The Revised Hierarchical Model tested: Connections of form and meaning for L2 nouns and verbs

Keywords
Loading...
Thumbnail Image
Issue Date
2018-08-14
Language
en
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Abstract
The predictions proposed by the Revised Hierarchical Model about the routes established for L2 words by L2 learners have been thoroughly tested. Many of these studies have predominantly used nouns as stimulus material and therefore, information about the representativeness and fitness of the model is only available for this particular word class. Verbs have been found to be a much more complex word class than nouns. Not only do they differ morphologically, but also in their degree of meaning overlap across languages. In addition, the divergent characteristics of verbs, in comparison to nouns, is thought to affect their underlying processing mechanisms (e.g., Bultena, Dijkstra and van Hell, 2012; Federmeier, Segal, Lombrozo and Kutas, 2000). Hence, they are expected to influence the way L2 learners establish their connections for L2 words. Because the model has not been tested specifically with verbs as stimulus material, it is not clear whether the Revised Hierarchical Model can be used as a blueprint for the connections that are made when meaning is being accessed. Therefore, to test the representativeness and also the fitness of the model regarding the word classes of nouns and verbs, the present study replicated and extended the studies conducted by Talamas, Kroll and Dufour (1999) and Poarch, van Hell and Kroll (2015) who looked at nouns only. In order to successfully test the models’ assumptions, two groups of Dutch native speakers with differing levels if proficiency in English (high and low) were included in the experimental design. They were presented with a backwards translation recognition task with stimulus items that were manipulated to trigger the activation of lexical as well as conceptual connections during L2 word processing (the critical conditions). Accordingly, the critical conditions incorporated into this study consisted of nouns and verbs assembled into word pairs wherein the second word matched the correct translation in meaning (noun: church – pastoor ‘pastor’; verb: to pay – kopen ‘to buy’) and word pairs wherein the second word matched the correct translation in form (noun: church – kers ‘cherry’; verb: to pay – bepalen ‘to determine’). Results revealed that the Revised Hierarchical Model can be regarded as representative of the connections established by highly proficient L2 learners when processing either L2 nouns or verbs. Results for the low proficient L2 group were not conclusive. They showed similar patterns for both word classes, but these patterns did not agree with the assumptions put forward by the Revised Hierarchical Model. Patterns, even though not all consistent with the predictions, were similar between word classes for both proficiency levels. Therefore, it was suggested that the Revised Hierarchical Model possibly has the potential to be generalized across the word classes of nouns and verbs.
Description
Citation
Faculty
Faculteit der Letteren