Article published In:
Australian Review of Applied LinguisticsVol. 37:2 (2014) ► pp.75–100
Dynamic development of complexity and accuracy
A case study in second language academic writing
This paper reports on the development of complexity and accuracy in English as a Second Language (ESL) academic writing. Although research into complexity and accuracy development in second language (L2) writing has been well established, few studies have assumed the multidimensionality of these two constructs (Norris & Ortega, 2009) or endeavoured to make long-term observations on the course of their development (Vyatkina, 2012). Given that recent research in the field of Second Language Acquisition has moved towards a more holistic perspective on language learning and development (Larsen-Freeman, 2011, 2012), there is a need to consider the potential dynamics of the longitudinal development of these constructs in L2 writing.
This study addresses this issue by exploring the dynamic unfolding of complexity and accuracy development in the academic writing of an advanced L2 learner during her postgraduate study in Australia. The results suggested that both complexity and accuracy displayed the characteristics of a dynamic system and their development was highly variable, non-linear, and idiosyncratic. Their interaction, too, was dynamic and changed over time. The findings in this study confirm and substantiate the Dynamic Systems Theory (DST) proposition of L2 developmental dynamics, including the development of L2 academic writing.
Keywords: complexity, dynamic development, L2 academic writing, accuracy, interaction
Available under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial (CC BY-NC) 4.0 license.
For any use beyond this license, please contact the publisher at [email protected].
References (92)
Biber, D., Gray, B., & Poonpon, K. (2011). Should
we use characteristics of conversation to measure grammatical complexity in L2 writing
development? TESOL
Quarterly, 45(1), 5–35. 
Brown, R. (1973). A
first language: The early stages. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
Byrnes, H., Maxim, H. H., & Norris, J. M. (2010). Realizing advanced foreign
language writing development in collegiate dducation: Curricular design, pedagogy, assessment
[Monograph] The Modern Language
Journal, 941(Supplement
S1), 1–202.
Caspi, T., & Lowie, W. (2010). A
dynamic perspective on L2 lexical development in academic
English. In R. Chacón-Beltrán, C. Abello-Contesse, & M. d. M. Torreblanca-López (Eds.), Insights
into non-native vocabulary teaching and
learning (pp. 41–60). Bristol: Multilingual Matters.
Cooper, T. (1976). Measuring
written syntactic patterns of second language learners of German. Journal of Educational
Research, 69(5), 176–183.
Council of Europe. (2001). Common European
Framework of Reference for language learning, teaching, assessment. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.
Cumming, A. (Ed.) (2006). Goals
for academic writing: ESL students and their
instructors. Philadelphia/Amsterdam: John Benjamins Publishing Company.
de Bot, K. (2008). Introduction:
Second language development as a dynamic process. The Modern Language
Journal, 92(2),166–178.
de Bot, K., Chan, H., Lowie, W., Plat, R., & Verspoor, M. H. (2012). A dynamic perspective on
language processing and development. Dutch Journal of Applied
Linguistics, 1(2), 188–218.
de Bot, K., & Larsen-Freeman, D. (2011). Researching
second language development from a dynamic systems theory
perspective. In M. H. Verspoor, K. de Bot & W. Lowie (Eds.), A
dynamic systems approach to second language
development (pp. 5–23). Amsterdam/Philadelphia: John Benjamins Publishing Company.
de Bot, K., & Lowie, W. (2010). On
the stability of representations in the multilingual
lexicon. In M. Pütz & L. Sicola (Eds.), Cognitive
processing in second language
acquisition (pp. 117–133). Amsterdam/Philadelphia: John Benjamins Publishing Company.
de Bot, K., Lowie, W., Thorne, S. L., & Verspoor, M. (2013). Dynamic
Systems Theory as a comprehensive theory of second language
development. In M. G. Mayo, M. G. Mangado, & M. M. Adrián (Eds.), Contemporary
approaches to second language
acquisition (pp. 1991–220). Amsterdam: John Benjamins Publishing Company.
de Bot, K., Lowie, W., & Verspoor, M. H. (2005). Second language acquisition: An
advanced resource
book. Oxon: Routledge.
(2007). A dynamic systems theory
approach to second language acquisition. Bilingualism: Language and
Cognition, 10(1), 7–21.
de Bot, K., Verspoor, M. H., & Lowie, W. (2005). Dynamic
systems theory and applied linguistics: The ultimate “so what”? International Journal of
Applied
Linguistics, 15(1), 116–118.
