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Article In: Study Abroad Research in Second Language Acquisition and International Education: Online-First Articles

Charting the diverging paths — A multiple-case study of the L2 contact and phrasal verb development of Chinese students in the UK

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Abstract
Phrasal verbs (PVs) play an important role in informal and idiomatic communication for learners studying abroad. This multiple-case study tracked four Chinese learners in the UK over three timepoints in one academic year to investigate changes in their L2 contact and their PV gains. To assess their comprehension and production of PVs, students completed a receptive and productive PV test and an IELTS speaking test three times in a year. To understand changes in their L2 contact and social networks, each participant was also interviewed three times in a year. Results showed that PV development was achieved regardless of the sources of students’ L2 contact: either from social interactions or intentional self-study. Interview data revealed that those engaged in L2 socialization acquired PVs unconsciously and more effortlessly than self-study. This study highlighted the diverging paths of individuals’ study abroad experiences and how such experiences affected students’ formulaic language knowledge.
Article outline
  • Introduction
  • Literature review
    • 2.1Phrasal verb development in study abroad
    • 2.2Language contact and social networks of international students abroad
    • 2.3Gaps in the literature and research questions
  • Methods
    • 3.1The participants
    • 3.2The instruments
      • 3.2.1Receptive and productive PV tests
      • 3.2.2IELTS Speaking Test
      • 3.2.3Semi-structured interviews
    • 3.3The procedure
    • 3.4Data analysis
      • 3.4.1Quantitative analyses
      • 3.4.2Qualitative analyses
  • 4.Findings
    • 4.1RQ1: PV changes during SA
    • 4.2RQ2: The changes of language contact and social networks
      • 4.2.1Austin: Studying abroad and beyond
      • 4.2.2Bella: Studying abroad and beyond
      • 4.2.3Winnie: Studying abroad
      • 4.2.4Rachel: Studying abroad
      • 4.3RQ3: Learners’ perceptions of L2 contact and PV change
  • 5.Discussion
  • 6.Conclusions
  • Acknowledgements
  • Note
  • Author queries
  • References
References (69)
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