Abstract
This study explores the extent to which phraseological complexity measures can predict second-language (L2) writing quality of low- and intermediate-level learners, especially in comparison with the more traditional syntactic and lexical complexity measures. To measure phraseological complexity, we evaluated phraseological diversity and phraseological sophistication by focusing on two commonly-used phraseological units (adjective-noun and verb-direct-object combinations). Our findings show that phraseological, syntactic, and lexical complexity measures can respectively explain 36.0, 34.4, and 56.5% of variance in writing scores. Although lexical complexity measures are responsible for more variance in writing scores, all three complexity dimensions contribute to the predictive power of writing scores, as evinced by the combined model explaining 63.4% of variance. Most phraseological complexity measures were loaded onto individual factors by the factor analysis, suggesting that phraseological complexity is an independent dimension of L2 complexity.
Funding source: National Social Science Foundation of China
Award Identifier / Grant number: 17AYY021
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Research funding: This study is supported by the National Social Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 17AYY021).
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Competing interests: The authors declare that they have no competing interests.
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© 2021 Walter de Gruyter GmbH, Berlin/Boston
Articles in the same Issue
- Frontmatter
- Research Articles
- English and Spanish speakers’ interpretations of L2 Chinese applicative double object constructions
- (Mis) perception of consonant clusters and short vowels in English as a foreign language
- Phraseological complexity and low- and intermediate-level L2 learners’ writing quality
- The use of blocking and inhibition training in processing instruction
- Second language listening instruction and learners’ vocabulary knowledge
- Acquisition of attributive adjectives and noun adjuncts by L3 learners of French and German: further evidence for the typological primacy model (TPM)
- Non-canonical word order as a measure of syntactic complexity in advanced L2 German
- Acquisition of morphology by L2 children in naturalistic environments: a case of Japanese case markers
- N-gram use in EFL learners’ retelling and monologic tasks
- The structure of L2 lexical-semantic networks as seen from a social network perspective
- Deciphering the role of multilingualism in creativity at university: the influence of context
- The associations between working memory and the effects of multimedia input on L2 vocabulary learning
- The acquisition of relative clauses by Spanish-Basque learners of L3 English: does dominance play a role?
- The impact of pragmalinguistic support on video-conferenced collaborative suggestion-giving task
- L2 writing development through two types of writing task repetition
- Learning aspect in Italian as additional language. The role of second languages
- Immediate and long-term improvement in lexical stress perception: the role of teacher and peer feedback
- Exploring the pseudo-longitudinal development of specific morphosyntactic features and syntactic complexity in CLIL young learners
- Measurement of engagement in the foreign language classroom and its effect on language achievement: the case of Chinese college EFL students
Articles in the same Issue
- Frontmatter
- Research Articles
- English and Spanish speakers’ interpretations of L2 Chinese applicative double object constructions
- (Mis) perception of consonant clusters and short vowels in English as a foreign language
- Phraseological complexity and low- and intermediate-level L2 learners’ writing quality
- The use of blocking and inhibition training in processing instruction
- Second language listening instruction and learners’ vocabulary knowledge
- Acquisition of attributive adjectives and noun adjuncts by L3 learners of French and German: further evidence for the typological primacy model (TPM)
- Non-canonical word order as a measure of syntactic complexity in advanced L2 German
- Acquisition of morphology by L2 children in naturalistic environments: a case of Japanese case markers
- N-gram use in EFL learners’ retelling and monologic tasks
- The structure of L2 lexical-semantic networks as seen from a social network perspective
- Deciphering the role of multilingualism in creativity at university: the influence of context
- The associations between working memory and the effects of multimedia input on L2 vocabulary learning
- The acquisition of relative clauses by Spanish-Basque learners of L3 English: does dominance play a role?
- The impact of pragmalinguistic support on video-conferenced collaborative suggestion-giving task
- L2 writing development through two types of writing task repetition
- Learning aspect in Italian as additional language. The role of second languages
- Immediate and long-term improvement in lexical stress perception: the role of teacher and peer feedback
- Exploring the pseudo-longitudinal development of specific morphosyntactic features and syntactic complexity in CLIL young learners
- Measurement of engagement in the foreign language classroom and its effect on language achievement: the case of Chinese college EFL students