Defining and operationalising L2 complexity

Language Learning and Language Teaching

Volumn 32, Issue , 2012, Pages 21-46

  Bulté, Bram ^a   Housen, Alex ^a  

^a VRIJE UNIVERSITEIT BRUSSEL   (Belgium)

Author keywords

[No Author keywords available]

Indexed keywords

EID: 85126900059     PISSN: 15699471     EISSN: None     Source Type: Book Series    
DOI: 10.1075/lllt.32.02bul     Document Type: Chapter

References (100)

1. *Albert, A., & Kormos, J. (2004). Creativity and narrative task performance: An exploratory study. Language Learning, 54, 277-310.
2. Bachman, L. (2005). Statistical analysis for language assessment. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
3. Bardovi-Harlig, K. (1992). A second look at T-unit analysis: Reconsidering the sentence. TESOL Quarterly, 26, 390-395.
4. Botel, M., Dawkins, J., & Granowski, A. (1973). A syntactic complexity formula. In W.H. MacGinitie (Ed.). Assessment problems in reading (pp. 77-86). Newark DE: Interna-tional Reading Association.
5. Brown. R. (1973). A first language. Harvard: Harvard University Press.
6. Bulté, B., Housen, A., Pierrard, M., & Van Daele, S. (2008). Investigating lexical proficiency development over time: the case of Dutch-speaking learners of French in Brussels. Journal of French Language Studies, 3(18), 277-298.
7. *Bygate, M. (1996). Effects of task repetition: Appraising the developing language of learners. In J. Willis, & D. Willis (Eds.). Challenge and change in language teaching (pp. 136-146). London: Heinemann.
8. Bygate, M. (1999). Quality of language and purpose of task: pattern of learners' language on two oral communication tasks. Language Teaching Research, 3(3), 185-214.
9. *Bygate, M. (2001). Effects of task repetition on the structure and control of oral language. In M. Bygate, P. Skehan, & M. Swain (Eds.). Researching pedagogic tasks, second language learning, teaching and testing (pp. 23-48). London: Longman.
10. Byrnes, H., & Sinicrope, C. (2008). Advancedness and the development of relativization in L2 German: A curriculum-based longitudinal study. In L. Ortega, & H. Byrnes (Eds.). The longitudinal study of advanced L2 capacities (pp. 109-138). New York: Routledge.
11. Byrnes, H., Maxim, H., & Norris, J.M. (2010). Realizing advanced foreign language writ-ing development in collegiate education: Curricular design, pedagogy, assessment [Monograph]. The Modern Language Journal, 94, Suppl. s1.
12. Collentine, J. (2004). The effects of learning contexts on morphosyntactic and lexical develop-ment. Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 26(2), 227-248.
13. Dahl, Ö. (2004). The growth and maintenance of linguistic complexity. Amsterdam: John Benjamins.
14. DeKeyser, R. (1998). Beyond focus on form: Cognitive perspectives on learning and practicing second language grammar. In C. Doughty, & J. Williams (Eds.). Focus on form in classroom language acquisition (pp. 42-63). New York: Cambridge University Press.
15. DeKeyser, R.M. (2005). What makes learning second-language grammar difficult? A review of issues. Language Learning, 55, Suppl. 1, 1-25.
16. Derwing, T.M., & Rossiter, M.J. (2003). The effects of pronunciation instruction on the accuracy, fluency, and complexity of L2 accented speech. Applied Language Learning, 13, 1-17.
17. Dewaele, J.-M. (2000). Saisir l'insaisissable? Les mesures de longueur d'énoncés en linguistique appliquée. International Review of Applied Linguistics, 38, 17-33.
18. Diessel, H. (2004). The acquisition of complex sentences. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
19. Doughty, C., & Williams, J. (1998). Pedagogical choices in focus on form. In C. Doughty, & J. Williams (Eds.). Focus on form in classroom second language acquisition (pp. 197-261). New York: Cambridge University Press.
20. Duff, P. (1986). Another look at interlanguage task: Taking task to task. In R. Day (Ed.). Talking to learn (pp. 147-181). Rowley, Mass.: Newbury House.
21. *Elder, C., & Iwashita, N. (2005). Planning for test performance: Does it make a difference? In R. Ellis (Ed.). Planning and task performance in a second language (pp. 219-237). Amster-dam: John Benjamins.
22. Ellis, R. (1990). Instructed second language acquisition. Oxford: Blackwell.
23. Ellis, R., & Barkhuizen, G. (2005). Analysing learner language. Oxford: OUP.
24. *Ellis, R., & Yuan, F. (2004). The effects of planning on fluency, complexity, and accuracy in sec-ond language narrative writing. Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 26, 59-84.
25. *Ellis, R., & Yuan, F. (2005). The effects of careful within-task planning on oral and written task performance. In R. Ellis (Ed.). Planning and task performance in a second language (pp. 167-192). Amsterdam: John Benjamins.
