Cover not available
Part of
Complexity, Accuracy and Fluency in Learner Corpus Research
Edited by Agnieszka Leńko-Szymańska and Sandra Götz
[Studies in Corpus Linguistics 104] 2022
► pp. 181–208

The effect of time and dimensions of collocational relationship on phraseological accuracy

| University for Foreigners of Perugia
This study investigates if and to what extent time affects phraseological accuracy in Chinese learners of Italian. The longitudinal analysis focuses on lexical combinations within the adjectival modifier dependency (noun + adjective and adjective + noun) and the verb + direct object dependency. In addition, the effect on accuracy of different dimensions of collocational relationship is considered. To date, little empirical evidence has been made available about the degree to which some of these dimensions (the repetition, strength, exclusivity and directionality, represented by the measures of frequency, Mutual Information, logDice and DeltaP) affect phraseological accuracy. Results of a mixed-effect model show that time and logDice are significant predictors of phraseological accuracy, and that the time effect varies as a function of combination type.
Keywords: phraseology, accuracy, association measures, longitudinal learner corpus, L2 Italian
Article outline
  • 1.Introduction
  • 2.Background and motivation
    • 2.1Phraseological errors
    • 2.2Longitudinal studies on phraseological errors
    • 2.3Dimensions of collocational relationship
  • 3.Aim and research questions
  • 4.Method: Corpus and error annotation
  • 5.Findings
    • 5.1A first look into the data
    • 5.2Mixed-effect model
  • 6.Results and discussion
  • 7.Conclusions
  • References
Published online: 1 December 2022
DOI logo
https://doi.org/10.1075/scl.104.08spi
References (71)
References
Adler, Daniel & Kelly, Thomas S. 2020. Vioplot: Violin plot. R package version 0.3.5 <[URL]> (14 November 2020).
Altenberg, Bengt & Granger, Sylviane. 2001. The grammatical and lexical patterning of MAKE in native and non-native student writing. Applied Linguistics 22(2): 173–195. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Baayen, Harald, Davidson, Douglas J. & Bates, Douglas. 2008. Mixed-effects modeling with crossed random effects for subjects and items. Journal of Memory and Language 59(4): 390–412. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Bardovi-Harlig, Kathleen & Stringer, David. 2017. Unconventional expressions: Productive syntax in the L2 acquisition of formulaic language. Second Language Research 33(1): 61–90. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Bartning, Inge & Forsberg, Fanny. 2006. Les séquences préfabriquées à travers les stades de développement en français L2. In Actes du 16e congrès des romanistes scandinaves, 1–22. Roskilde: Department of Language and Culture, Roskilde University. <[URL]> (14 November 2020).
Bates, Douglas, Maechler, Martin, Bolker, Ben & Walker, Steve. 2015. Fitting linear mixed-effects models using lme4. Journal of Statistical Software 67(1): 1–48. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Bestgen, Yves & Granger, Sylviane. 2014. Quantifying the development of phraseological competence in L2 English writing: An automated approach. Journal of Second Language Writing 26: 28–41. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
. 2018. Tracking L2 writers’ phraseological development using collgrams: Evidence from a longitudinal EFL corpus. In Corpora and Lexis, Sebastian Hoffmann, Andrea Sand, Sabine Arndt-Lappe & Lisa Marie Dillmann (eds), 277–301. Leiden: Brill.Google Scholar
Brezina, Vaclav, McEnery, Tony & Wattam, Stephen. 2015. Collocations in context: A new perspective on collocation networks. International Journal of Corpus Linguistics 20(2): 139–173. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Bulon, Amélie & Meunier, Fanny. 2020. Comparing CLIL and non-CLIL learners’ phrasicon in L2 Dutch: The (expected) winner does not take it all. International Journal of Bilingual Education and Bilingualism, 1–24. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Bybee, Joan L. 2006. From usage to grammar: The mind’s response to repetition. Language 82(4): 711–733. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Bybee, Joan L. & Hopper, Paul J. 2001. Frequency and the Emergence of Linguistic Structure [Typological Studies in Language 45]. Amsterdam: John Benjamins. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Crossley, Scott & Salsbury, Thomas Lee. 2011. The development of lexical bundle accuracy and production in English second language speakers. International Review of Applied Linguistics in Language Teaching (IRAL) 49(1): 1–26. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Cunnings, Ian. 2012. An overview of mixed-effects statistical models for second language researchers. Second Language Research 28(3): 369–382. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Cunnings, Ian & Finlayson, Ian. 2015. Mixed effects modeling and longitudinal data analysis. In Advancing Quantitative Methods in Second Language Research, Luke Plonsky (ed.), 159–181. New York NY: Routledge. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Dagneaux, Estelle, Denness, Sharon & Granger, Sylviane. 1998. Computer-aided error analysis. System 26(2): 163–174. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Daudaravičius, Vidas & Marcinkevičienė, Rūta. 2004. Gravity counts for the boundaries of collocations. International Journal of Corpus Linguistics 9(2): 321–348. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Díaz-Negrillo, Ana & Fernández-Domínguez, Jesús. 2006. Error tagging systems for learner corpora. Revista Española de Lingüística Aplicada 19: 83–102.Google Scholar
