Cover not available
Article published In:
International Journal of Corpus Linguistics
Vol. 19:2 (2014) ► pp.252–279

A corpus study of most frequently used English verbs by Chinese beginner learners from a conceptual transfer perspective

This paper reports a study that examines the relationship between English word learning and conceptual transfer within the conceptual transfer hypothesis in second language acquisition (SLA). Specifically, the paper identifies the systematic features of the most frequently used English verbs in the extended ICCI sub-corpus of Mainland China by beginner learners of L2 English from a conceptual transfer perspective. The identified systematic features of these most frequently used English verbs are analyzed by means of their collocation, colligation, semantic prosody, and discussed in terms of the conceptual or categorization system. We found that (i) conceptual transfer errors were recurrent and systematic; (ii) these errors were different from those made by the German-speaking beginner learners of L2 English. These findings largely support the hypothesis of conceptual transfer in SLA. Based upon the findings, some suggestions for English learning and teaching are offered.

Keywords: Chinese learner, corpus-based approach, English verbs, conceptual transfer
Published online: 9 May 2014
DOI logo
https://doi.org/10.1075/ijcl.19.2.05hui
References
Anthony, L.
2004 “AntConc: A learner and classroom friendly, multi-platform corpus analysis toolkit”. Proceedings of IWLeL , 7–13.
Boroditsky, L.
2011 “How language shapes thought”. Scientific American , 304 (2), 62–65. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Chafe, W.
1992 “The importance of corpus linguistics to understanding the nature of language”. In J. Svartvik (Ed.), Directions in Corpus Linguistics . Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter, 79–97. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Cross, J. & Papp, Sz.
2008 “Creativity in the use of verb + noun combinations by Chinese learners of English”. Language and Computers , 66 (1), 57–81.Google Scholar
Ellis, R.
1985  Understanding Second Language Acquisition . Oxford: Oxford University Press.Google Scholar
Frankel, R.
2012 “Ancient technologies: Complete vs. conceptual transfer”. Journal of the Institute of Archaeology of Tel Aviv University , 39 (1), 115–126. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Givón, T.
1986 “Prototypes: Between Plato and Wittgenstein”. In C. Craig (Ed.), Noun Classes and Categorization, Typological Studies in Language . Amsterdam: John Benjamins, 77–102. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Granger, S.
2003 “The corpus approach: A common way forward for Contrastive Linguistics and Translation Studies?”. In S. Granger, J. Lerot & S. Petch-Tyson (Eds.), Corpus-Based Approaches to Contrastive Linguistics and Translation Studies . Amsterdam: Rodopi, 17–29.Google Scholar
Hawkins, J. A.
1986  A Comparative Typology of English and German: Unifying the Contrasts . London: Croom Helm.Google Scholar
Jarvis, S.
2011 “Conceptual transfer: Crosslinguistic effects in categorization and construal”. Bilingualism: Language and Cognition , 14 (1), 1–8. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Jarvis, S. & Pavlenko, A.
2008  Crosslinguistic Influence in Language and Cognition . London: Routledge. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Keil, F.
1989  Concepts, Kinds, and Cognitive Development . Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.Google Scholar
Lakoff, G. & Johnson, M.
1980  Metaphors We Live by . Chicago: University of Chicago Press.Google Scholar
Lakoff, G.
1987  Women, Fire, and Dangerous Things: What Categories Reveal about the Mind . Chicago: University of Chicago Press. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Langacker, R.
2008  Cognitive Grammar: A Basic Introduction . Oxford: Oxford University Press. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Lightbown, P. M.
2000 “Classroom SLA research and second language teaching”. Applied Linguistics , 21 (4), 431–462. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Liu, Y. H., Pan, W. Y. & Gu, W.
2004  Practical Modern Chinese Grammar . Beijing: Commercial Press.Google Scholar
Liang, M. Ch., Li, W. Zh. & Xu, J. J.
2010  Using Corpora: A Practical Coursebook . Beijing: Foreign Language Teaching and Research Press.Google Scholar
Malt, B.
1993 “Concept structure and category boundaries”. In G. Nakamura, D. Medin, & R. Taraban (Eds.), Categorization by Humans and Machines . New York: Academic Press, 363–390. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Ministry of Education
