The goal of this study was to determine (a) the similarities and dissimilarities between child L2 and L1 acquisition of complex sentences and (b) the individual difference factors predicting L2 children's acquisition of complex sentences. We analyzed language samples from 187 English L2 children with diverse L1s (Agemean = 5;10 [years;months]; English exposuremean = 17 months). Children used various types of complex sentences at all levels of L2 exposure, including sentences with relative clauses, which are late-acquired by L1 learners. Mixed logistic regression modeling revealed that longer exposure to English in school, richer English environments outside school, larger L2 vocabulary, superior verbal memory and visual analytic reasoning contributed to greater use of complex sentences. L1 typology did not impact complex sentence use in the L2. Overall, L2 children used more complex sentences within a few months of English L2 exposure than what is reported for L1 children aged 2;0–4;0, revealing an advantage for an older age of acquisition. The predictive role of input and cognitive factors, as well as vocabulary, in children's use of complex sentences is more consistent with constructivist than generativist accounts of L2 syntactic acquisition.

中文翻译：

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儿童英语复杂句法的第二语言习得：年龄、输入和认知因素的作用

本研究的目的是确定 (a) 儿童 L2 和 L1 复杂句子习得之间的异同，以及 (b) 预测 L2 儿童习得复杂句子的个体差异因素。我们分析了来自 187 名具有不同 L1 的英语 L2 儿童的语言样本（年龄意思是= 5;10 [年;月]; 英文曝光意思是= 17 个月）。孩子们在 L2 接触的各个阶段都使用了各种类型的复杂句子，包括 L1 学习者后期习得的带有关系从句的句子。混合逻辑回归模型显示，在学校接触英语的时间更长、校外更丰富的英语环境、更大的二语词汇量、出色的口头记忆和视觉分析推理有助于更多地使用复杂的句子。L1 类型学不会影响 L2 中复杂句子的使用。总体而言，与 2;0-4;0 岁的 L1 儿童相比，L2 儿童在接触英语 L2 的几个月内使用了更复杂的句子，这揭示了年龄较大的习得者的优势。输入和认知因素以及词汇对儿童的预测作用