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Articles 1 - 30 of 226
Full-Text Articles in Social and Behavioral Sciences
Impact Of Intercultural Competence On Communicative Success In L2 Environments(With Reference To Missionaries Of The Church Ofjesus Christ Of Latter-Day Saints), David Milford Lucero
Impact Of Intercultural Competence On Communicative Success In L2 Environments(With Reference To Missionaries Of The Church Ofjesus Christ Of Latter-Day Saints), David Milford Lucero
Theses and Dissertations
This study explores the impact of cultural competence on success in completing key missionary tasks. Qualitative survey results are supported by data from an intercultural effectiveness assessment and a Mandarin Chinese listening proficiency test to describe themes related to missionary communicative success and to explore correlations between intercultural effectiveness and listening proficiency. Missionary communicative tasks are clarified into themes:"obtaining referrals,"obtaining teaching opportunities," and"helping people make and keep commitments." Factors perceived as associating with communicative success include"feeling and communicating love" and receiving"spiritual guidance." The effect of training on intercultural competence is also described. The intercultural effectiveness subcategory of positive regard is …
L1 And L2 Reading Behaviors By Proficiency Level: An English-Portuguese Eye-Tracking Study, Larissa Grahl
L1 And L2 Reading Behaviors By Proficiency Level: An English-Portuguese Eye-Tracking Study, Larissa Grahl
Theses and Dissertations
The process of reading in a second language is an under-studied area of research on second language processing. Researchers have found similarities and differences between first- and second-language reading (Koda, 2007; Artieda, 2017; Walter, 2007), and many believe that readers’ successful reading behaviors in their L1 reflect their reading patterns in the L2 (Yamashita, 2007; Cummings, 1991; Sparks & Ganschow, 1995). Others claim that a certain threshold level of L2 language proficiency is necessary before L1 reading ability transfers to L2 reading (Clark, 1978; Cummings, 1991). Eye tracking technology has enabled researchers to investigate early and late reading measures, the …
Implementing Mental Contrasting To Improve English Language Learner Social Networks, Hannah Trimble Brown
Implementing Mental Contrasting To Improve English Language Learner Social Networks, Hannah Trimble Brown
Theses and Dissertations
The present study looks at how utilizing mental contrasting with implementation intentions (MCII), a form of self-regulation, impacts the social networks of English language learners’ in a study abroad (SA) setting. Over 100 English language learners (ELLs) form the treatment and control groups for this study. This research compares the social network measures between students who used MCII and those who did not over the course of one 14-week semester in an intensive English program in the United States. It also examines students' perception of this self-regulation strategy. Additionally, the impact of MCII on students who are in their first …
The Effects Of Repeated Reading On The Fluency Of Intermediate-Level English-As-A-Second-Language Learners: An Eye-Tracking Study, Krista Carlene Rich
The Effects Of Repeated Reading On The Fluency Of Intermediate-Level English-As-A-Second-Language Learners: An Eye-Tracking Study, Krista Carlene Rich
Theses and Dissertations
Most would agree that reading fluency is a concern of every L2 teacher. Repeated reading (RR) positively affects fluency development, supported by much research with L1 children. However, relatively little focus has been given to L2 RR. Most research on RR in L2 settings has focused on audio-assisted RR, used insufficient data collection methods prone to human error, and taken place in an EFL setting. In our experiment, we used eye–tracking as a direct mode of measurement of the effects that RR has on early and late reading measures. In this study, 30 intermediate-level English language learners studying in an …
Sociocultural Identification With The United States And English Pronunciation Comprehensibility And Accent Among International Esl Students, Christinah Paige Mulder
Sociocultural Identification With The United States And English Pronunciation Comprehensibility And Accent Among International Esl Students, Christinah Paige Mulder
Theses and Dissertations
