In:Instructed Second Language Acquisition Research Methods
Edited by Laura Gurzynski-Weiss and YouJin Kim
[Research Methods in Applied Linguistics 3] 2022
► pp. 181–206
Chapter 8Vocabulary
A guide to researching instructed second language vocabulary acquisition
Published online: 8 December 2022
https://doi.org/10.1075/rmal.3.08iwa
https://doi.org/10.1075/rmal.3.08iwa
Abstract
Acquiring vocabulary knowledge is a vital part of L2 learning because vocabulary plays a significant role in every mode of communication (reading, listening, writing, and speaking). For learners to become independent users of a L2, they must know many thousands of words and learn how to use them well in communication. For example, learners of English must acquire up to 9,000 words (e.g., happy) and their morphologically-related forms (e.g., happiness, unhappy, happily) to comprehend spoken and written texts (e.g., conversation, television programs, films, novels, and newspapers) (Nation, 2006; Webb & Rodgers, 2009a, 2009b). Moreover, acquisition of L2 vocabulary entails learning different aspects of word knowledge such as word parts, collocations, and associations, not only learning form-meaning connections. Thus, the teaching, learning, and researching of L2 vocabulary can be highly complex. The purpose of this chapter is to provide a guide to researching instructed second language vocabulary acquisition. The chapter sets out to provide (1) an overview of key concepts in vocabulary research, (2) a brief overview of L2 vocabulary research focusing on intervention studies, (3) an overview of a frequently employed study design (pretest-posttest design), different measures for assessing L2 vocabulary knowledge as well as options and cautions for interpreting data, (4) advice for future vocabulary researchers, and (5) tips to overcome potential challenges.
Article outline
- 1.Conceptualizing vocabulary knowledge and why vocabulary research is important
- 2.What we know and what we need to know about vocabulary research in ISLA
- 3.Data elicitation and interpretation options for ISLA vocabulary research
- 3.1Data elicitation options for research involving incidental and intentional interventions
- 3.2Measuring learning gains
- 3.3Interpreting the results
- 3.4Example incidental learning study
- 3.5Example intentional learning study
- 3.6Characteristics of the studies involving incidental and intentional interventions
- 4.Advice for future vocabulary researchers
- 4.1Designing the input material employed in ISLA vocabulary research
- 4.2Ethical considerations and data collection
- 4.3Interpreting and analyzing data
- 4.4Reporting the methodology with sufficient detail to allow replication
- 5.Troubleshooting ISLA vocabulary research
- 6.Conclusions
- 7.Further reading and additional resources
- 7.1Additional readings
- 7.2Conferences for L2 vocabulary researchers
- 7.3Resources for L2 vocabulary researchers
- 7.4Recommended journals
References
References (94)
Adolphs, S., & Schmitt, N. (2003). Lexical coverage of spoken discourse. Applied Linguistics, 24(4), 425–438.
Anderson, R. C., & Freebody, P. (1981). Vocabulary knowledge. In J. T. Guthrie (Ed.), Comprehension and teaching: Research reviews (pp. 77–117). International Reading Association.
Baayen, R. H., Davidson, D. J., & Bates, D. M. (2008). Mixed-effects modeling with crossed random effects for subjects and items. Journal of Memory and Language, 59(4), 390–412.
Barcroft, J. (2004). Effects of sentence writing in second language lexical acquisition, Second Language Research, 20(4), 303–334.
Bauer, L., & Nation, I. S. P. (1993). Word families. International Journal of Lexicography, 6(4), 253–279.
Biber, D., Conrad, S., & Cortes, V. (2004). If you look at…: Lexical bundles in university teaching and textbooks. Applied Linguistics, 25(3), 371–405.
Boers, F., Demecheleer, M., Coxhead, A., & Webb, S. (2014). Gauging the effects of exercises on verb–noun collocations. Language Teaching Research, 18(1), 54–74.
Boers, F., & Lindstromberg, S. (2008). How cognitive linguistics can foster effective vocabulary teaching. In F. Boers & S. Lindstromberg (Eds.), Cognitive linguistic approaches to teaching vocabulary and phraseology (pp. 1–61). Mouton de Gruyter.
Carney, N. (2021). Diagnosing L2 listeners’ difficulty comprehending known lexis. TESOL Quarterly, 55(2), 536–567.
