Neural Dissociation within Language: Lexical Memory is Part of Declarative Memory Grammatical Rules are Processed by Procedural System

Frequency Effects

Higher L2 experience (Birdsong and Flege, 2001)

• Subjects: L2 Learners of English (10 to 16 years of exposure)

• Results: Frequency effects for irregulars but not regulars (L1-like)

• Suggests: Irregulars stored, not regulars (i.e., like in L1)

Lower L2 experience (Brovetto and Ullman, 2001)

• Subjects: L2 Learners of English (mean of 6 years exposure)

• Results: Frequency effects for irregulars and regulars

• Suggests: Irregulars and regulars both stored

Second Language