Sociocultural identity is defined for this study as the element of identity affixed to a social or cultural group. Previous research on sociocultural identity has recognized the need for further study of its effect on second language performance, particularly pronunciation. Previous studies have found contradictory results when studying the relationships between sociocultural identity and various measures of second language pronunciation. This thesis takes a quantitative correlational approach to the study of sociocultural identification with the United States and English pronunciation comprehensibility and accent in a group of 68 international students learning English in the United States. Participants completed a survey …
The Effects Of Teacher Background On How Teachers Assess Native-Like And Nonnative-Like Grammar Errors: An Eye-Tracking Study, Wesley Makoto Schramm
The Effects Of Teacher Background On How Teachers Assess Native-Like And Nonnative-Like Grammar Errors: An Eye-Tracking Study, Wesley Makoto Schramm
Theses and Dissertations
Studies have shown that composition and L2 writing teachers give different scores (Golombek, Weigle, Boldt, & Valsecchi, 2003) and focus on different features (Brown, 1991) when assessing student writing, which is assumed to be due to the differences in their background and training (Santos, 1992; Atkinson & Ramanathan, 1995). Error gravity is thought to be one reason why composition and L2 writing teachers give different scores (Rifkin & Roberts, 1995). Common methods for examining error gravity were to analyze scores and responses given by the raters and to have raters reflect on the rating process and analyze their responses. Only …
Second Language Semantic Retrieval In The Bilingual Mind: The Case Of Korean-English Expert Bilinguals, Janice Si-Man Lam
Second Language Semantic Retrieval In The Bilingual Mind: The Case Of Korean-English Expert Bilinguals, Janice Si-Man Lam
Theses and Dissertations
The present study aims to explore the relationship between proficiency level and semantic retrieval in the second language. A group of Korean bilinguals who speak English with high proficiency performed semantic relatedness judgement tasks of two hundred English word pairs. Unbeknownst to the participants, half of the words in both the related and the unrelated categories contained a "hidden prime"—a common first syllable shared by the two words, if translated into Korean. Each participant's event-related potential (ERP) was recorded while reading the words. While a former study by Thierry and Wu (2007) found that Chinese-English bilinguals were affected by the …
Backward Transfer Of Apology Strategies From Japanese To English: Do English L1 Speakers Use Japanese-Style Apologies When Speaking English?, Candice April Flowers
Backward Transfer Of Apology Strategies From Japanese To English: Do English L1 Speakers Use Japanese-Style Apologies When Speaking English?, Candice April Flowers
Theses and Dissertations
When learning a second language, there are elements of a learner's native language that can transfer and are exhibited during production in the second language. This can extend not only to the way things are said but even to gestures that are language- and speech-act-specific. However, there is evidence that the same can occur backwards, that is to say that elements of a second language can be exhibited during production of one's native language (Pavlenko and Jarvis, 2002). This study focuses on English L1 learners of Japanese who have spent significant time both in country and learning the language to …
Applying The Developmental Path Of English Negation To The Automated Scoring Of Learner Essays, Allen Travis Moore
Applying The Developmental Path Of English Negation To The Automated Scoring Of Learner Essays, Allen Travis Moore
Theses and Dissertations
The resources required to have humans score extended written response items in English language learner (ELL) contexts has caused automated essay scoring (AES) to emerge as a desired alternative. However, these systems often rely heavily on indirect proxies of writing quality such as word, sentence, and essay lengths because of their strong correlation to scores (Vajjala, 2017). This has led to concern about the validity of the features used to establish the predictive accuracy of AES systems (Attali, 2007; Weigle, 2013). Reliance on construct-irrelevant features in ELL contexts also forfeits the opportunity to provide meaningful diagnostic feedback to test-takers or …
Cultural Differences In Russian And English Magazine Advertising: A Pragmatic Approach, Emily Kay Furner
Cultural Differences In Russian And English Magazine Advertising: A Pragmatic Approach, Emily Kay Furner
Theses and Dissertations
