The influence of linguistic features on L2 Chinese writing quality among students with various L1 backgrounds

Syntactic and lexical complexity in L2 English academic writing: Development and competition

In measuring learners’ productivity in writing and speaking, there is a formulation known as syntactic and lexical complexity. This study investigates whether there is a difference in syntactic and lexical complexity between L1 and L2 writings or not. This study is quantitative research which employ Web-Based Lexical Complexity Analyser and Web-Based Syntactic Complexity Analyser in order to measure data. The current study results reveal that the p-value of three sub-components of lexical complexity is lower than 0.05 (LD=0.000, LS=0.036, and LV=0.000), which means a significant difference in lexical complexity between L1 and L2 writings. A similar result showed in syntactic complexity where four of five indices of comparing the syntactic complexity of two-language writings showed value <0.05. The p-value of comparing four indices of syntactic complexity such as MLS, DC/C, CP/C, and C/S is 0.006, 0.000, 0.038, and 0.002, respectively. However, the fifth indice, MLC (mean length of clause) shows a p-value >0.05, which means no significant difference between MLC of English writings and Indonesian writings. The study concluded that the students produce more lexical and syntactic complexity in their English writings than in their Indonesian writings.

This study investigated the latent structure of L2 linguistic complexity as a multidimensional construct and analyzed the relationship between the sub-constructs of L2 linguistic complexity by employing exploratory and confirmatory analyses of a set of linguistic complexity measures indexing different sources of L2 linguistic complexity. Based on relevant theories and empirical studies, 11 automated measures indexing distinct sources of syntactic and lexical complexity were selected and used to assess the linguistics complexity of 930 EFL argumentative essays, which were then equally divided into two subsamples. Sample 1 was used for exploratory factor analysis while sample 2 was used for confirmatory factor analysis. The results show that L2 linguistic complexity is a multi-dimensional construct composed of clausal subordination, phrasal elaboration and lexical complexity. Furthermore, regarding the relationships among the three sub-constructs, it was found that lexical complexity and phrasal elaboration are moderately correlated; while clausal subordination employs rather different means of complexification than that employed by phrasal elaboration and lexical complexity. Findings of the study provide empirical evidence for the multidimensionality of L2 linguistic complexity in L2 argumentative writing and lend support to the hypothesis that lexical complexity and grammatical complexity constitute separate, independent dimensions of L2 performance and proficiency, and that there was a certain level of trade-off effect between them.

Learner corpora provide researchers with a rich pool of resources that can complement experimental studies. The purpose of the present paper is to provide task complexity researchers, for the first time, with further insight regarding interactive effects of task complexity, task type, task modality, and L1 background on linguistic and propositional complexity. Analyzing 720 intermediate-level (B1) written texts that were extracted from open access online language learning platform, the EF-Cambridge Open Language Database (EFCAMDAT) revealed that there was a significant interaction effect among task design features (task complexity, task type, and L1 background) that influenced linguistic and propositional complexity of written texts. This suggests that task complexity does not function in isolation of other task design features such as task type and L1 background.

The proliferation of automated syntactic complexity tools allowed the analysis of larger amounts of learner writing. However, existing tools tend to be language-specific or depend on segmenting learner production into native-based units of analysis. This study examined the utility of a language-general and unsupervised linguistic complexity metric: Kolmogorov complexity in discriminating between L2 proficiency levels within several languages (Czech, German, Italian, English) and across various L1 backgrounds (N = 10) using two large CEFR-rater learner corpora. Kolmogorov complexity was measured at three levels: syntax, morphology, and overall linguistic complexity. Pairwise comparisons indicated that all Kolmogorov complexity measures discriminated among the proficiency levels within the L2s. L1-based variation in complexity was also observed. Distinct syntactic and morphological complexity patterns were found when L2 English writings were analyzed across versus within L1 backgrounds. These results indicate that Kolmogorov complexity could serve as a valuable metric in L2 writing research due to its cross-linguistic flexibility and holistic nature.

Assessing linguistic complexity features in L2 writing: Understanding effects of topic familiarity and strategic planning within the realm of task readiness

This study investigated the differences in linguistic complexity between different types of English users, including native speakers (NS), English as a foreign language (EFL) learners, and English as a second language (ESL) learners in terms of Kolmogorov complexity. Furthermore, we explored how first language backgrounds affect linguistic complexity. Our dataset contains 2272 argumentative essays produced by English NSs and upper‐intermediate learners from four ESL and six EFL countries/regions. Results showed that significant differences existed between the writings of NS, EFL, and ESL regarding overall and syntactic complexity. Specifically, the rank of overall complexity (NS > ESL > EFL) indicates that learners from countries/regions with higher exposure to English tend to produce overall more complex writings. Concerning syntactic complexity, EFL learners produce the most complex writings, while NS produces the least complex, indicating that essays written by EFL learners contain the most fixed word order patterns. In contrast, no significant difference was detected in morphological complexity among the NS, ESL, and EFL groups, suggesting that native and upper‐intermediate non‐NSs exhibit a similar range of morphological forms in their writings. Additionally, our results showed a larger effect of first language backgrounds over English speaker types on linguistic complexity, thus informing teachers to implement targeted writing instructions for learners from different countries.

