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Article published In:
Study Abroad Research in Second Language Acquisition and International Education
Vol. 8:1 (2023) ► pp.142–176

“You just picked it up”

The relationship between informal language contact and phrasal verb knowledge among international students in the United Kingdom

| Hong Kong University of Science and Technology
| University of Oxford

Phrasal verbs are highly common in informal discourse among native English speakers, yet they pose extraordinary difficulty to second language (L2) English learners. Informed by usage-based theory, this mixed-methods study attempted to determine the relationship between the amount of out-of-class English exposure in study abroad and the phrasal verb knowledge of international adult students in the United Kingdom. It also brought foundation program students (i.e., students in a preparation course for university degrees), a previously under-researched study-abroad population, under the spotlight. One hundred and eighteen foundation program students at a British university completed a modified Language Contact Profile and a productive phrasal verb test. Nine students were interviewed to further unravel how they acquired phrasal verbs via informal language contact. Analyses revealed a significant positive relationship between speaking English with international friends and phrasal verb knowledge. Hierarchical regression identified that overall English proficiency, spoken input contact, and non-interactive language contact were significant predictors of phrasal verb scores. This study points to the importance of having meaningful, emotionally enjoyable, and regular L2 contact to formulaic language competence during study abroad.

Keywords: usage-based theory, informal language contact, phrasal verbs, formulaic language, vocabulary
Article outline
  • 1.Introduction
  • 2.Literature review
    • 2.1Language contact in SA research
    • 2.2Lexical gain during SA
    • 2.3Usage-based approach to PV acquisition
    • 2.4Bridging the gap between informal language contact and PV acquisition
  • 3.Methods
    • 3.1Participants
    • 3.2Instruments
      • 3.2.1Personal background questionnaire
      • 3.2.2Language Contact Profile
      • 3.2.3Productive PV test
      • 3.2.4Semi-structured interviews
    • 3.3Procedure
    • 3.4Data analysis
  • 4.Results
    • 4.1Informal language contact
    • 4.2PV knowledge
    • 4.3Informal language contact and PV scores
  • 5.Discussion
    • 5.1The language contact of international students in the United Kingdom
    • 5.2PV knowledge among international students in the United Kingdom
    • 5.3The relationship between informal language contact and PV knowledge
  • 6.Conclusions
  • References
Published online: 30 March 2023
DOI logo
https://doi.org/10.1075/sar.21040.zho
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