Published in Book chapter (preprint), 2024
A study of how linguistic expertise shapes categorisation behaviour, with evidence from constructional analysis.
Recommended citation: Divjak, D., He, S., & Borowski, M. (2024). Expertise affects categorisation, in language too: (the) case (of) constructions.
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Published in University of Birmingham (PhD thesis), 2024
An in-depth eye-tracking investigation of cross-linguistic transfer in L1 and L2 reading.
Recommended citation: He, S. (2024). Learning to optimise reading: An exploratory study of eye movement transfer across languages (Doctoral dissertation, University of Birmingham).
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Published in Digital Scholarship in the Humanities, 2024
Eye-tracking evidence on how modern readers interact with medieval manuscripts.
Recommended citation: Ward, A., & He, S. (2024). Medieval reading in the twenty-first century? Digital Scholarship in the Humanities, 39(4), 1134–1155. https://doi.org/10.1093/llc/fqae056
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Published in Working paper (under review), 2025
Working paper investigating how cognitive and non-cognitive factors jointly contribute to grammatical expertise in proficient immigrant L2 learners.
Recommended citation: Divjak, D., He, S., & Milin, P. (under review). Building expertise in L2 grammar: a multi-factorial analysis of cognitive and non-cognitive factors in proficient immigrant learners. Working paper, University of Birmingham.
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Published in International Journal of TESOL Studies (in press), 2025
An eye-tracking study examining how L2 proficiency modulates fixation behaviour during natural reading.
Recommended citation: He, S., Divjak, D., & Milin, P. (in press). Unveiling the dynamics of eye movement patterns in second language reading: The role of L2 proficiency. International Journal of TESOL Studies.
Published in Linguistic Approaches to Bilingualism, 2025
A data-driven approach to identifying L2 proficiency groups using eye-tracking measures and multivariate methods.
Recommended citation: He, S., Divjak, D., & Milin, P. (2025). Optimising participant grouping methods in bilingualism studies: Insights from eye-tracking data. Linguistic Approaches to Bilingualism.
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Published in The Palgrave Encyclopedia of Cyberpsychology (invited chapter, under review), 2025
Invited encyclopedia chapter reviewing methods, challenges, and best practices for eye-tracking in online research.
Recommended citation: He, S., & Milin, P. (under review). Eye-tracking in online research. In C. Fullwood et al. (Eds.), The Palgrave Encyclopedia of Cyberpsychology.
Published in Manuscript under review (Language Learning), 2025
Examines how L2 learners acquire probabilistic, multifactorial linguistic patterns.
Recommended citation: Aigro, M., Pilvik, M., He, S., Taremaa, P., Chuprina, A., Vihman, M., & Divjak, D. (under review). When more is more: Acquiring probabilistic multifactorial patterns in L2. Language Learning.
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This talk examined how eye-movement patterns during natural reading vary as a function of L2 proficiency, focusing on fixation-based measures as indicators of reading development in a second language.
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This talk demonstrated how eye-movement measures during natural reading capture fine-grained developmental trajectories in L2 reading proficiency.
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Accepted conference talk at EuroSLA 2022. Not attended due to visa restrictions.
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This talk explored developmental changes in eye-movement behaviour during L2 reading, highlighting how increasing proficiency is reflected in fixation durations and reading efficiency.
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This talk investigated how L2 proficiency modulates fixation durations and reading dynamics in second language reading.
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This invited talk focused on the impact of prolonged L2 (English) exposure on L1 (Chinese) reading behaviour, highlighting eye-tracking evidence for L1 attrition effects.
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Background Saccadic targeting during reading integrates visual, linguistic, and motor planning processes [1, 2]. While second language (L2) learners may develop native-like fixation durations in their L2 [3], it is unclear whether spatial adaptations extend to their first language (L1), especially when scripts are vastly different. This study investigates whether advanced English proficiency and exposure reshape saccadic precision and landing stability during L2 English reading, and whether these patterns transfer, to L1 Chinese reading. Method Forty Chinese university students were categorised into Advanced and Upper Intermediate L2 English learner groups using Principal Component Analysis and Cluster Analysis of English vocabulary size, IELTS scores, and years of residence in the UK [4]. Participants read 24 matched Chinese (38–71 words each, M = 55.9, SD = 10.3) and English (44–98 words each, M = 70.7, SD = 12.9) texts in a counterbalanced order while their eye movements were recorded. Relative Landing Positions (RLPs) were computed using the x-coordinate of the first fixation relative to word centre, capturing both central tendency and dispersion. Results In L1 Chinese reading, both groups demonstrated highly stable, centre-based RLPs that did not vary with word length, aligning with native-like saccadic patterns [5, 6]. In contrast, during L2 English reading, both groups showed increasingly leftward RLPs of the first fixation from word centre as word length increased, consistent with spatial undershoot patterns attributed to oculomotor constraints or motor planning strategies. This spatial undershoot occurred despite the Advanced group showing native-like fixation durations, indicating that temporal and spatial components of eye movement control may be governed by different mechanisms. Discussion The present findings highlight a dissociation between temporal fluency and spatial targeting in bilingual reading. While L2 proficiency and exposure may support native-like fixations, they do not affect saccadic targeting. The persistence of L1 Chinese saccadic patterns suggests that spatial aspects of eye movement control are script-specific and relatively resistant to change [3], particularly when the scripts of the two languages differ markedly. These findings suggest that L1-based saccadic routines persist in L2 reading, highlighting the need for bilingual models to account for the limited cross-script adaptability of spatial oculomotor control.
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This study investigates whether L2 English proficiency and exposure modulate word frequency and length effects during L1 Chinese reading, using eye-tracking evidence to examine potential reductions in L1 reading automaticity.
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