Field-Dependent/Field-Independent Learners' Information Processing Behavior in an Implicit Learning Task: Evidence from Iranian EFL Learners.

Abstract

The present research aimed to investigate how field-dependent and field-independent learners perceived and processed information when they were engaged in an implicit foreign language learning task and to explore differences between them in this regard. The majority of studies in the pertinent literature have adopted quantitative methods to date. The present study, however, employed three qualitative data collection techniques, namely retrospective think-aloud method, tests of episodic memory and interviews, to gain a better understanding of field-dependent and field- independent learners' strategies and performance in different stages of information processing. Twelve Iranian field-independent and field-dependent intermediate language learners participated in this study. The results showed that the field-independent learners were more efficient in directing their attentional resources in the sensory-memory stage and encoding and storing new information in their working memory. Hence, they recalled and retrieved the information from their short- and long-term memory more efficiently. Some educational implications are discussed.