Ellis, R. (2003). Task-based
language learning and teaching. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Ellis, R. & Barkhuizen, G. (2005). Analysing
learner language. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Ferrari, S. (2012). A
longitudinal study of complexity, accuracy, and fluency variation in second language
development. In A. Housen, F. Kuiken, & I. Vedder (Eds.), Dimensions
of L2 performance and proficiency: Complexity, accuracy and fluency in
SLA (pp. 277–297). Amsterdam/Philadelphia: John Benjamins Publishing Company.
Flahive, D., & Snow, B. (1980). Measures
of syntactic complexity in evaluating ESL compositions. In J. Oller & K. Perkins (Eds.), Research
in language
testing (pp. 171–176). Rowley, MA: Newbury House.
Ho-Peng, L. (1983). Using
T–unit measures to assess writing proficiency of ESL students. RELC
Journal, 14(2), 35–43.
Housen, A. & Kuiken, F. (2009). Complexity,
accuracy, and fluency in second language acquisition. Applied
Linguistics, 301(4), 461–473. doi: 10.1093/applin/amp048
Housen, A., Kuiken, F., & Vedder, I. (2012). Complexity,
accuracy, and fluency: Definitions, measurement and
research. In A. Housen, F. Kuiken, & I. Vedder (Eds.), Dimensions
of L2 performance and proficiency: Complexity, accuracy and fluency in
SLA (pp. 1–20). Amsterdam/Philadelphia: John Benjamins Publishing Company.
Hunt, K. (1965). Grammatical
structures written at three grade levels (NCTE Research Report No.
3). Urbana, IL: The National Council of Teachers of English.
(1970). Syntactic
maturity in schoolchildren and adults. Monographs of the Society for Research in Child
Development, 35(1), 1–67.
Hyland, K. (2003). Second
language writing. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Ingvarsdóttir, H. & Arnbjörnsdóttir, B. (2013). ELF
and academic writing: A perspective from the Expanding Circle. Journal of English as a Lingua
Franca, 2(1), 123–145.
Jiang, W. (2013). Measurements
of development in L2 written production: The case of L2 Chinese. Applied
Linguistics, 34(1), 1–24.
Kim, M. & Sankey, D. (2009). Towards
a Dynamic Systems Approach to moral development and moral education: A response to the JME special
issue, September 2008. Journal of Moral
Education, 38(3), 283–298.
(2010). The
dynamics of emergent self–organization: Reconceptualizing child development in teacher
education. Australian Journal of Teacher
Education, 35(4), 79–98.
Larsen-Freeman, D. (1976). Evidence
of the need for a second language acquisition index of
development. In W. Ritchie (Ed.), Second
language acquisition research: Issues and
implications (pp. 127–136). New York: Academic Press, Inc.
(1978). An
ESL index of development. TESOL
Quarterly, 12(4), 439–448.
(1997). Chaos/complexity
science and second language acquisition. Applied
Linguistics, 18(2), 141–165.
(2002). Language
acquisition and language use from a Chaos/Complexity theory
perspective. In C. Kramsch (Ed.), Language
acquisition and language
socialization (pp. 33–46). London: Continuum.
(2006). The
emergence of complexity, fluency, and accuracy in the oral and written production of five Chinese learners of
English. Applied
Linguistics, 27(4), 590–619.
(2009). Adjusting
expectations: The study of complexity, accuracy and fluency in second language
acquisition. Applied
Linguistics, 30(4), 579–589.
(2010). The
dynamic co–adaptation of cognitive and social views: A complexity thoery
perspective. In R. Batstone (Ed.), Sociocognitive
perspectives on language use and language
learning (pp. 40–53). Oxford: Oxford University Press.
(2011). A
complexity theory approach to second language
development/acquisition. In D. Atkinson (Ed.), Alternative
approaches to second language
acquisition (pp. 48–72). London & New York: Routledge.
(2012). Complex,
dynamic systems: A new transdisciplinary theme for applied linguistics. Language
Teaching, 45(2), 202–214.
Larsen-Freeman, D., & Cameron, L. (2008). Research
methodology on language development from a complex systems perspective. The Modern Language
Journal, 92(2), 200–213.
Larsen-Freeman, D., & Storm, V. (1977). The
construction of a second language acquisition index of development. Language
Learning, 27(1), 123–134.
Leki, I. (2011). Learning
to write in a second language: Multilingual graduates and undergraduates expanding genre
repertoires. In R. M. Manchón (Ed.), Learning-to-write
and writing-to-learn in an additional
language (pp. 85–110). Philadelphia/Amsterdam: John Benjamins Publishing Company.
