The challenge of constructing a reliable word list: An exploratory corpus-based analysis of lexical variability in introductory Psychology textbooks
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Don Miller
Abstract
This study highlights the methodological challenges inherent in reliably capturing meaningful sets of vocabulary for instructional focus. An analysis of a 3.1 million-word corpus of introductory psychology textbooks suggests that, while comparatively large, and, thus, presumably representative of the lexical variability in the target domain, this corpus was unable to capture a stable list of “important” words. Findings highlight an important issue requiring further investigation in corpus-based vocabulary research: the extent to which corpora – and the word lists based on them – reliably represent the lexical variability of their target domains. Keywords: Corpus representativeness; lexical diversity; word list reliability
Abstract
This study highlights the methodological challenges inherent in reliably capturing meaningful sets of vocabulary for instructional focus. An analysis of a 3.1 million-word corpus of introductory psychology textbooks suggests that, while comparatively large, and, thus, presumably representative of the lexical variability in the target domain, this corpus was unable to capture a stable list of “important” words. Findings highlight an important issue requiring further investigation in corpus-based vocabulary research: the extent to which corpora – and the word lists based on them – reliably represent the lexical variability of their target domains. Keywords: Corpus representativeness; lexical diversity; word list reliability
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- List of Contributors vii
- Foreword ix
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Introduction
- Douglas Biber and the Flagstaff School of corpus-based research xv
- A corpus-based analysis of linguistic variation in teacher and student presentations in university settings 1
- Telephone interactions 25
- On the complexity of academic writing 49
- Telling by omission 79
- Corpora, context, and language teachers 99
- The challenge of constructing a reliable word list: An exploratory corpus-based analysis of lexical variability in introductory Psychology textbooks 123
- Corpus linguistics and New Englishes 147
- Investigating textual borrowing in academic discourse 177
- Situating lexical bundles in the formulaic language spectrum 197
- Index 217
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- List of Contributors vii
- Foreword ix
-
Introduction
- Douglas Biber and the Flagstaff School of corpus-based research xv
- A corpus-based analysis of linguistic variation in teacher and student presentations in university settings 1
- Telephone interactions 25
- On the complexity of academic writing 49
- Telling by omission 79
- Corpora, context, and language teachers 99
- The challenge of constructing a reliable word list: An exploratory corpus-based analysis of lexical variability in introductory Psychology textbooks 123
- Corpus linguistics and New Englishes 147
- Investigating textual borrowing in academic discourse 177
- Situating lexical bundles in the formulaic language spectrum 197
- Index 217
