated the acquisition of a natural language and what would be the effects of time in maintaining this longterm learning. To investigate the question experimentally, three experimental activities using artificial language were conducted. In the first activity, participants in the experimental group listened to invented determiners and words that combined in a D+N structure for 3 minutes (step 1) and then had to choose which invented word best matched the determinant that appeared on the screen (step 2). Control group participants only performed the choice task. Participants in the experimental group had more correct and faster responses compared to the control group. In the second activity, participants were exposed to both stages for 7 consecutive days. The results showed learning of NAD patterns after the third day. The third experimental activity was performed 40 days after the second experiment, with the same participants, who were asked to repeat an experimental session. The results suggest that after 40 days, the participants still had some knowledge about NAD combinations. Taken together, our results suggest that NAD processing is essential for human cognition and that factors such as the configuration in which these dependencies are organized in a natural language can influence their processing. Furthermore, the results suggest that adult speakers with their L1 already consolidated are able to abstract new NAD patterns in an unknown language and apply them to new stimuli as efficiently as babies do, suggesting the existence of an important mechanism for the identification of morphophonological relationships of agreement, essential for human processing and cognition. In this way, the research carried out within the scope of this thesis intends to contribute to the discussion of important aspects involved in adult NAD learning and processing, both in a L1 and in a L2, focusing on the learning of non-adjacent dependencies and the processing of multiple NADs.