Relativization and accessibility: the formation and use of English relative clauses by Azerbaijani, German, Kurdish Sorani, and Persian learners of English

This dissertation investigates the potential effects of several factors that are assumed to codetermine the differences in the ease of acquisition of different types of relative clauses (RCs) in second language (L2) contexts. It mainly focuses on the roles of (i) the general learnability of RCs, (ii) prior linguistic knowledge, (iii) input frequency provided by textbooks, and (iv) focus-on-formS instruction in the acquisition of RCs in L2. The investigation commences by comparing and contrasting the relativization systems of five typologically diverse languages: Azerbaijani, German, Kurdish Sorani, Persian, and English. Subsequently, two precisely conducted studies unfold. The first study explores the usage patterns of different types of English RCs in 240 argumentative essays written by Azerbaijani-, German-, Kurdish Sorani-, and Persian-speaking learners of English, and native English speakers. The analysis of 588 RCs extracted from the data indicates that the syntactic functions of the relativized noun phrases, the location of the RCs in the matrix clauses, and the properties of RCs in the respective first languages impact the formation and usage patterns of RCs in L2 contexts. The second study inspects correctly formed, erroneously formed, and avoided types of English RCs formed by Persian-speaking learners before and after receiving focus-on-formS instruction. This study explores the potential effects of focus-on-formS instruction on the acquisition of RCs and the accessibility hierarchy of RCs. It consists of two stages: a pre-test and a post-test. The study employs two sentence-translation tests comprised of six types of RCs modeled on the RC types in the Noun Phrase Accessibility Hierarchy (NPAH). The analysis of 3840 RCs formed by 128 Persian-speaking learners of English in the pre-test is compared to that of 1560 RCs formed by 52 participants in the treatment group in the post-test. The results reveal that focus-on-formS instruction enhances the participants’ performance in the formation of the correct RC types, particularly the RC types lower in the accessibility hierarchy of RCs, while concurrently diminishing errors and avoidance of such types. The intriguing findings also indicate an unconventional impact on the accessibility hierarchy of RCs, notably in the increased usage of genitive relatives within the treatment group, deviating from the proposed hierarchy by the NPAH.