The uniform native speaker is a myth: Individual differences in L1 and L2 sentence processing

Sentence processing research in first (L1) and second (L2) languages has long been guided by the assumption of an “ideal” or uniform native speaker serving as the standard of linguistic competence. However, mounting psycholinguistic and neurolinguistic evidence increasingly highlights the crucial role of individual differences in shaping how speakers process linguistic phenomena in real time. Variability stemming from literacy, language experience, executive functions, and cognitive aging challenges the notion of invariance among native speakers and gradual approximation among non-native speakers. Recent insights from studies employing online measures such as self-paced reading, EEG, and eye-tracking reveal that processing outcomes are continuously distributed rather than dichotomous. Building on recent discussions in the field, this Research Topic proposes to reframe sentence processing as a dynamic, experience-sensitive process characterized by inter-individual variability across the L1 and L2.

This Research Topic aims to explore the role of individual differences in sentence processing across native and non-native speakers, encouraging research that transcends traditional group comparisons (e.g., “high vs. low proficiency” or “native vs. L2”) in favor of continuous, variability-driven approaches. The central goal is to identify the cognitive, linguistic, and experiential factors that modulate online sentence comprehension and production, integrating evidence from interdisciplinary methodologies. We especially welcome studies testing whether patterns described in theoretical or applied linguistics—typically based on offline judgments—are reflected in online processing, and whether variability among speakers reveals systematic patterns in comprehension and production mechanisms. By bridging theoretical linguistics and psycholinguistics, this Research Topic contributes to dismantling the “native-like” ideal, promoting a more inclusive and ecologically valid understanding of language processing in diverse populations.

This Research Topic will encompass experimental, theoretical, and methodological approaches that examine individual variability in sentence processing across languages and populations, focusing on psycholinguistic evidence derived from online measures. We invite contributions addressing, but not limited to, the following themes:

- Individual differences in linguistic and cognitive mechanisms of sentence processing
- The role of literacy, language experience, and proficiency as continuous predictors
- Effects of cognitive control, executive functions, and cognitive aging
- Cross-linguistic research on typological distance and language-specific constraints
- Online processing methods: self-paced reading, EEG, and eye-tracking
- Theoretical implications for redefining “nativeness” and language competence

Article types and fees

This Research Topic accepts the following article types, unless otherwise specified in the Research Topic description:

• Brief Research Report
• Case Report
• Clinical Trial
• Community Case Study
• Conceptual Analysis
• Curriculum, Instruction, and Pedagogy
• Data Report
• Editorial
• FAIR² Data
• ... View all formats

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Article types

This Research Topic accepts the following article types, unless otherwise specified in the Research Topic description:

• Brief Research Report
• Case Report
• Clinical Trial
• Community Case Study
• Conceptual Analysis
• Curriculum, Instruction, and Pedagogy
• Data Report
• Editorial
• FAIR² Data
• General Commentary
• Hypothesis and Theory
• Methods
• Mini Review
• Opinion
• Original Research
• Perspective
• Policy and Practice Reviews
• Policy Brief
• Registered Report
• Review
• Study Protocol
• Systematic Review
• Technology and Code

Keywords: sentence processing, individual differences, native and non-native speakers, language experience, cognitive control, online processing measures

Important note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.