Leki, I., Cumming, A., & Silva, T. (2008). A
synthesis of research on second language writing in English (Vol.
Routledge): New York.
Levkina, M., & Gilabert, R. (2012). The
effects of cognitive task complexity on L2 oral production. In A. Housen, F. Kuiken, & I. Vedder (Eds.), Dimensions
of L2 performance and proficiency: Complexity, accuracy and fluency in
SLA (pp. 171–197). Amsterdam/Philadelphia: John Benjamins Publishing Company.
Lillis, T., & Curry, M. J. (2006). Professional academic writing
by multilingual scholars: Interactions with literacy brokers in the production of English-medium
texts. Written
Communication, 26(1) 3–35.
(2010). Academic writing in a global context:
The politics and practices of publishing in English. New York: Routledge.
Lowie, W., & Verspoor, M. (2014, March). Variability
and learning mechanisms. In K. de Bot & D. Larsen-Freeman (Chair), From
universality to variability in second language development. Colloquium conducted
at the meeting of the American Association for Applied Linguistics
2014, Portland, Oregon.
Lowie, W., Verspoor, M., & de Bot, K. (2009). A
dynamic view of second language development across the
lifespan. In K. de Bot & R. W. Schrauf (Eds.), Language
development over the
lifespan (pp. 125–145). New York: Routledge.
Lu, X. (2011). A
corpus–based evaluation of syntactic complexity measures as indices of college-level ESL writers’ language
development. TESOL
Quarterly, 445(1), 36–62.
Manchón, R. M. (Ed.) (2012). L2
writing development: Multiple
perspectives. Boston/Berlin: Walter de Gruyter.
Mercer, S., Ryan, S., & Williams, M. (2012). Conclusion:
Final Remarks. In S. Mercer, S. Ryan & M. Williams (Eds.), Psychology
for language learning: Insights from research, theory, and
practice (pp. 239–247). Hamsphire: Palgrave Macmillan.
Myles, F. (2012). Complexity,
accuracy, and fluency: The role played by formulaic sequences in early interlanguage
development. In A. Housen, F. Kuiken, & I. Vedder (Eds.), Dimensions
of L2 performance and proficiency: Complexity, accuracy and fluency in
SLA (pp. 71–93). Amsterdam/Philadelphia: John Benjamins Publishing Company.
Norris, J. M., & Ortega, L. (2009). Towards
an organic approach to investigating CAF in instructed SLA: The case of complexity. Applied
Linguistics, 30(4), 555–578.
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.
Overton, W. F., & Lerner, R. M. (2014). Fundamental concepts and
methods in Developmental Science: A relational perspective. Research in Human
Development, 11(1), 63–73.
Pallotti, G. (2009). CAF:
Defining, refining and differentiating constructs. Applied
Linguistics, 30(4), 590–601.
Paltridge, B., & Starfield, S. (2007). Thesis
and dissertation writing in a second language: A handbook for
supervisors. Oxon: Routledge.
Polat, B., & Kim, Y. (2013). Dynamics
of complexity and accuracy: A longitudinal case study of advanced untutored
development. Applied
Linguistics, 1–25.
Richard, J. C., & Renandya, W. A. (2002). Methodology in language teaching: An
anthology of current practice. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Silva, T. (1997). Differences
in ESL and Native–English–Speaker writing: The research and its
implications. In C. Severino, J. Guena & J. Butler (Eds.), Writing
in multicultural
settings (pp. 209–219). New York: Modern Language Association of America.
Silva, T., & Reichelt, M. (2003). Second
language writing up close and personal: some success
stories. In B. Kroll (Ed.), Exploring
the dynamics of second language
writing (pp. 93–114). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Skehan, P. (1998). A
cognitive approach to language learning. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
(2009). Modeling
second language development: Integrating complexity, accuracy, fluency, and lexis. Applied
Linguistics, 30(4), 510–532.
Skehan, P., & Foster, P. (1999). The
influence of task structure and processing conditions on narrative retellings. Language
Learning, 49(1), 93–120.
(2007). Complexity,
accuracy, fluency and lexis in task–based performances: A meta–analysis of the Ealing
research. In S. V. Daele, A. Housen, F. Kuiken, M. Pierrard & I. Vedder (Eds.), Complexity,
accuracy and fluency in second language use, learning and
teaching (pp. 207–226). Brussels: Contactforum.
