Despite the definitive move away from such comparisons as a sole research strategy, the intuitive appeal in demonstrating superior effects from technology has kept this research tradition alive. Moreover, it would be difficult to argue that the results of such research are uninteresting. This paper will explain an approach to identifying important questions about CALL and applying relevant research methods to address these questions. Two extensions of the model are discussed. First, sex differences in the neurocognition of lexicon and grammar are examined.
Robust evidence indicates that females are better than males at remembering words.
These predictions are confirmed with converging evidence from psycholinguistic, neuropsychological, and neuro-electrophysiological studies examining the processing of complex words and sentences. Second, neurocognitive differences between first and second language are examined. These representations may be either memorized, or constructed by explicit rules learned in declarative memory. Evidence is presented in support of these predictions.