Many American companies looking to increase sales and achieve growth targets consider expanding the reach of their product lines to other countries. However, expansion on a global scale often requires much trial and error as English-speaking companies try to market their goods to a foreign audience. In order to ease this process, localization experts are often hired to "localize" or change advertisements in order to make them more culturally relevant to consumers. Because the field of localization is relatively new, there is little research done on the degree and extent to which advertisements are localized. The purpose of this study …
Performance Self-Appraisal Calibration Of Esl Students On A Proficiency Reading Test, Jodi Mikolajcik Petersen
Performance Self-Appraisal Calibration Of Esl Students On A Proficiency Reading Test, Jodi Mikolajcik Petersen
Theses and Dissertations
Self-assessment as a placement measure or accurate assessment of skill has been scrutinized in previous research. Findings have shown a general human tendency towards overconfidence in performance (Kruger & Dunning, 1999). This study looks at performance self-appraisals in an ESL population, with participants from varying cultural backgrounds. Performance self-appraisal calibration is a measure of the relationship between an examinee's perceived skill (or confidence) and their actual skill (or ability) on a given exam item (Phakiti, 2016). Being well-calibrated is an indication that test takers know their strengths and weaknesses and thus the difference between confidence and ability is minimal, whereas …
Investigating The Perception Of Identity Shift In Trilingual Speakers: A Case Study, Elena Vasilachi
Investigating The Perception Of Identity Shift In Trilingual Speakers: A Case Study, Elena Vasilachi
Theses and Dissertations
This is a case study that examines the perception of identity shift in trilingual speakers. The participants were three females from Moldova, a country in Eastern Europe, that have moved to the U.S. Participants responded to open-ended questions during an individual interview and self-report. The questions were about (1) the way they think in their native language, (2) the way they feel in different situations while switching languages, and (3) their interactions with others, depending on their relationships with the participants, the situation, and the language they use at that moment. Primary findings suggest that trilingual speakers perceive a shift …
Switch-Reference In Pastaza Kichwa, Alexander Harrison Rice
Switch-Reference In Pastaza Kichwa, Alexander Harrison Rice
Theses and Dissertations
Pastaza Kichwa is a Quechuan language spoken in eastern Ecuador. This thesis describes its use of switch-reference which is traditionally understood to be an interclausal cross-referencing feature. Switch-reference is manifested by one of two morphemes that mark a subordinate clause as having either the same or different subject as another clause. Switch-reference has been described for other Quechuan languages and some of these studies present challenges to the theoretical underpinnings of switch reference (Stewart 1988, Dreidemie 2007) others present associated functions of switch-reference morphemes (Cole 1982). This study tests some of the propositions made about switch-reference in other Quechuan languages …
Pun Strategies Across Joke Schemata: A Corpus-Based Study, Robert Nishan Crapo
Pun Strategies Across Joke Schemata: A Corpus-Based Study, Robert Nishan Crapo
Theses and Dissertations
In the linguistic study of humor, research has largely been centered around the formulation of models and theories or the dissecting and categorization of jokes. Because of the often difficult-to-categorize aspects of verbal jokes, much time has been spent trying to create taxonomies for humor types and mechanisms. Linguists such as Raskin and Attardo have sought to categorize all verbal humor according to various functional elements (Attardo & Raskin, 1991). Such elements include, but are not limited to, the logical mechanism that drives the humor in the joke or the situation where the joke takes place. These categorizations are helpful …
Rubric Rating With Mfrm Vs. Randomly Distributed Comparative Judgment: A Comparison Of Two Approaches To Second-Language Writing Assessment, Maureen Estelle Sims
Rubric Rating With Mfrm Vs. Randomly Distributed Comparative Judgment: A Comparison Of Two Approaches To Second-Language Writing Assessment, Maureen Estelle Sims
Theses and Dissertations