Crossley, S. A., Salsbury, T., & McNamara, D. S. (2014). Assessing lexical proficiency using analytic ratings: A case for collocation accuracy. Applied Linguistics, 36(5), 570–590.
Dang, T. N. Y., Lu, C., & Webb, S. (2022). Incidental learning of single words and collocations through viewing an academic lecture. Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 44(3), 708–736.
Dang, T. N. Y., & Webb, S. (2014). The lexical profile of academic spoken English. English for Specific Purposes, 33, 66–76.
De Groot, A. M. B., & Keijzer, R. (2000). What is hard to learn is easy to forget: The roles of word concreteness, cognate status, and word frequency in foreign-language vocabulary learning and forgetting. Language Learning, 50(1), 1–56.
De Vos, J. F., Schriefers, H., Nivard, M. G., & Lemhofer, K. (2018). A meta-analysis and meta-regression of incidental second language word learning from spoken input. Language Learning, 68(4), 906–941.
Dunn, T. J., Baguley, T., & Brunsden, V. (2014). From alpha to omega: A practical solution to the pervasive problem of internal consistency estimation. British Journal of Psychology, 105(3), 399–412.
Ellis, N. C., & Beaton, A. (1993). Psycholinguistic determinants of foreign language vocabulary learning. Language Learning, 43(4), 559–617.
Feng, Y., & Webb, S. (2020). Learning vocabulary through reading, listening, and viewing: Which mode of input is most effective? Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 42(3), 499–523.
Godfroid, A., Ahn, J., Choi, I., Ballard, L., Cui, Y., Johnston, S., … Yoon, H. J. (2018). Incidental vocabulary learning in a natural reading context: An eye-tracking study. Bilingualism: Language and Cognition, 21(3), 563–584.
Goeman, J. J., & de Jong, N. H. (2018). How well does the sum score summarize the test? Summability as a measure of internal consistency. Educational Measurement: Issues and Practice, 37(2), 54–63.
González-Fernández, B. (2022). Conceptualizing L2 vocabulary knowledge: An empirical examination of the dimensionality of word knowledge. Studies in Second Language Acquisition. Advance online publication.
Gyllstad, H., & Wolter, B. (2016). Collocational processing in light of the phraseological continuum model: Does semantic transparency matter? Language Learning, 66(2), 296–323.
Heatley, A., Nation, I. S. P., & Coxhead, A. (2002). Range: A program for the analysis of vocabulary in texts [Computer software]. [URL]
Henriksen, B. (1999). Three dimensions of vocabulary development. Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 21(2), 303–317.
Horst, M. (2005). Learning L2 vocabulary through extensive reading: A measurement study. The Canadian Modern Language Review, 61(3), 355–382.
Hulstijn, J. H., & Laufer, B. (2001). Some empirical evidence for the involvement load hypothesis in vocabulary acquisition. Language Learning, 51(3), 539–558.
Jeon, E. H., & Yamashita, J. (2014). L2 reading comprehension and its correlates: A meta-analysis. Language Learning, 64(1), 160–212.
Jin, Z., & Webb, S. (2020). Incidental vocabulary learning through listening to teacher talk. Modern Language Journal, 104(3), 550–566.
Kremmel, B. (2020). Measuring vocabulary learning progress. In S. Webb (Ed.), The Routledge handbook of vocabulary studies (pp. 81–96). Routledge.
Laufer, B. (1997). What’s in a word that makes it hard or easy? Intralexical factors affecting vocabulary acquisition. In N. Schmitt & M. McCarthy (Eds.), Vocabulary: Description, acquisition, and pedagogy (pp. 140–155). Cambridge University Press.
(2003). Vocabulary acquisition in a second language: Do learners really acquire most vocabulary by reading? Some empirical evidence. The Canadian Modern Language Review, 59(4), 567–58.
Laufer, B., & Goldstein, Z. (2004). Testing vocabulary knowledge: Size, strength, and computer adaptiveness. Language Learning, 54(3), 399–436.
Laufer, B., & Ravenhorst-Kalovski, G. C. (2010). Lexical threshold revisited: Lexical text coverage, learners’ vocabulary size and reading comprehension. Reading in a Foreign Language, 22, 15–30. [URL]
Linck, J. A., & Cunnings, I. (2015). The utility and application of mixed-effects models in second language research. Language Learning, 65(1), 185–207.
