Studying structural innovations in New English varieties
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Ulrike Gut
Abstract
This chapter, which is of a theoretical-conceptual rather than an empirical nature, is concerned with the characterization of structural innovations in New English varieties and the question of whether they can be described as transfer phenomena and learner errors. It first gives a review of relevant empirical studies and presents the state of the art in research in second language acquisition on the nature of cross-linguistic influence and the factors that constrain it. Based on this, it subsequently proposes a model of how structural innovations in New English varieties might have emerged. In addition, previous methods of studying these innovations are discussed, and a best-practice methodology for future research is proposed. It is argued that the classification of a structure as either an error or as an innovation depends crucially on the speakers’ and speaker communities’ norm-orientation and attitudes.
Abstract
This chapter, which is of a theoretical-conceptual rather than an empirical nature, is concerned with the characterization of structural innovations in New English varieties and the question of whether they can be described as transfer phenomena and learner errors. It first gives a review of relevant empirical studies and presents the state of the art in research in second language acquisition on the nature of cross-linguistic influence and the factors that constrain it. Based on this, it subsequently proposes a model of how structural innovations in New English varieties might have emerged. In addition, previous methods of studying these innovations are discussed, and a best-practice methodology for future research is proposed. It is argued that the classification of a structure as either an error or as an innovation depends crucially on the speakers’ and speaker communities’ norm-orientation and attitudes.
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Introduction 1
- Modal auxiliaries in second language varieties of English 7
- English in Cyprus 35
- From EFL to ESL 55
- Formulaic sequences in spoken ENL, ESL and EFL 79
- Studying structural innovations in New English varieties 101
- Interrogative inversion as a learner phenomenon in English contact varieties 125
- Overuse of the progressive in ESL and learner Englishes – fact or fiction? 145
- Typological profiling 167
- A principled distinction between error and conventionalized innovation in African Englishes 189
- Discussion forum 209
- Bionotes 219
- Index 221
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Introduction 1
- Modal auxiliaries in second language varieties of English 7
- English in Cyprus 35
- From EFL to ESL 55
- Formulaic sequences in spoken ENL, ESL and EFL 79
- Studying structural innovations in New English varieties 101
- Interrogative inversion as a learner phenomenon in English contact varieties 125
- Overuse of the progressive in ESL and learner Englishes – fact or fiction? 145
- Typological profiling 167
- A principled distinction between error and conventionalized innovation in African Englishes 189
- Discussion forum 209
- Bionotes 219
- Index 221
