ABSTRACT
In this article I examine the input processing (IP) model as part of a cognitive theory of second language acquisition (SLA). The model has attracted considerable interest as a psycholinguistic account of second language grammar development and also provides the theoretical foundation for Processing Instruction, an influential approach to second language pedagogy (VanPatten, 1996; Wong, this volume, chap. 2). Although instructional issues have attracted the most attention (Cadierno, 1995; DeKeyser & Sokalski, 1996; VanPatten, 2002), they are not examined here. Rather, the focus in this chapter will be on IP as a testable psycholinguistic construct. However, issues raised in this regard will ultimately have implications for instructional applications of the model.