Durrant, Philip & Brenchley, Mark. 2019. Development of vocabulary sophistication across genres in English children’s writing. Reading and Writing 32: 1927–1953. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Durrant, Philip & Schmitt, Norbert. 2009. To what extent do native and non-native writers make use of collocations? International Review of Applied Linguistics in Language Teaching 47(2): 157–177. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Ellis, Nick C. 2002. Frequency effects in language processing: A review with implications for theories of implicit and explicit language acquisition. Studies in Second Language Acquisition 24(2): 143–188. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Ellis, Nick C., Simpson-Vlach, Rita, Römer, Ute, O’Donnell, Matthew & Wulff, Stefanie. 2015. Learner corpora and formulaic language in SLA. In The Cambridge Handbook of Learner Corpus Research, Sylviane Granger, Gaëtanelle Gilquin & Fanny Meunier (eds), 357–378. Cambridge: CUP. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Erman, Britt & Warren, Beatrice. 2000. The idiom principle and the open choice principle. Text 20(1): 29–62. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Gablasova, Dana, Brezina, Vaclav & McEnery, Tony. 2017. Collocations in corpus-based language learning research: Identifying, comparing, and interpreting the evidence. Language Learning 67(S1): 155–179. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Gilquin, Gaëtanelle. 2007. To err is not all. What corpus and elicitation can reveal about the use of collocations by learners. Zeitschrift für Anglistik und Amerikanistik 55(3): 273–291. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Granger, Sylviane. 2019. Formulaic language in learner corpora. Collocations and lexical bundles. In Understanding Formulaic Language: A Second Language Acquisition Perspective, Anna Siyanova-Chanturia & Ana Pellicer-Sanchez (eds), 228–247. London: Routledge. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Granger, Sylvaine & Bestgen, Yves. 2014. The use of collocations by intermediate vs. advanced non-native writers: A bigram-based study. International Review of Applied Linguistics in Language Teaching 52(3): 229–252. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Granger, Sylviane & Meunier, Fanny. 2008. Phraseology: An Interdisciplinary Perspective. Amsterdam: John Benjamins. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Gries, Stefan T. 2013. 50-something years of work on collocations. International Journal of Corpus Linguistics 18(1): 137–166. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
2015. Statistics for learner corpus research. In The Cambridge Handbook of Learner Corpus Research, Sylviane Granger, Gaëtanelle Gilquin & Fanny Meunier (eds), 159–181. Cambridge: CUP. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Gries, Stefan T. & Durrant, Philip. 2020. Analyzing co-occurrence data. In A Practical Handbook of Corpus Linguistics, Magali Paquot & Stefan T. Gries (eds), 141–159. Berlin: Springer. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Housen, Alex, Kuiken, Folkert & Vedder, Ineke. 2012. Complexity, accuracy and fluency. Definitions, measurement and research. In Dimensions of L2 Performance and Proficiency: Complexity, Accuracy and Fluency in SLA [Language Learning & Language Teaching 32], Alex Housen, Folkert Kuiken & Ineke Vedder (eds), 1–20. Amsterdam: John Benjamins. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Laufer, Batia & Waldman, Tina. 2011. Verb-noun collocations in second language writing: A corpus analysis of learners’ English. Language Learning 61(2): 647–672. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Lennon, Paul. 1991. Error: Some problems of definition, identification, and distinction. Applied Linguistics 12(2): 180–196. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Li, Jie & Schmitt, Norbert. 2009. The acquisition of lexical phrases in academic writing: A longitudinal case study. Journal of Second Language Writing 18: 85–102. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Linck, Jared A. & Cunnings, Ian. 2015. The utility and application of mixed-effects models in second language research. Language Learning 65(S1): 185–207. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Liu, Chen-pin. 1999. An analysis of collocational errors in EFL writings. In Proceedings of the Eighth International Symposium on English Teaching, Johanna E. Katchen & Yiu-nam Leung (eds), 483–494. Taipei: The Crane Publishing Co.Google Scholar
Lüdecke, Daniel. 2018. sjPlot: Data Visualization for Statistics in Social Science [Computer software]. <[URL]> (14 November 2020).
