Call for Papers: Crosslinguistic Perspectives on Processing and Learning (X-PPL) 2019

In the past few decades, there has been increasing evidence suggesting that the distribution of linguistic features among the world’s languages is influenced by information processing principles of the human mind and brain and that, conversely, cognition may be shaped by the specific linguistic experiences we are exposed to. 

We invite contributions for 20-minute talks on the interface of linguistic diversity and language processing, encompassing production, comprehension, and acquisition. Specifically, we invite contributions presenting new evidence on: 

• whether and how grammars adapt to (cognitive and neurobiological) constraints on processing, learning, and external pressures
• whether and how the different grammatical properties of linguistic systems might afford the application of different processing and learning strategies.

We welcome in particular:

• studies examining production, comprehension, or developmental phenomena in one or more language(s) chosen for differences in their grammatical characteristics
• experimental studies on under-researched languages providing implications for existing processing and acquisition theories
• studies providing processing-based or learning-based explanations of language change and typological distributions

Keynotes:

• Inbal Arnon (Hebrew University)
• Monique Flecken (Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics)
• Michael C. Frank (Stanford University)
• David Kemmerer (Purdue University)

Abstracts should be submitted as PDFs, no later than 10th June 2019, and should not exceed one A4 page (one additional page for references and figures is allowed). The deadline was extended because of technical problems with EasyChair.

Organizers:

• Sebastian Sauppe
• Balthasar Bickel
• Sabine Stoll

Program committee:

• Balthasar Bickel
• Nicholas Lester
• Martin Meyer
• Sebastian Sauppe
• Sabine Stoll

X-PPL 2019 will be held at the University of Zurich, November 4-5 2019.