Lost in Narration? Conceptual and Crosslinguistic Transfer in Multilingual Storytelling: The Case of L3 Italian

Storytelling preserves events in collective memory, with narrative perspective playing a key role. In the context of L3 acquisition (De Angelis, 2007; Håkansson et al., 2002; Bardel and Falk, 2007; Bardel and Lindqvist, 2007; Flynn et al., 2004; Rothman, 2011), limited attention has been paid to how advanced learners’ L3 narrative production is shaped by prior linguistic knowledge or background languages (BL). Grounded in Slobin’s (1996) Thinking for Speaking Theory, this study explores crosslinguistic influence (CLI) in the narrative practices of German-Italian bilinguals and German L3 Italian learners, an underrepresented language pair in existing literature. Unlike prior studies focusing on grammar (Carroll & von Stutterheim, 2007), this project also analyses pragmatic strategies (Giuliano & Di Maio, 2007; Giuliano & Musto, 2016; 2018), investigating the interplay between linguistic and conceptual transfer (Jarvis, 2016; Sayehli, 2013). The study employed the Quaestio Theory (Klein & von Stutterheim, 1991) to analyse the narrative productions of 10 German-Italian early simultaneous bilinguals and 10 German learners of L3 Italian (B1 level) with L2 English or French (B2-C1). The task required precise storytelling due to unshared knowledge. Each informant watched a short film from the Polish mute series Reksio and was then asked to narrate it in detail in Italian and German. To ensure balanced data, the order of narrative languages was reversed for each interview. Narratives were transcribed using CHAT conventions (MacWhinney,2000) and analysed quantitatively (descriptive/inferential statistics) and qualitatively (content analysis). Quantitative analysis revealed significant differences in morphosyntactic and lexical organization. Both groups favoured relative subordinates, though Italian narratives featured a higher proportion of non-finite subordinates. Semantic analysis showed a preference for relative subordinate clauses, with an asymmetry emerging between their use for narrative versus attributive functions (Berman & Slobin, 1994). Content analysis highlighted bilinguals' frequent overextension of Italian verbs into German contexts, indicating conceptual transfer. Temporal relations analysis revealed both groups’ overuse of temporal connectors in Italian, possibly reflecting German influence. Learners showed stronger influence from their mother tongue, German, evidenced by the past perfect tense over the present tense in Italian retellings, a clear case of German transfer. These findings highlight the influence of background languages on L3 narrative production, revealing how multilinguals navigate competing linguistic systems. By combining statistical and content analyses, the study underscores both structural and pragmatic aspects of language acquisition, providing insights into the complex interaction between linguistic forms and cognitive perspectives (Jarvis, 2007; Jarvis, 2016a, 2016b; Sayehli, 2013).