2011  English Curriculum and Pedagogy Standards . Beijing: People’s Education Press.Google Scholar
Murphy, G.
2002  The Big Book of Concepts . Cambridge, MA: MIT Press. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Odlin, T.
2005 “Crosslinguistic influence and conceptual transfer: What are the concepts?”. Annual Review of Applied Linguistics , 251, 3–25. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
2008 “Conceptual transfer and meaning extensions”. In P. Robinson & N. Ellis (Eds.), Handbook of Cognitive Linguistics and Second Language Acquisition . London: Routledge, 306–340.Google Scholar
Okasha, S.
2012  Conceptual Transfer in the Bilingual Mental Lexicon . Bloomington: Trafford Publishing.Google Scholar
Oxford Advanced Learner’s English-Chinese Dictionary
1997 Hornby, A. S. (Ed.). Beijing: The Commercial Press.Google Scholar
Paquot, M.
2010  Academic Vocabulary in Learner Writing: From Extraction to Analysis . ­London: Continuum International Publishing Group.Google Scholar
Quirk, R., Greenbaum, S., Leech, G. & Svartvik, J.
1985  A Comprehensive Grammar of the English Language . New York: Longman.Google Scholar
Selinker, L.
1972 “Interlanguage”. International Review of Applied Linguistics in Language Teaching , 10 (1–4), 209–232. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Sinclair, J.
1996 “The search for units of meaning”. Textus , 9 (1), 75–106.Google Scholar
Slobin, D.
2001 “Form-function relations: How do children find out what they are?”. In M. ­Bowerman & S. Levinson (Eds.), Language Acquisition and Conceptual Development . Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 406–449. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Song, Zh. P.
2003 “ Aspects of parataxis vs. hypotaxis between English and Chinese ”. Journal of Northeast Normal University , (21), 92–98.Google Scholar
Steen, G.
1999 “From linguistic to conceptual metaphor in five steps”. In R. Gibbs & G. Steen (Eds.), Metaphor in Cognitive Linguistics . Amsterdam: John Benjamins, 57–77. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Stubbs, M.
2009 “The search for units of meaning: Sinclair on empirical semantics”. Applied Linguistics , 30 (1), 115–137. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Talmy, L.
2000  Toward a Cognitive Semantics: Concept Structuring Systems (Vol. 11). Cambridge, MA: The MIT Press.Google Scholar
The Contemporary Chinese Dictionary
2005 Dictionary Editorial Office of Linguistics Institute of Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (Eds.). Beijing: The Commercial Press.Google Scholar
Tono, Y., Kawaguchi, Y. & Minegishi, M. (Eds.)
2012  Developmental and Crosslinguistic Perspectives in Learner Corpus Research . Amsterdam: Benjamins. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Van patten, B. & Williams, J. (Eds.)
2007  Theories in Second Language Acquisition: An Introduction . New York: Lawrence Erlbaum.Google Scholar
Von Stutterheim, C.
2003 “Linguistic structure and information organization: The case of very advanced learners”. EUROSLA Yearbook , 31, 183–206. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Whorf, B. L.
1956  Language, Thought and Reality: Selected Writings of Benjamin Lee Whorf . Carroll, J. B. (Ed). Cambridge, MA: The MIT Press.Google Scholar
Wode, H.
1981  Learning a Second Language: An Integrated View of Language Acquisition . ­Bugingen: Gunter Narr.Google Scholar
Zhang, H. P. & Liu, Y. B.
2013 “English preposition learning and conceptual transfer: collocation and colligation of the most frequently used prepostions”. Foreign Language Teaching and Research , 45(4), 568–580.Google Scholar
Zobl, H.
1980 “Developmental and transfer errors: Their common bases and (possibly) differential effects on subsequent learning”. TESOL Quarterly , 30 (1), 43–57.Google Scholar
Cited by

Cited by 4 other publications

Chen, Ming & Yongbing Liu
2022. A comparative study of lexical richness in English writing by Chinese senior high school students. Asia Pacific Journal of Education ► pp. 1 ff. DOI logo
Du, Hang
2016. A corpus linguistics approach to the research and teaching of Chinese as a second language. In Integrating Chinese Linguistic Research and Language Teaching and Learning [Studies in Chinese Language and Discourse, 7], ► pp. 13 ff. DOI logo
Zou, Bin & Hayo Reinders
2017. Using Corpora to Investigate Chinese University EFL Learners. In Innovation in Language Learning and Teaching, ► pp. 245 ff. DOI logo
刘, 翔宇
2023. Emotion Conceptual Transfer in Chinese L2 Learners from the Perspective of Interoceptive Neuroscience. Modern Linguistics 11:04 ► pp. 1642 ff. DOI logo

This list is based on CrossRef data as of 31 march 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.