Syntactic complexity in college-level English writing: Differences among writers with diverse L1 backgrounds

This study investigates the extent to which (a) Spanish heritage (HL) and second language (L2) writers’ linguistic complexity differs across register contexts and (b) Spanish proficiency and writing motivational beliefs differentially affect HL and L2 writers’ performance. Participants were 58 HL and 54 L2 Spanish learners who completed two persuasive writing tasks—the Email to Friend and Letter to Dean tasks—designed to be topically similar while eliciting different registers. Proficiency measures included an elicited imitation task (EIT) and a cloze test. Mixed-effects models indicated that both HL and L2 writers evidenced greater lexico-syntactic complexity in the Letter to Dean task; nonetheless, HL writers demonstrated more robust cross-register distinctions in syntactic complexity. The EIT and cloze test positively predicted syntactic and lexical complexity, respectively, although differential patterns were also observed by group. Intrinsic/interest and cognitive/linguistic value beliefs about Spanish writing emerged as positive and negative predictors of linguistic complexity, respectively.

: This study aims to explore the relationship between syntactic and lexical complexity and also the relationship between different aspects of lexical complexity. To this end, speech monologs of 35 Iranian high-intermediate learners of English on three different tasks (i.e. argumentation, description, and narration) were analyzed for correlations between one measure of syntactic complexity (mean number of clauses per Analysis of Speech Unit) and two measures of lexical complexity (diversity and sophistication). Spearman’s rho was used to calculate correlations between the average scores for syntactic and lexical complexity obtained from the three tasks and also for each of the three tasks individually. The results showed that the average scores for lexical diversity and lexical sophistication correlated positively, but the correlation was found only for the narration task. Also, the average scores for syntactic complexity did not correlate significantly with any of the average scores for the two measures of lexical complexity. However, the pattern of results differed across the three tasks. In the argumentation task, syntactic complexity correlated significantly only with lexical diversity. Syntactic complexity did not correlate significantly with any of the two measures of lexical complexity in the description task. In the case of the narrative task, there was a significant correlation between syntactic complexity and both measures of lexical complexity. The results are discussed in light of Levelt’s (1989) speaking model

This study investigated the effects of semantic transparency of Chinese disyllabic compound words on Chinese as a second language (CSL) learners' incidental learning of word meanings in sentence-level reading and passage-level reading. The accuracy of the learners' lexical inferencing was compared among various types of words (transparent, semi-transparent, and opaque words), different context lengths (sentence and passage contexts), and learners with different L1 backgrounds (with and without a Chinese character background in their L1s). In the study, ninety CSL adult learners were asked to infer the meanings of target words in the sentence context and the passage context. The results indicated that the effects of semantic transparency and context length on inferencing accuracy were significant, while the effect of L1 background was not. It was also found that there were significant interactions between transparency and context length as well as between transparency and L1 background.

The adjustment of syntactic and phraseological complexity is a key consideration in text adaptation. However, research on this topic in the context of Chinese as a second language (CSL) remains limited. Using 700 CSL reading texts graded following the newly issued Chinese Proficiency Grading Standards for International Chinese Language Education, this study examines differences in syntactic and phraseological complexity across texts of varying grade levels using 12 indices and assesses the predictive power of these indices for the grade levels of adapted texts. The results reveal that the 12 indices at the sentence, collocation, and phrase levels significantly differentiate the grade levels of the reading texts, with 11 showing medium to large effect sizes. Whereas all indices exhibit an upward trend overall, their specific patterns of cross‐level changes vary. The strongest predictors of the grade levels of the texts are diversity of total collocations, mean length of sentences, and mean length of noun phrases. We discuss the implications of these findings for establishing syntactic and phraseological complexity benchmarks in CSL teaching materials, adapting CSL learning and assessment texts, and devising effective instructional strategies.

This paper reports a case study that explores elementary learners’ reading anxiety over Chinese as a second language (CSL). Two elementary CSL learners were chosen as research participants. Lived experience descriptions, think-aloud, retrospective interviews, field observations, and research journal writings were used to investigate the sources of elementary CSL learners’ reading anxiety and the ways employed to reduce their reading anxiety. The data were analyzed by Moustakas’ (1994) data analysis procedures, Creswell’s (2007) three steps, and Bogdon & Biklen’s (1992) data analysis methods. Results show that elementary CSL learners do have reading anxiety in their reading process and the sources of the anxiety include cross-linguistic differences between English and Chinese expressions, lack of previous knowledge, difficult and complex vocabulary, wrong guesses, and comprehension difficulties. Both participants tried to use strategies such as guessing, looking up words, understanding two character words based on the meaning of each character, skipping and keeping reading, and using previous knowledge to predict the rest of the text to reduce their reading anxiety. The present study provides both theoretical and pedagogical implications in the field of CSL reading learning and teaching.

Second language writing development from a Complex Dynamic Systems Theory perspective:a multiple case-study of Hungarian learners of English

Effects of cue and instructor demonstration on the learning of Chinese characters for Chinese as a second language beginners