One of the key questions in the study of human language acquisition is the extent to which the development of neural processing networks for different components of language are modulated by exposure to linguistic stimuli. Sign languages offer a unique perspective on this issue, because prelingually Deaf children who receive access to complex linguistic input later in life provide a window into brain maturation in the absence of language, and subsequent neuroplasticity of neurolinguistic networks during late language learning. While the duration of sensitive periods of acquisition of linguistic subsystems (sound, vocabulary, and syntactic structure) is well established on the basis of L2 acquisition in spoken language, for sign languages, the relative timelines for development of neural processing networks for linguistic sub-domains are unknown. We examined neural responses of a group of Deaf signers who received access to signed input at varying ages to three linguistic phenomena at the levels of classifier signs, syntactic structure, and information structure. The amplitude of the N400 response to the marked word order condition negatively correlated with the age of acquisition for syntax and information structure, indicating increased cognitive load in these conditions. Additionally, the combination of behavioral and neural data suggested that late learners preferentially relied on classifiers over word order for meaning extraction. This suggests that late acquisition of sign language significantly increases cognitive load during analysis of syntax and information structure, but not word-level meaning.

中文翻译：

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手语中不同语言领域的习得效应年龄不同：脑电图证据

人类语言习得研究的关键问题之一是语言不同成分的神经处理网络的发展在多大程度上受到语言刺激的影响。手语为这个问题提供了独特的视角，因为在生活后期接受复杂语言输入的语言前聋儿童提供了一个窗口，可以了解没有语言时大脑的成熟，以及后期语言学习过程中神经语言网络的神经可塑性。虽然语言子系统（声音、词汇和句法结构）习得敏感期的持续时间是在口语中的 L2 习得的基础上建立起来的，但对于手语，语言子语言的神经处理网络发展的相对时间表域是未知的。我们检查了一组聋人手语者的神经反应，他们在不同年龄接受手语输入，在分类器符号、句法结构和信息结构级别上对三种语言现象的神经反应。N400 对标记词序条件的反应幅度与语法和信息结构的习得年龄呈负相关，表明在这些条件下认知负荷增加。此外，行为数据和神经数据的结合表明，晚期学习者优先依赖分类器而不是词序来提取含义。这表明，在分析句法和信息结构时，较晚习得手语会显着增加认知负荷，但不会增加词级含义。