Syntactic Priming Effects on EFL Learners’ Production and Retention of Indirect Questions

Abstract

This study examines the impact of syntactic priming on the production and retention of indirect questions by Iranian learners of English as a foreign language (EFL). Eighty learners participated in two experiments investigating the impact of syntactic priming on oral production and retention of indirect questions. Experiment 1 showed that priming resulted in increased production of the target structure by the Experimental groups as compared with production by the Control groups. Experiment 2 showed that the rate of production of the target structure remained significantly higher for participants in the Experimental groups one day later.