Lüdeling, Anke & Hirschmann, Hagen. 2015. Error annotation systems. In The Cambridge Handbook of Learner Corpus Research, Sylviane Granger, Gaëtanelle Gilquin & Fanny Meunier (eds), 135–158. Cambridge: CUP. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Lyding, Verena, Stemle, Egon, Borghetti, Claudia, Brunello, Marco, Castagnoli, Sara, Dell’Orletta, Felice & Pirrelli, Vito. 2014. The PAISA corpus of Italian web texts. In Proceedings of the 9th Web as Corpus Workshop (WaC-9), Felix Bildhauer & Roland Schäfer (eds), 36–43. Gothenburg: Association for Computational Linguistics. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Murakami, Akira. 2016. Modeling systematicity and individuality in nonlinear second language development: The case of English grammatical morphemes. Language Learning 66(4): 834–871. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Nesselhauf, Nadia. 2005. Collocations in a Learner Corpus [Studies in Corpus Linguistics 14]. Amsterdam: John Benjamins. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Omidian, Taha, Siyanova-Chanturia, Anna & Spina, Stefania. 2021. The development of phraseological knowledge in learner writing: A longitudinal perspective. In Perspectives on the L2 Phrasicon: The View from Learner Corpora, Sylviane Granger (ed.), 178–205. Bristol: Multilingual Matters. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Osborne, John. 2008. Phraseology effects as a trigger for errors in L2 English: The case of more advanced learners. In Phraseology in Foreign Language Learning and Teaching, Fanny Meunier & Sylviane Granger (eds), 67–83. Amsterdam: John Benjamins. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Paquot, Magali. 2019. The phraseological dimension in interlanguage complexity research. Second Language Research 35(1): 121–145. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Paquot, Magali, Naets, Hubert & Gries, Stefan T. 2021. Using syntactic co-occurrences to trace phraseological complexity development in learner writing: Verb + object structures in LONGDALE. In Learner Corpora and Second Language Acquisition Research, Bert Le Bruyn & Magali Paquot (eds), 122–147. Cambridge: CUP.Google Scholar
Pawley, Andrew & Syder, Frances H. 1983. Two puzzles for linguistic theory: Native-like selection and native-like fluency. In Language and Communication, Jack C. Richards & Richard W. Schmidt (eds), 191–226. New York NY: Longman.Google Scholar
Plonsky, Luke & Derrick, Deirdre J. 2016. A meta-analysis of reliability coefficients in second language research. The Modern Language Journal 100(2): 538–553. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Qi, Yan & Ding, Yanren. 2011. Use of formulaic sequences in monologues of Chinese EFL learners. System 39: 164–174. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
R Core Team. 2020. R: A Language and Environment for Statistical Computing. Vienna: R Foundation for Statistical Computing. <[URL]> (14 November 2020).
