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The use of prior linguistic knowledge in the early stages of L3 acquisition

Abstract This paper examines cross-linguistic influence in third language acquisition relative to language typology, psychotypology and proficiency level. In particular, it observes how learners make use of their background languages when faced with a language they know little to nothing about. The participants, native French speakers with English as a common L2 (other L2s varied) exposed to Polish (L3) for the very first time, were tested on initial exposure and then at various intervals up to 8 hours. The input provided to our learners from the moment of first exposure was recorded and transcribed. This methodology allowed us to analyze learners' use of prior linguistic knowledge (L1 and other L2s) when performing tasks in a language with low proficiency. Tasks included translating written and spoken sentences, judging grammaticality and rearranging words in sentences. Despite a limited number of participants in each language group, results indicate tendencies. They not only suggest an important role for both typology and psychotypology at this level of proficiency, but they also reveal that even minimal knowledge of a background language can be the source of cross-linguistic influence of various types.