The Development of Japanese-Speaking Learners’ Knowledge of English Passives

This study examines how Japanese speakers’ knowledge of a wide range of English passive constructions (direct, ditransitive, causative, pseudo, and *indirect passives) is structured and how it develops as their proficiency increases. An acceptability judgment task administered to 41 JLEs (23 elementary and 18 intermediate learners) revealed that their knowledge of English passives does not develop uniformly across passive types but instead suggests that it follows at least three developmental stages. Possible factors underlying these developmental stages —knowledge of movement, argument structure, and Case— are discussed.