Syntactic Priming Effects between Modalities: A Study of Indirect Questions/Requests among Persian English Learners

Abstract

This study examines the impact of syntactic priming on production of indirect questions/requests by Persian learners of English as a foreign language. Eighty learners participated in two experiments investigating the impact of syntactic priming on oral production and the possibility of transfer of the priming effects to a different modality. Production Experiment showed that priming resulted in increased production of the target structure by the Experimental groups as compared with production by the Control groups. Transfer Experiment showed that the rate of production of the target structure remained significantly higher for participants in the Experimental groups.