(2012). Complexity,
accuracy, fluency and lexis in task–based performance: A synthesis of the Ealing
research. In A. Housen, F. Kuiken, & I. Vedder (Eds.), Dimensions
of L2 performance and proficiency: Complexity, accuracy, and fluency in
SLA (pp. 199–220). Amsterdam/Philadelphia: John Benjamins Publishing Company.
Smith, N. V. (1973). The acquisition of phonology: A case
study. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.
Spoelman, M., & Verspoor, M. (2010). Dynamic
patterns in development of accuracy and complexity: A longitudinal case study in the acquisition of
Finnish. Applied
Linguistics, 31(1), 1–22.
Thewissen, J. (2013). Capturing
L2 accuracy developmental patterns: Insights from an error–tagged EFL learner corpus. The
Modern Language
Journal, 97(S1), 77–101.
van Dijk, M., & van Geert, P. (2007). Wobbles,
humps and sudden jumps: A case study of continuity, discontinuity and variability in early language
development. Infant and Child
Development, 16(1), 7–33.
van Dijk, M., Verspoor, M. H., & Lowie, W. (2011). Variability
and DST. In M. H. Verspoor, K. de Bot & W. Lowie (Eds.), A
dynamic approach to second language development: Methods and
techniques (pp. 55–84). Amsterdam/Philadelphia: John Benjamins Publishing Company.
van Geert, P. (2008). The
dynamic systems approach in the study of L1 and L2 acquisition: An introduction. The Modern
Language
Journal, 92(2), 179–199.
(2009a). A
comprehensive dynamic systems theory of language
development. In K. de Bot & R. W. Schrauf (Eds.), Language
development over the
lifespan (pp. 60–104). New York: Routledge.
(2009b). Nonlinear
complex dynamical systems in developmental psychology. In S. J. Guastello, M. Koopmans & D. Pincus (Eds.), Chaos
and complexity in psychology: The theory of nonlinear dynamical
systems (pp. 242–281). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
(2011). The
contribution of Complex Dynamic Systems to Development. Child Development
Perspectives, 5(4), 273–278.
(2012). Dynamic
Systems. In B. Lauren, T. Little, & N. Card (Eds.), Handbook
of developmental research
methods (pp. 725–741). New York: Guilford Press.
(2014, March). L2
acquisition and the study of change in complex systems. In K. de Bot & D. Larsen-Freeman (Chair), From
universality to variability in second language development. Colloquium conducted
at the meeting of the American Association for Applied Linguistics
2014, Portland, Oregon.
van Geert, P., Steenbeek, H., & van Dijk, M. (2011). A
dynamic model of expert-novice co-adaptation during language learning and
acquisition. In M. S. Schmid & W. Lowie (Eds.), Modelling
bilingualism: From structure to chaos: In honor of Kees de
Bot. Amsterdam/Philadelphia: John Benjamins Publishing Company.
van Geert, P., & van Dijk, M. (2002). Focus
on variability: New tools to study intra-individual variability in developmental data. Infant
Behaviour and
Development, 251, 340–374.
(2003). Ambiguity
in child language: The problem of inter-observer reliability in ambiguous observation
data. First
Language, 23(3), 259–284.
Verspoor, M. H., & Behrens, H. (2011). Dynamic
systems theory and a usage–based approach to second language
development. In M. H. Verspoor, K. de Bot & W. Lowie (Eds.), A
dynamic approach to second language development: Methods and
techniques (pp.1 25–38). Amsterdam/Philadelphia: John Benjamins Publishing Company.
Verspoor, M. H., de Bot, K., & Lowie, W. (2004). Dynamic
Systems Theory and variation: A case study in L2 writing. In H. Aertsen, M. Hannay & R. Lyall (Eds.), Words
in their places: A festschrift for J. Lachlan
Mackenzie (pp. 407–421). Amsterdam: Department of English Language and Culture, Vrije Universiteit.
Verspoor, M. H., de Bot, K., & Xu, X. (2011). The
role of input and scholastic aptitude in second language development. Toegepaste Taalwetenschap
in
Artikelen, 861, 47–60.
Verspoor, M. H., Lowie, W., & de Bot, K. (2009). Input
and second language development from a dynamic perspective. In T. Piske & M. Young–Scholten (Eds.), Input matters in SLA. Bristol: Multilingual Matters.
Verspoor, M. H., Lowie, W., & van Dijk, M. (2008). Variability
in second language development from a dynamic systems perspective. The Modern Language
Journal, 92(2), 214–231.
Verspoor, M. H., & Sauter, K. (2000). English
sentence analysis: An introductory
course. Amsterdam/Philadelphia: John Benjamins Publishing Company.
