SLA as complex, dynamical and predictable
A Processability Theory perspective
Datos Bibliográficos
| ID | 11655664 |
|---|---|
| Autores | Bronwen Patricia Dyson (0000-0002-7519-0369, The University of Sydney, autor de correspondencia) |
| Año | 2022 |
| Volumen | 39 |
| Número | 4 |
| Páginas | 1279-1292 |
| Fecha de publicación | 2022-11-04 |
| Peer Reviewed | Sí |
| Open Access | Sí |
| Tipo | ARTICLE |
| Revista | Second language Research (JOURNAL) |
| Identificadores de la revista | ISSN: 0267-6583 • E-ISSN: 1477-0326 |
| Editorial | SAGE Publishing (PUBLISHER • US) |
| DOI | 10.1177/02676583221132726 |
| OpenAlex | W4308198131 |
| Idioma | EN |
| Citas recibidas | 2 |
| Referencias citadas | 36 |
This article enters the debate about the complex and dynamical nature of second language acquisition (SLA) by discussing and commenting on Pallotti’s critique of Complex Dynamic Systems Theory (CDST). Pallotti’s critique brings to the fore the argument that, due to its anti-reductionist stance, CDST research fails to observe three fundamental research criteria, namely that research should (1) construct models, (2) make generalizations and falsifiable predictions and (3) adopt clear empirical approaches. While Pallotti does not explore research already moving SLA beyond anti-reductionist approaches to complexity and dynamism, the debate can be advanced by examining research doing exactly this. This article aims to evaluate the extent to which Processability Theory (PT) – a theory of second language (L2) processing that advocates reductionism for the sake of theory construction – meets Pallotti’s criteria for researching L2 complexity and dynamics. By discussing Pallotti’s – and PT’s – criticisms of CDST, the article outlines the implied research criteria and delineates how PT meets these criteria by (1) its bidimensional design, (2) its generalizations and falsifiable predictions for development and variation, and (3) its operationalization of constructs. Findings from a longitudinal study of L2 English are presented. These findings elucidate that, by meeting the criteria, PT can reveal the predictable, implicational development of processing complexity in eight learners and the patterned, dynamical interaction between development and variation in the trajectories of two of these learners. The article concludes that PT fulfils Pallotti’s (2022) criteria and, by a reductionist approach which models SLA as multidimensional, it can generate what CDST cannot; dynamical and complex L2 systems which progress in predictable stages, with well-defined constraints on variation, including DST-defined constraints. The article closes by discussing the implications of PT’s approach for future research on L2 complexity and dynamics
Argument (complex analysis · Cognitive science · Dynamical systems theory · Epistemology · Falsifiability · Linguistics · Operationalization · Perspective (graphical · Reductionism · Second-language acquisition · Sociology · Computer Science · EFL/ESL Teaching and Learning · Neurobiology of Language and Bilingualism · Philosophy · Psychology · Second Language Acquisition and Learning · Artificial Intelligence
Cross-Linguistic Aspects of Processability Theory
Language Processing and Second Language Development
Speaking
Variability in Second Language Development From a Dynamic Systems Perspective
A dynamic usage based perspective on L2 writing
Complexity Theory
On determining developmental stages in natural second language acquisition
Item versus system learning
Stages or Continua in Second Language Acquisition
Variation, individual differences and second language processing
Complexity A Guided Tour
Applicability of processability theory to Japanese adolescent EFL learners
An analysis of Japanese university students’ oral performance in English using processability theory
Processability Theory and the role of morphology in English as a second language development
From number agreement to the subjunctive
Developmental stages in receptive grammar acquisition
Reassessing the applicability of Processability Theory
Cratylus’ silence
The Mental Representation of Grammatical Relations
Variability and Variation in Second Language Acquisition Orders
Is acculturation unidimensional or bidimensional? A head-to-head comparison in the prediction of personality, self-identity, and adjustment
A Dynamic Systems Theory approach to second language acquisition
A Basis for Scaling Qualitative Data
Individual Differences and the Ergodicity Problem
An Outline of Processability Theory and Its Relationship to Other Approaches to SLA
Exploring Regularities and Dynamic Systems in L2 Development
| Obras citantes distintas | 2 |
|---|---|
| Citas por año | 1 |
| Intervalo de citas | 2024 - 2024 (1) |
| Velocidad de citación | recent |
| Altamente citado | No |
| Tipos de cita | Neutras: 2 |