The Iconic Cognitive Principles of Mandarin Chinese Word Order: Pedagogical and Learning Perspectives

This paper reviews the most relevant contributions that cognitive principles related to the cognitive-functional framework of word order analysis in Mandarin Chinese can offer to studies on the role of linguistic motivation in language pedagogy, linking this notion to the broader field of Applied Cognitive Linguistics. After illustrating the notion of linguistic motivation and its value in application to L2 learning, a review of the most discussed iconic cognitive principles in the literature on the cognitive-functional approach (i.e., The Principle of Temporal Sequence, The Principle of General-Preceding-Particular, The Principle of Semantic Proximity, The Empathetic Principle) will be presented, investigating their different explanatory power and their potential in application to the learning and teaching of Mandarin Chinese as L2.