26. *Foster, P. (1996). Doing the task better: How planning time influences students' performance. In J. Willis, & D. Willis (Eds.). Challenge and change in language teaching (pp. 126-135). London: Heinemann.
27. *Foster, P., & Skehan, P. (1996). The influence of planning on performance in task-based learn-ing. Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 18(3), 299-324.
28. Foster, P., Tonkyn, A., & Wigglesworth, G. (2000). Measuring spoken language: A unit for all reasons. Applied Linguistics, 21(3), 354-375.
29. *Gass, S., Mackey, A., Fernandez, M., & Alvarez-Torres, M. (1999). The effects of task repetition on linguistic output. Language Learning, 49, 549-580.
30. *Gilabert, R. (2007). The simultaneous manipulation of task complexity along planning time and (+/-Here-and-Now): Effects on L2 oral production. In M. Garcia Mayo (Ed.). Investigating tasks in formal language learning (pp. 44-68). Clevedon: Multilingual Matters.
31. Gilabert, R., Barón, J., & Llanes, À. (2009). Manipulating cognitive complexity across task types and its impact on learners' interaction during oral performance. International Review of Applied Linguistics, 47, 367-395.
32. Goldschneider, J., & DeKeyser, R. (2001). Explaining the 'natural order of L2 morpheme acqui-sition' in English: A meta-analysis of multiple determinants. Language Learning, 51(1), 1-50.
33. *Guará-Tavares, M.G. (2008). Pre-task Planning, Working Memory Capacity and L2 Speech Performance. Ph.D. dissertation, Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina, Brazil.
34. Housen, A., & Kuiken, F. (2009). Complexity, accuracy and fluency in second language acquisi-tion. Applied Linguistics, 30(4), 461-473.
35. Housen, A., Van Daele, S., & Pierrard, M. (2005). Rule complexity and the effectiveness of explicit grammar instruction. In A. Housen, & M. Pierrard (Eds.). Investigations in instructed second language acquistion (pp. 235-270). Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter.
36. Hulstijn, J.H., & De Graaff, R. (1994). Under what conditions does explicit knowledge of a sec-ond language facilitate the acquisition of implicit knowledge? A research proposal. AILA Review, 11, 97-112.
37. Hunt, K.W. (1965). Grammatical structures written at three grade levels. NCTE research report, no. 3. Champaign, IL: National Council of Teachers of English.
38. *Isbell, R.S., Sobol, J., Lindauer, L., & Lowrance, A. (2004). The effects of storytelling and story reading on the oral language complexity and story comprehension of young children. Early Childhood Education Journal, 32, 157-163.
39. Ishikawa, S. (1995). Objective measurement of low-proficiency EFL narrative writing. Journal of Second Language Writing, 4, 51-69.
40. *Ishikawa, T. (2007). The effect of manipulating task complexity along the [+/− Here-and-Now] dimension on L2 written narrative discourse. In M. P. García Mayo (Ed.). Investigating tasks in formal language learning (pp. 136-156). Clevedon: Multilingual Matters.
41. *Iwashita, N., Brown, A., McNamara, T., & O'Hagan, S. (2008). Assessed levels of second language speaking proficiency: How distinct? Applied Linguistics, 29, 24-49.
42. *Iwashita, N., McNamara, T., & Elder, C. (2001). Can we predict task difficulty in an oral profi-ciency test? Exploring the potential of an information-processing approach to task design. Language Learning, 51, 401-436.
43. Jackson, H. (2008). Key Terms in Linguistics. London: Continuum.
44. *Kawauchi, C. (2005). The effects of strategic planning on the oral narratives of learners with low and high intermediate L2 proficiency. In R. Ellis (Ed.). Planning and task performance in a second language (pp. 143-164). Amsterdam: John Benjamins.
45. Krashen, S. (1994). The input hypothesis and its rivals. In N. Ellis (Ed.). Implicit and explicit learning of languages (pp. 45-77). London: Academic Press.
46. *Kuiken, F., Mos, M., & Vedder, I. (2005). Cognitive task complexity and second language writing performance. In S. Foster-Cohen, M.P. García-Mayo, & J. Cenoz (Eds.). Eurosla Yearbook. Vol. 5 (pp. 195-222). Amsterdam: John Benjamins.
47. *Kuiken, F., & Vedder, I. (2007). Cognitive task complexity and linguistic performance in French L2 writing. In M.P. García Mayo (Ed.). Investigating tasks in formal language learning (pp. 117-135). Clevedon: Multilingual Matters.
48. *Lambert, C.P., & Engler, S. (2007). Information distribution and goal orientation in second language task design. In M.P. García Mayo (Ed.). Investigating tasks in formal language learning (pp. 27-43). Clevedon: Multilingual Matters.