The purpose of this study is to explore a potentially more practical approach to direct writing assessment using computer algorithms. Traditional rubric rating (RR) is a common yet highly resource-intensive evaluation practice when performed reliably. This study compared the traditional rubric model of ESL writing assessment and many-facet Rasch modeling (MFRM) to comparative judgment (CJ), the new approach, which shows promising results in terms of reliability and validity. We employed two groups of raters”novice and experienced”and used essays that had been previously double-rated, analyzed with MFRM, and selected with fit statistics. We compared the results of the novice and experienced …
An Analysis Of Rehearsed Speech Characteristics On The Oral Proficiency Interview—Computer (Opic), Gwyneth Elaine Gates
An Analysis Of Rehearsed Speech Characteristics On The Oral Proficiency Interview—Computer (Opic), Gwyneth Elaine Gates
Theses and Dissertations
The ACTFL Proficiency Guidelines identify memorized words and phrases as a hallmark of novice-level speech. For this reason, research by Cox (2017) found rehearsed content to be a major hindrance to interviewees being rated at higher sublevels on the Oral Proficiency Interview-computer (OPIc). To further investigate, an analysis of these memorized segments to determine patterns of lexico-grammatical and discursive features was conducted. In this study, researchers utilized a Praat analysis to compare prosodic features (specifically, mean length of utterance, number of silent pauses, and articulation rate) of speech segments marked as memorized and those which were not. A qualitative analysis …
Evaluating The Effectiveness Of A Korean Heritage-Speaking Interpreter, Yoonjoo Lee
Evaluating The Effectiveness Of A Korean Heritage-Speaking Interpreter, Yoonjoo Lee
Theses and Dissertations
The U.S. is a country of immigrants who are non-native speakers of English (NNS), yet its legal system is not always in the favor of them. One of the issues for the NNSs is not being provided with proficient interpreters in legal settings such as police interrogations or courtrooms. There are times when some NNSs are offered qualified interpreters or translators, but others are provided with heritages speakers of needed languages in the local area. The heritages speakers are often thought to have good proficiency in languages, but unfortunately thats not always the case. To investigate the need for qualified …
Multilingual Trends In Five London Boroughs: A Linguistic Landscape Approach, Shayla Ann Johnson
Multilingual Trends In Five London Boroughs: A Linguistic Landscape Approach, Shayla Ann Johnson
Theses and Dissertations
Although multilingualism has been investigated in London, no studies have addressed the multilingual linguistic landscape of this linguistically diverse globalized mega-city. In addition, no previous research has addressed the linguistic impacts of colonialism on the colonizer with respect to signage in the linguistic landscape. With increasing rates of immigration and globalization in London, it is advantageous to fully document and research the nature of the linguistic landscape in order to create a baseline for future comparison. Consequently, aspects of the linguistic landscape of five London boroughs were collected and analyzed in terms of 2,062 signage items. The study noted multilingual …
Idioms Or Open Choice? A Corpus Based Analysis, Kaitlyn Alayne Vanwagoner
Idioms Or Open Choice? A Corpus Based Analysis, Kaitlyn Alayne Vanwagoner
Theses and Dissertations
The ambiguous nature of idioms has been a persistent challenge for English language learners and researches alike. Problematic issues include identifying which idioms are most pertinent for study, and the question of how frequently idiom forms found in dictionaries and other canonized resources actually function as idioms in real language use. This study differentiates between idiom forms used idiomatically (idiom-principle) versus literally (open-choice principle), and provides quantitative data to assess this difference. The data was obtained through a corpus analysis of 1,000 randomly-selected idioms in 10,000 randomly-selected contexts (10 contexts per idiom), and revealed that the majority of idiom forms …
Nature Or Nurture In English Academic Writing: Korean And American Rhetorical Patterns, Sunok Kim
Nature Or Nurture In English Academic Writing: Korean And American Rhetorical Patterns, Sunok Kim
Theses and Dissertations
