This article proposes that L2 learners differ from native speakers with respect to
two benchmarks–the extent to which native-like success on one principle of
UG predicts comparable success on other principles (lateral consistency), and the
extent to which this level of success is stable over time (longitudinal). Results of
two experimental studies on the acquisition of Japanese as a second language show
that L2 learners exhibit neither lateral nor longitudinal consistency with respect
to UG, at least in the early stages of the acquisition process.
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