Semantic and conceptual transfer in second language vocabulary learning - when two L2 English lexical items share one L1 Chinese translation equivalent

Abstract

Previous studies have shown that in second language vocabulary development, language learners tend to connect an L2 form to an L1 equivalent translation by transferring entire L1 semantic and syntactic knowledge to L2. This tendency can be observed even when two L2 lexical items share only one L1 translation. As a result, second language learners may reveal usages diverse from those of native speakers and/or be less capable of differentiating the nuance of meanings of a word pair which share one and the same L1 translation equivalent. For example, given that question and problem are both translated into wèntí （問題）in Chinese, Chinese learners of English are liable to make a linguistic mistake such as *I have a problem to indicate I have a question. Previous research has used cloze tests and measurements of reaction time to demonstrate the psycholinguistic phenomenon of lexical transfer. However, whether reliance on L1-mediated concepts or on mental links established between L1 words and L1-mediated concepts contributes to the transfer is not clear, as the former results in conceptual transfer and the latter semantic transfer. The present study investigates this crosslinguistic influence (lexical transfer) with a different methodology. Four word pairs each sharing one and the same Chinese translation were selected from previous studies: criterion-standard (both are translated to ‘biāozhǔn’ 標準 in Chinese), complicated-complex (‘fùzá’ 複雜), safe-secure (‘ānquán’ 安全) and doubt-suspect (‘huáiyí’ 懷疑). Six Chinese learners at the same level of English proficiency were involved in this longitudinal study. They participated in a series of group guided conversations; a guided conversation was held twice for each word pair and video recorded. Following the guided conversation, a retrospection procedure took place individually with each participant in the learner’s L1 to clarify the learner’s use and understanding of the target words in previous conversation sessions. The primary focus of the study is to investigate whether the target words were interchangeably used in a fully contextual environment. Results show that these learners may or may not transfer the entire L1 semantic and syntactic knowledge to the L2 in real-time conversation. The type of lexical transfer depends on the learner’s existing concepts and word meanings. Semantic transfer did commonly happen when two L2 lexical items shared one L1 translation, but it did not guarantee the learner’s interchangeable use of the target words. The retrospection demonstrates that separated concepts could be expressed with a different sentence pattern (without using a target word), or with a different syntactic structure (with a target word or other words) in the learner’s L1. Thus two separate concepts associated to a word pair may have already existed in the learner’s mind and consequently enabled them to perceive the differences within a word pair. On the other hand, an aggregation of non-distinguished concepts for a word pair may also exist in the learner’s mind, which impedes differentiation of a pair. Hence semantic transfer and conceptual transfer in second language vocabulary learning need to be carefully considered in that the former is conceivable and readily avoided but the latter is hardly recognized and reconstructed.