Dynamic systems in second language learning: Some general methodological reflections

Abstract

In this rich and provocative article, De Bot, Lowie and Verspoor provide a clear and informative description of the central tenets of dynamic systems theory and apply this to a number of theoretical and empirical issues in second language acquisition. The authors see dynamic systems theory as a promise for the future, an overarching theory in second language acquisition that takes into account the interconnectedness that is so characteristic of complex, developing systems, including the cognitive and social factors that help shape the process of second language acquisition. Having pioneered in dynamic systems for quite some time now (see Van Geert and Steenbeek, 2005, for a recent overview), I cannot be but supportive of their vision and their hope that this particular approach will lead to a fuller understanding of second language acquisition that is not only of theoretical but also of applied importance. However, the authors' remark about “some unresolved issues” in Dynamic Systems Theory may be somewhat over-optimistic. Nevertheless, I consider the dynamic systems approach as the quintessential future approach to human action, cognition and behavior, including language. All these phenomena are about change, about process in time. And this is exactly what dynamic systems approaches provide: an explicit model of change of some phenomenon of interest.