Rychlý, Pavel. 2008. A lexicographer-friendly association score. In Proceedings of Recent Advances in Slavonic Natural Language Processing (RASLAN), Petr Sojka & Aleš Horák (eds), 6–9. Brno: Masaryk University.Google Scholar
Sinclair, John. 1991. Corpus, Concordance, Collocation. Oxford: OUP.Google Scholar
Siyanova-Chanturia, Anna. 2015. Collocation in beginner learner writing: A longitudinal study. System 53: 148–160. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Siyanova-Chanturia, Anna & Pellicer-Sánchez, Ana. 2019. Understanding Formulaic Language: A Second Language Acquisition Perspective. London: Routledge.Google Scholar
Siyanova-Chanturia, Anna & Spina, Stefania. 2020. Multi-word expressions in second language writing: A large-scale longitudinal learner corpus study. Language Learning 70(2): 420–463. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Spina, Stefania. 2016. Learner corpus research and phraseology in Italian as a second language: The case of the DICI-A, a learner dictionary of Italian collocations. In Collocations Cross-Linguistically. Corpora, Dictionaries and Language Teaching, Begoña Sanromán Vilas (ed.), 219–244. Helsinki: Memoires de la Societe Neophilologique.Google Scholar
. 2018. Lo sviluppo longitudinale della fraseologia in apprendenti cinesi di italiano L2. Uno studio preliminare su alcune categorie di errori. Ricognizioni. Rivista di Lingue, Letterature e Culture Moderne 10(V): 97–119.Google Scholar
. 2019. The development of phraseological errors in Chinese learner Italian: A longitudinal study. In Widening the Scope of Learner Corpus Research. Selected Papers from the Fourth Learner Corpus Research Conference, Andrea Abel, Aivars Glaznieks, Verena Lyding, & Lionel Nicolas (eds), 95–119. Louvain-la-neuve: Presses universitaires de Louvain.Google Scholar
. 2020. The role of learner corpus research in the study of L2 phraseology: Main contributions and future directions. Rivista di Psicolinguistica Applicata – Journal of Applied Psycholinguistics 20(2): 35–52.Google Scholar
Spina, Stefania & Siyanova-Chanturia, Anna. 2018. The Longitudinal Corpus of Chinese Learners of Italian (LOCCLI). Poster presented at the 13th Teaching and Language Corpora conference, University of Cambridge, UK.
Stenetorp, Pontus, Pyysalo, Sampo, Topić, Goran, Ohta, Tomoko, Ananiadou, Sophia & Tsujii, Jun’ichi. 2012. brat: A Web-based tool for NLP-assisted text annotation. In Proceedings of the Demonstrations at the 13th Conference of the European Chapter of the Association for Computational Linguistics, 102–107. Association for Computational Linguistics. <[URL]> (14 November 2020).
Thewissen, Jennifer. 2008. The phraseological errors of French-, German- and Spanish-speaking EFL learners: Evidence from an error-tagged learner corpus. In Proceedings of the 8th Teaching and Language Corpora Conference (TaLC8), 300–306. Lisbon: Associação de Estudos e de Investigação Científica do ISLA.Google Scholar
. 2013. Capturing L2 accuracy developmental patterns: Insights from an error-tagged EFL learner corpus. Modern Language Journal 97(S1): 77–101. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
. 2015. Accuracy across Proficiency Levels. A Learner Corpus Approach. Louvain-la-Neuve: Presses Universitaires de Louvain.Google Scholar
Vedder, Ineke & Benigno, Veronica. 2016. Lexical richness and collocational competence in second-language writing. International Review of Applied Linguistics in Language Teaching 54(1): 23–42. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Wanner, Leo, Alonso Ramos, Margarita, Vincze, Orsolya, Nazar, Rogelio, Ferraro, Gabriela, Mosqueira, Estela & Prieto, Sabela. 2013. Annotation of collocations in a learner corpus for building a learning environment. In Twenty Years of Learner Corpus Research: Looking Back, Moving Ahead, Sylviane Granger, Gaëtanelle Gilquin & Fanny Meunier (eds), 493–503. Louvain-la-neuve: Presses universitaires de Louvain.Google Scholar
Wickham, Hadley. 2016. ggplot2: Elegant Graphics for Data Analysis. New York NY: Springer. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Wray, Alison. 2012. What do we (think we) know about formulaic language? An evaluation of the current state of play. Annual Review of Applied Linguistics 32: 231–254. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Yoon, Hyung-Jo. 2016. Association strength of verb-noun combinations in experienced NS and less experienced NNS writing: Longitudinal and cross-sectional findings. Journal of Second Language Writing 34: 42–57. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Zuur, Alain F., Ieno, Elena N., Walker, Neil, Saveliev, Anatoly A. & Smith, Graham. M. 2009. Mixed Effects Models and Extensions in Ecology with R. Berlin: Springer. DOI logoGoogle Scholar