Verspoor, M. H., Schmid, M. S., & Xu, X. (2012). A
dynamic usage based perspective on L2 writing. Journal of Second Language
Writing, 21(3), 239–263.
Verspoor, M. H., Smiskova, H. (2012). Foreign
language writing development form a dynamic usage based
perspective. In R. M. Manchón (Ed.), L2
writing development: Multiple
perspectives (pp. 17–46). Boston/Berlin: Walter de Gruyter.
Verspoor, M. H., & van Dijk, M. (2011). Visualizing
interactions between variables. In M. H. Verspoor, K. de Bot & W. Lowie (Eds.), A
dynamic approach to second language development: Methods and
techniques (pp. 85–98). Amsterdam/Philadelphia: John Benjamins Publishing Company.
Vyatkina, N. (2012). The
development of second language writing complexity in groups and individuals: A longitudinal learner corpus
study. The Modern Language
Journal, 96(4), 576–598.
(2013). Specific
syntactic complexity: Developmental profiling of individuals based on an annotated learner
corpus. The Modern Language
Journal, 97(S1), 11–30. .
.Witherington, D. C. (2007). The Dynamic Systems Approach
as metatheory for Developmental Psychology. Human
Development, 501, 127–153.
Wolfe-Quintero, K., Inagaki, S., & Kim, H.-Y. (1998). Second
language development in writing: Measures of fluency, accuracy, and
complexity. Manoa: Second Language Teaching and Curriculum Center, University of Hawai’i.
Cited by (12)
Cited by 12 other publications
Makarova, Veronika, Zhi Li & Zhengxiang Wang
2024. Can ChatGPT Grade Non-Native Academic English Writing?. In AI Approaches to Literacy in Higher Education [Advances in Educational Technologies and Instructional Design, ], ► pp. 97 ff. 
Zhang, Jianhua & Lawrence Jun Zhang
2024. Examining L2 studentsʼ development of global cohesion and its relationship with their argumentative essay quality. International Review of Applied Linguistics in Language Teaching
Li, Zhi, Veronika Makarova & Zhengxiang Wang
2023. Developing literature review writing and citation practices through an online writing tutorial series: Corpus-based evidence. Frontiers in Communication 8
Shokoufeh Abbasi Dogolsara, Saeideh Ahangari & Zohreh Seifoori
2022. Improving the Fluency of the Iranian EFL Learners’ Oral Performance through Task Variation. International Journal of Research in English Education 7:3 ► pp. 76 ff.
Abdelrahim, Azza AM
2022. Developing EFL learners’ syntactic complexity in writing: The role of eTandem communication. Southern African Linguistics and Applied Language Studies 40:3 ► pp. 337 ff.
Thewissen, Jennifer & Alena V. Anishchanka
2022. Interaction between grammatical accuracy and syntactic complexity at different proficiency levels. In Complexity, Accuracy and Fluency in Learner Corpus Research [Studies in Corpus Linguistics, 104], ► pp. 209 ff.
Zhang, Shuang, Huiping Zhang & Cun Zhang
2022. A Dynamic Systems Study on Complexity, Accuracy, and Fluency in English Writing Development by Chinese University Students. Frontiers in Psychology 13
Wang, Zehua, Feifei Han & Filomena Papa
2021. Developing English language learners’ oral production with a digital game-based mobile application. PLOS ONE 16:1 ► pp. e0232671 ff.
Xue, Jin, Liyan Zheng, Xiaoyi Tang, Banban Li & Esther Geva
2021. Human Ratings of Writing Quality Capture Features of Syntactic Variety and Transformation in Chinese EFL Learners’ Argumentative Writing. Frontiers in Psychology 12
Hepford, Elizabeth
2020. Chapter 7. The elusive phase shift. In Complex Dynamic Systems Theory and L2 Writing Development [Language Learning & Language Teaching, 54], ► pp. 161 ff.
Khomeijani Farahani, Ali Akbar, Abbas Ali Rezaee & Robabeh Moshtaghi Zonouz
2020. Exploring the Development of Writing Complexity, Accuracy, and Fluency in Relation to the Motivational Trajectories: a Dynamically-Oriented Case Study. English Teaching & Learning 44:1 ► pp. 81 ff.
Lahuerta Martínez, Ana Cristina
2018. Analysis of syntactic complexity in secondary education EFL writers at different proficiency levels. Assessing Writing 35 ► pp. 1 ff.
This list is based on CrossRef data as of 4 september 2024. Please note that it may not be complete. Sources presented here have been supplied by the respective publishers. Any errors therein should be reported to them.