Marsden, E. J., Morgan-Short, K., Thompson, S., & Abugaber, D. (2018). Replication in second language research: Narrative and systematic reviews, and recommendations for the field. Language Learning, 68(2), 321–391.
Nagy, W. E., Herman, P. A., & Anderson, R. C. (1985). Learning words from context. Reading Research Quarterly, 20(2), 232–253.
Nakata, T. (2008). English vocabulary learning with word lists, word cards and computers: Implications from cognitive psychology research for optimal spaced learning. ReCALL, 20(1), 3–20.
Nation, I. S. P. (2006). How large a vocabulary is needed for reading and listening? The Canadian Modern Language Review, 63(1), 59–82.
Nguyen, T. M. H., & Webb, S. (2017). Examining second language receptive knowledge of collocation and factors that affect learning. Language Teaching Research, 21(3), 298–320.
Paivio, A., Walsh, M., & Bons, T. (1994). Concreteness effects on memory: When and why? Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition, 20(5), 1196–1204.
Pavia, N., Webb, S., Faez, F. (2019). Incidental vocabulary learning through listening to songs. Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 41(4), 745–768.
Pellicer-Sánchez, A. (2016). Incidental L2 vocabulary acquisition from and while reading. Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 38(1), 97–130.
(2017). Learning L2 collocations incidentally from reading. Language Teaching Research, 21(3), 381–402.
Pellicer-Sánchez, A., & Schmitt, N. (2010). Incidental vocabulary acquisition from an authentic novel: Do things fall apart? Reading in a Foreign Language, 22(1), 31–55. [URL]
Peters, E. (2016). The learning burden of collocations: The role of interlexical and intralexical factors. Language Teaching Research, 20(1), 113–138.
Peters, E., & Pauwels, P. (2015). Learning academic formulaic sequences. Journal of English for Academic Purposes, 20, 28–39.
Peters, E., & Webb, S. (2018). Incidental vocabulary acquisition through watching a single episode of L2 television. Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 40(3), 551–557.
Pigada, M., & Schmitt, N. (2006). Vocabulary acquisition from extensive reading: A case study. Reading in a Foreign Language, 18(1), 1–28. [URL]
Puimège, E., & Peters, E. (2020). Learning formulaic sequences through viewing L2 television and factors that affect learning. Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 42(3), 525–549.
Qian, D. D. (2002). Investigating the relationship between vocabulary knowledge and academic reading performance: An assessment perspective. Language Learning, 52(3), 53–536.
Qian, D. D., & Schedl, M. (2004). Evaluation of an in-depth vocabulary knowledge measure for assessing reading performance. Language Testing, 21(1), 28–52.
Read, J. (2007). Second language vocabulary assessment: Current practices and new directions. International Journal of English Studies, 7(2), 105–126.
Rodgers, M. P. H., & Webb, S. (2019). Incidental vocabulary learning through viewing television. ITL – International Journal of Applied Linguistics, 171(2). 191–220.
Rogers, J., Webb, S., & Nakata, T. (2015). Do the cognacy characteristics of loanwords make them more easily learned than noncognates? Language Teaching Research, 19(1), 9–27.
Saito, K., Webb, S., Trofimovich, P., & Isaacs, T. (2016). Lexical profiles of comprehensible second language speech: The role of appropriateness, fluency, variation, sophistication, abstractness, and sense relations. Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 38(4), 677–701.
Schmitt, N., Jiang, X., & Grabe, W. (2011). The percentage of words known in a text and reading comprehension. Modern Language Journal, 95(1), 26–43.
Schmitt, N., Schmitt, D., & Clapham, C. (2001). Developing and exploring the behaviour of two new versions of the Vocabulary Levels Test. Language Testing, 18(1), 55–88.
Shi, L., & Qian, D. (2012). How does vocabulary knowledge affect Chinese EFL learners’ writing quality in web-based settings? Evaluating the relationships among three dimensions of vocabulary knowledge and writing quality. Chinese Journal of Applied Linguistics, 35(1), 117–127.
Siyanova-Chanturia, A., & Pellicer-Sánchez, A. (2019). Formulaic language. In A. Siyanova-Chanturia & A. Pellicer-Sánchez (Eds.), Understanding formulaic language: A second language acquisition perspective (pp. 1–15). Routledge.