49. Larsen-Freeman, D. (2006). The emergence of complexity, fluency, and accuracy in the oral and written production of five Chinese learners of English. Applied Linguistics, 27, 590-619.
50. Larsen-Freeman, D., & Strom, V. (1977). The construction of a second language acquisition index of development. Language Learning, 27, 123-134.
51. Loban, W. (1976). Language development: Kindergarten through grade twelve. NCTE Research Report No. 18. Urbana, 111. National Council of Teachers of English.
52. Lord, C. (2002). Are Subordinate Clauses More Difficult? In J. Bybee & M. Noonan (Eds.). Complex sentences in grammar and discourse: Essays in honor of Sandra A. Thompson (pp. 223-234). Amsterdam: John Benjamins.
53. Lu, X. (2010). Automatic analysis of syntactic complexity in second language writing. International Journal of Corpus Linguistics, 15(4), 474-496.
54. *Mehnert, U. (1998). The effects of different lengths of time for planning on second language performance. Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 20, 52-83.
55. Michel, M.C. (2010). Cognitive and interactive aspects of task-based performance in Dutch as a second language. Unpublished Ph.D. dissertation, Universiteit van Amsterdam.
56. *Michel, M.C., Kuiken, F., & Vedder, I. (2007). The influence of complexity in monologic versus dialogic tasks in Dutch L2. International Review of Applied Linguistics in Language Teaching, 45, 241-259.
57. Miestamo, M., Sinnemäki, K., & Karlsson, F. (Eds.). (2008). Language complexity: Typology, contact, change. Amsterdam: John Benjamins.
58. Miles, S., & Bernstein Ratner, N. (2001). Parental language input to children at a stuttering onset. Journal of Speech, Language & Hearing Research, 44, 1116-1130.
59. Mitchell, M. (2009). Complexity - A guided tour. Oxford: OUP.
60. *Mochizuki, N., & Ortega, L. (2008). Balancing communication and grammar in beginning-level foreign language classrooms: A study of guided planning and relativization. Language Teaching Research, 12, 11-37.
61. Norris, J.M., & Ortega, L. (2000). Effectiveness of L2 instruction: a research synthesis and quantitative meta-analysis. Language Learning, 50(3), 417-528.
62. Norris, J.M., & Ortega, L. (2009). Measurement for understanding: An organic approach to inves-tigating complexity, accuracy, and fluency in SLA. Applied Linguistics, 30(4), 555-578.
63. *Ortega, L. (1995). The effect of planning in oral narratives by adult learners of Spanish (Research Note No. 15). Honolulu, HI: University of Hawai'i, Second Language Teaching and Curriculum Center.
64. *Ortega, L. (1999). Planning and focus on form in L2 oral performance. Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 21, 109-148.
65. Ortega, L. (2003). Syntactic complexity measures and their relationship to L2 proficiency: A research synthesis of college-level L2 writing. Applied Linguistics, 24(4), 492-518.
66. Pallotti, G. (2008). Defining and assessing interactional complexity: An empirical study. Paper presented at AILA, Essen, August 2008.
67. Pallotti, G. (2009). CAF: Defining, refining and differentiating constructs. Applied Linguistics, 30(4), 590-601.
68. Polio, C. (2001). Research methodology in second language writing: The case of text-based stud-ies. In T. Silva, & P. Matsuda (Eds.). On second language writing (pp. 91-116). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.
69. *Rahimpour, M., & Yaghoubi-Notash, M. (2007). Examining gender-based variability in task-prompted, monologic L2 oral performance. The Asian EFL Journal, 9(3), 156-179.
70. Rescher, N. (1998). Complexity: A philosophical overview. London: Transaction Publishers.
71. *Révész, A. (2008). Task complexity, focus on form-meaning connections, and individual differ-ences: A classroom-based study. Paper presented at AILA, Essen, August 2008.
72. Révész, A. (2009). Task complexity, focus on form, and second language development. Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 31(3), 437-470.
73. Rice, M., Redmond, S., & Hoffman, L. (2006). Mean length of utterance in children with Specific Language Impairment and in younger control children shows concurrent valid-ity and stable and parallel growth trajectories. Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research, 49, 793-808.
74. *Robinson, P. (1995). Task complexity and second language narrative discourse. Language Learning, 45, 99-140.
75. *Robinson, P. (2001). Task complexity, task difficulty, and task production: Exploring interac-tions in a componential framework. Applied Linguistics, 22, 27-57.
76. *Robinson, P. (2007). Task complexity, theory of mind, and intentional reasoning: Effects on L2 speech production, interaction, uptake and perceptions of task difficulty. International Review of Applied Linguistics, 45, 237-257.