For many years, linguists, ESL writing teachers, and especially students have puzzled over the phenomenon where non-native English writers' sentences are grammatically correct, but their paragraphs and complete essays often appear illogical to native English speaking readers. From the perspective of Kaplan's original contrastive rhetoric theory where American rhetoric is "linear," Korean L2 writers' apparently circular rhetoric causes problems. Even though Korean writers are trying to write paragraphs that are logical for native English readers, this illogical output results in Korean ESL students being perceived as poor writers. In order to discover more about the nature of the rhetorical problems …
Comparing The Awl And Avl In Textbooks From An Intensive English Program, Michelle Morgan Hernandez
Comparing The Awl And Avl In Textbooks From An Intensive English Program, Michelle Morgan Hernandez
Theses and Dissertations
Academic vocabulary is an important determiner of academic success for both native and non-native speakers of English (Corson, 1997; Gardner, 2013; Hsueh-chao & Nation, 2000). In an attempt to address this need, Coxhead (2000) developed the Academic Word List (AWL)—a list of words common across a range of academic disciplines; however, Gardner & Davies (2014) identified potential limitations in the AWL and have more recently produced their own list of core academic vocabulary—the Academic Vocabulary List (AVL). This study compares the occurrences of the AWL and AVL word families in an intensive English program (IEP) corpus of 50 texts to …
Applying Corpus-Assisted Critical Discourse Analysis To An Unrestricted Corpus: A Case Study In Indonesian And Malay Newspapers, Sara Luanne White
Applying Corpus-Assisted Critical Discourse Analysis To An Unrestricted Corpus: A Case Study In Indonesian And Malay Newspapers, Sara Luanne White
Theses and Dissertations
In 2008, Baker et al. proposed a nine-step method that combines quantitative corpus linguistics with qualitative critical discourse analysis. To date this cycle has only been used to analyze a single language with a restricted corpus. Can this method, originally designed for this narrow focus, be applied cross-culturally to an unrestricted corpus? There are two over-arching goals for this paper, one linguistic and one methodological. The first goal is to learn about language ideologies in Indonesian and Malay newspapers; the second goal is to evaluate the efficacy of a mixed-methods corpus-driven approach to discourse analysis using the methods proposed by …
A Latent Class Analysis Of American English Dialects, Stephanie Nicole Hedges
A Latent Class Analysis Of American English Dialects, Stephanie Nicole Hedges
Theses and Dissertations
Research on the dialects of English spoken within the United States shows variation regarding lexical, morphological, syntactic, and phonological features. Previous research has tended to focus on one linguistic variable at a time with variation. To incorporate multiple variables in the same analysis, this thesis uses a latent class analysis to perform a cluster analysis on results from the Harvard Dialect Survey (2003) in order to investigate what phonetic variables from the Harvard Dialect Survey are most closely associated with each dialect. This thesis also looks at how closely the latent class analysis results correspond to the Atlas of North …
The Impact Of Changing Toefl Cut-Scores On University Admissions, Laura Michelle Decker
The Impact Of Changing Toefl Cut-Scores On University Admissions, Laura Michelle Decker
Theses and Dissertations
As the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) is often used as a determiner for university admissions, this study observes the effect on the international student population at a large private university through the examination of the international student admissions data including TOEFL and first-year GPA from 2005-2015. With the anonymous data of 9,837 students, researchers analyzed the result of a cut-score change at the university. Results indicated that the number of international students decreased at the university. As expected, the TOEFL data revealed a normal distribution for the overall (combined) score and subsection scores, while the GPA …
An Acoustical Analysis Of The American English /L, R/ Contrast As Produced By Adult Japanese Learners Of English Incorporating Word Position And Task Type, Braden Paul Chase
An Acoustical Analysis Of The American English /L, R/ Contrast As Produced By Adult Japanese Learners Of English Incorporating Word Position And Task Type, Braden Paul Chase
Theses and Dissertations
