Attentional differences in L2 learners’ word learning strategies between mobile-assisted and in-print reading: An eye tracking study

Abstract

The present study combines three influential and interwoven areas of research (MALL, SLA, and psycholinguistics) into a cohesive research framework to explore whether and how medium and word exposure influence L2 learners’ incidental acquisition and online processing of new words using eye tracking methodology. Seventy-seven L2 learners engaged in reading a short novel containing new words of higher and lower exposure frequencies on a tablet or in print. We assessed L2 learners’ word learning accuracy using word form recognition, meaning recognition, and meaning recall tasks after reading. Eye tracking measures (including first-fixation duration, first-pass time, second-pass time, and total-reading time) were used to analyse visual attention allocated at the early and late stages of L2 learners’ lexical processing during reading. The results from ANCOVA analyses demonstrated the continued positive and significant effects of word exposure on L2 learners’ learning gains and attentive processing. Further, our findings indicated the negative effects of mobile-assisted reading on both accuracy and attention compared to in-print reading, with the latter readers achieving greater word learning gains in all three accuracy dimensions and employing an attentive reading strategy with more attentional resources allocated at the early stage and fewer ones at the late stage of lexical processing, as opposed to a skimming strategy observed in tablet users. From a pedagogical perspective, the cognitive costs associated with attentional deficits underscore issues on underlying cognitive mechanisms and highlight interventions requiring further exploration and consideration.