77. Robinson, P., Cadierno, T., & Shirai, Y. (2009). Time and motion: Measuring the effects of the conceptual demands of tasks on second language speech production. Applied Linguistics, 30, 533-554.
78. Robinson, P. & Ellis, N.C. (2008). Cognitive linguistics, second language acquisition and L2 instruction - Issues for research. In P. Robinson & N.C. Ellis (Eds.). Handbook of cognitive linguistics and second language acquisition (pp. 489-546). New York: Routledge.
79. Robinson, P., & Ellis, N. (Eds.). (2008). Handbook of cognitive linguistics and second language acquisition. London: Routledge.
80. Rohdenburg, G. (1996). Cognitive complexity and increased grammatical explicitness in English. Cognitive Linguistics, 7, 149-182.
81. *Rutherford, K. (2001). An investigation of the effects of planning on oral production in a second language. MA Thesis, University of Auckland.
82. *Sangarun, J. (2005). The effects of focusing on meaning and form in strategic planning. In R. Ellis (Ed.). Planning and task performance in a second language (pp. 111-142). Amsterdam: John Benjamins.
83. *Sercu, L., De Wachter, L., Peters, E., Kuiken, F., & Vedder, I. (2006). The effect of task complexity and task conditions on foreign language development and performance. Three empirical studies. ITL, International Journal of Applied Linguistics, 152, 55-84.
84. Skehan, P. (2003). Task-based instruction. Language Teaching, 36, 1-14.
85. Skehan, P. (2009). Modelling Second Language Performance: Integrating complexity, accuracy, fluency and lexis. Applied Linguistics, 30(4), 510-532.
86. *Skehan, P., & Foster, P. (1997). Task type and task processing conditions as influences on for-eign language performance. Language Teaching Research, 1, 185-211.
87. *Skehan, P., & Foster, P. (2005). Strategic and on-line planning: The influence of surprise infor-mation and task time on second language performance. In R. Ellis (Ed.). Planning and task performance in a second language (pp. 193-216). Amsterdam: John Benjamins.
88. Spada, N., & Tomita, Y. (2010). Interactions between type of instruction and type of language feature: A meta-analysis. Language Learning, 60(2), 1-46.
89. Spoelman, M., & Verspoor, M. (2010). Dynamic patterns in development of accuracy and com-plexity: A longitudinal case study in the acquisition of Finnish. Applied Linguistics, 31, 532-553.
90. *Storch, N., & Wigglesworth, G. (2007). Writing tasks: The effects of collaboration. In M.P. García Mayo (Ed.). Investigating tasks in formal language learning (pp. 157-177). Clevedon: Multilingual Matters.
91. *Tajima, M. (2003). The effects of planning on oral performance of Japanese as a foreign language. Ph.D. dissertation, Perdue University.
92. *Tavakoli, P., & Foster, P. (2008). Task design and second language performance: The effect of narrative type on learner output. Language Learning, 58, 439-473.
93. *Tavakoli, P., & Skehan, P. (2005). Strategic planning, task structure, and performance testing. In R. Ellis (Ed.). Planning and task performance in a second language (pp. 239-273). Amsterdam: John Benjamins.
94. Unsworth, S. (2008). Comparing child L2 development with adult L2 development: How to measure L2 proficiency. In E. Gavruseva, & B. Haznedar (Eds.). Current trends in child second language acquisition (pp. 301-336). Amsterdam: John Benjamins.
95. Van Daele, S., Housen, A. & Pierrard, M. (2008). Fluency, accuracy and complexity in the mani-festation and development of two second languages. In S. Van Daele, A. Housen, F. Kuiken, M. Pierrard, & I. Vedder (Eds.). Complexity, accuracy and fluency in second language use, learning and teaching (pp. 301-316). Wetteren: Universa Press.
96. Verspoor, M., Lowie, W., & Van Dijk, M. (2008). Variability in second language development from a dynamic systems perspective. Modern Language Journal, 92(2), 214-231.
97. *Wigglesworth, G. (1997). An investigation of planning time and proficiency level on oral test discourse. Language Testing, 14(1), 21-44.
98. Wolfe-Quintero, K., Inagaki, S., & Kim, H.-Y. (1998). Second language development in writing: Measures of fluency, accuracy, and complexity. Honolulu, HI: University of Hawaii, Second Language Teaching & Curriculum Center.
99. *Yuan, F., & Ellis, R. (2003). The effects of pre-task and on-line planning on fluency, complexity and accuracy in L2 monologic oral production. Applied Linguistics, 24(1), 1-27.
100. Zaki, H., & Ellis, R. (1999). Learning Vocabulary through interacting with written text. In R. Ellis (Ed.). Learning a second language through interaction (pp. 151-169). Amsterdam: John Benjamins.