Adult Japanese learners of English (JLEs) are often stereotyped as being unable to produce or perceive the English phonemes /l/ and /r/. This study analyzed acoustic samples of /l/ and /r/ obtained from intermediate-level Japanese speakers in two variable contexts: word positions (initial/final) and task type (controlled/free). These tokens were subjected to acoustic analysis which is one way of comparing oral productions of native and non-native English speakers. Previous research has identified a lowered third formant (F3) as the hallmark of an American English /r/ as produced by a native speaker, independent of word position or task type. The results …
Taking The "Foreign" Out Of The Foreign Language Classroom Anxiety Scale, Jared Benjamin Sell
Taking The "Foreign" Out Of The Foreign Language Classroom Anxiety Scale, Jared Benjamin Sell
Theses and Dissertations
Anxiety in the language classroom is an important issue because it affects student performance (Woodrow, 2006). The majority of research conducted has focused on anxiety or apprehension that language learners experience in a foreign language classroom, including students learning English as a foreign language (EFL) context. Only a few studies have been done, however, that address the needs of learners experiencing anxiety in an ESL setting. Data were gathered from 179 students attending a university sponsored intensive English program using a modified version of the Foreign Language Classroom Anxiety Scale (FLCAS) (Horwitz, Horwitz & Cope, 1986) and focus groups. Initial …
Differences In The Motivations Of Chinese Learners Of English In Different (Foreign Or Second Language) Contexts, Rui Li
Theses and Dissertations
This study employed the L2 Motivational Self-System (Dörnyei, 2005) as a framework to compare differences in the types of motivation reported by Chinese learners of English in a foreign language context (China) and a second language context (USA). It followed up on studies by Taguchi, Magid, and Papi (2009) and You and Dörnyei (2016). The participants consisted of 61 current students at an American university who come from Mainland China. This study adopted a mixed-method approach, using an internet-based questionnaire followed by an individual interview. The investigation aimed to explore what types of English learning motivation Chinese students have in …
Eye Behavior While Reading Words Of Sanskrit And Urdu Origin In Hindi, Tahira Carroll
Eye Behavior While Reading Words Of Sanskrit And Urdu Origin In Hindi, Tahira Carroll
Theses and Dissertations
Hindi and Urdu are two branches of the same language sometimes known as Hindustani. They are divided by orthography and geography but when spoken are sometimes indistinguishable. Both have contributed loanwords that have now been completely assimilated into the language. The question of how the eye behaves during Hindi reading when it encounters Urdu loanwords has not been focused on extensively in prior research. The main purpose of this thesis is to document the eye behavior during reading Sanskrit-based words and Urdu loanwords in Hindi. We place fifteen word pairs consisting of one target Hindi Sanskrit-based word and its Urdu …
Spanish Heritage Bilingual Perception Of English-Specific Vowel Contrasts, John B. Nielsen
Spanish Heritage Bilingual Perception Of English-Specific Vowel Contrasts, John B. Nielsen
Theses and Dissertations
Theories of lexical storage differ in how entries are encoded in the lexicon. Exemplar-based accounts posit that lexical items are stored with detailed acoustic information, while abstract accounts argue that fine acoustic detail is removed and an item is stored in more basic phonological units. These separate accounts make distinct predictions about cross-linguistic and bilingual perception. Studies asking participants to compare non-native vowels have shown that people tend to associate multiple non-native phonemes to a single L1 phoneme when the contrast between the two does not exist in the L1. However, several studies have shown that the ability to discriminate …
Investigating The Effects Of Rater's Second Language Learning Background And Familiarity With Test-Taker's First Language On Speaking Test Scores, Ksenia Zhao
Theses and Dissertations
Prior studies suggest that raters' familiarity with test-takers' first language (L1) can be a potential source of bias in rating speaking tests. However, there is still no consensus between researchers on how and to what extent that familiarity affects the scores. This study investigates raters' performance and focuses on not only how raters' second language (L2) proficiency level interacts with examinees' L1, but also if raters' teaching experience has any effect on the scores. Speaking samples of 58 ESL learners with L1s of Spanish (n = 30) and three Asian languages (Korean, n = 12; Chinese, n = 8; and …