Stæhr, L. S. (2008). Vocabulary size and the skills of listening, reading and writing. Language Learning Journal, 36(2), 139–152.
Uchihara, T., & Clenton, J. (2018). Investigating the role of vocabulary size in second language speaking ability. Language Teaching Research, 24(4), 540–556.
Uchihara, T., & Saito, K. (2019). Exploring the relationship between productive vocabulary knowledge and second language oral ability. Language Learning Journal, 47(1), 64–75.
Uchihara, T., Webb, S., Saito, K., & Trofimovich, P. (2022). The effects of talker variability and frequency of exposure on the acquisition of spoken word knowledge. Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 44(2), 357–380.
Vafaee, P., & Suzuki, Y. (2020). The relative significance of syntactic knowledge and vocabulary knowledge in second language listening ability. Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 42(2), 383–410.
van Zeeland, H., & Schmitt, N. (2013a). Lexical coverage in L1 and L2 listening comprehension: The same or different from reading comprehension? Applied Linguistics, 34(4), 457–479.
(2013b). Incidental vocabulary acquisition through L2 listening: A dimensions approach. System, 41(3), 609–624.
Vu, D. V., & Peters, E. (2022). Incidental learning of collocations from meaningful input. A longitudinal study into three reading modes and factors that affect learning. Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 44(3), 685–707.
Wang, Y., & Treffers-Daller, J. (2017). Explaining listening comprehension among L2 learners of English: The contribution of general language proficiency, vocabulary knowledge and metacognitive awareness. System, 65, 139–150.
Watanabe, Y. (1997). Input, intake, and retention. Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 19(3), 287–307.
Webb, S. (2005). Receptive and productive vocabulary learning: The effects of reading and writing on word knowledge. Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 27(1), 33–52.
(2007a). Learning word pairs and glossed sentences: The effects of a single context on vocabulary knowledge. Language Teaching Research, 11(1), 63–81.
(2013). Depth of vocabulary knowledge. In C. Chappelle (Ed.), Encyclopedia of applied linguistics (pp. 1656–1663). Wiley-Blackwell.
(2020). Incidental vocabulary learning. In S. Webb (Ed.), The Routledge handbook of vocabulary studies (pp. 225–239). Routledge.
Webb, S., & Chang, A. C.-S. (2022). How does mode of input affect the incidental learning of collocations. Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 44(1), 35–56.
Webb, S., & Kagimoto, E. (2011). Learning collocations: Do the number of collocates, position of the node word, and synonymy affect learning? Applied Linguistics, 32(3), 259–276.
Webb, S., Newton, J., & Chang, A. (2013). Incidental learning of collocation. Language Learning, 63(1), 91–120.
Webb, S., & Piasecki, A. (2018). Re-examining the effects of word writing on vocabulary learning. ITL – International Journal of Applied Linguistics, 169(1), 72–94.
Webb, S. & Rodgers, M. P. H. (2009a). The lexical coverage of movies. Applied Linguistics, 30(3), 407–427.
Webb, S., Sasao, Y., & Ballance, O. (2017). The updated vocabulary levels test: Developing and validating two new forms of the VLT. ITL – International Journal of Applied Linguistics, 168(1), 33–69.
Webb, S., Yanagisawa, A., & Uchihara, T. (2020). How effective are intentional vocabulary-learning activities? A meta-analysis. Modern Language Journal, 104(4), 715–738.
Wei, Z. (2015). Does teaching mnemonics for vocabulary learning make a difference? Putting the keyword method and the word part technique to the test. Language Teaching Research, 19(1), 43–69.
Wood, D. (2006). Uses and functions of formulaic sequences in second language speech: An exploration of the foundations of fluency. The Canadian Modern Language Review, 63(1), 13–33.
(2020). Classifying and identifying formulaic language. In S. Webb (Ed.), The Routledge handbook of vocabulary studies (pp. 30–45). Routledge.
Wray, A. (1999). Formulaic language in learners and native speakers. Language Teaching, 32(4), 213–231.
Wray, A., & Perkins, M. R. (2000). The functions of formulaic language: An integrated model. Language and Communication, 20(1), 1–28.
Yanagisawa, A., & Webb, S. (2020). Measuring depth of vocabulary knowledge. In S. Webb (Ed.), The Routledge handbook of vocabulary studies (pp. 81–96). Routledge.