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L2 Word Recognition: Influence of L1 Orthography on Multi-syllabic Word Recognition

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Abstract

L2 reading research suggests that L1 orthographic experience influences L2 word recognition. Nevertheless, the findings on multi-syllabic words in English are still limited despite the fact that a vast majority of words are multi-syllabic. The study investigated whether L1 orthography influences the recognition of multi-syllabic words, focusing on the position of an embedded word. The participants were Arabic ESL learners, Chinese ESL learners, and native speakers of English. The task was a word search task, in which the participants identified a target word embedded in a pseudoword at the initial, middle, or final position. The search accuracy and speed indicated that all groups showed a strong preference for the initial position. The accuracy data further indicated group differences. The Arabic group showed higher accuracy in the final than middle, while the Chinese group showed the opposite and the native speakers showed no difference between the two positions. The findings suggest that L2 multi-syllabic word recognition involves unique processes.

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Acknowledgements

I thank Mary Theresa Seig and Christine Ellsworth for their assistance with participant recruitment, Phuong Minh Tran and Alicia Miller for their assistance with data coding, and James Jones for his assistance with statistical analysis.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. English Department, Ball State University, RB 297, Muncie, IN, 47306, USA

    Megumi Hamada

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  1. Megumi Hamada
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Correspondence to Megumi Hamada.

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Conflict of interest

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Ethical Approval

This article does not contain any studies with animals performed by any of the authors.

Human Participants

This study involves human participants. All procedures performed in studies involving the human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institution or practice at which the studies were conducted.

Informed Consent

Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study.

Appendix A: Sample Stimulus Items

Appendix A: Sample Stimulus Items

“Yes” answer

Target word

Pseudoword by target word position

Initial

Medial

Final

Cut

cutmigdaw

migcutdaw

dawmigcut

Hot

hotvedbip

vedhotbip

bipvedhot

Sun

sunfapdix

dixsunfap

fapdixsun

Gun

gunfimket

ketgunfim

fimketgun

Bar

barhonjix

jixbarhon

jixhonbar

“No” answer

Target word

Pseudoword

Red

pagvixhun

Tax

lonmupveg

Top

sabhixlun

Cut

senligzar

Cap

ditkomzur

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Hamada, M. L2 Word Recognition: Influence of L1 Orthography on Multi-syllabic Word Recognition. J Psycholinguist Res 46, 1101–1118 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10936-017-9483-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10936-017-9483-1

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