Second Language Spoken Vocabulary Acquisition and Individual Differences: Cross-Sectional and Longitudinal Studies

2023 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 21K19995
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Research Activity Start-up
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Review Section: 0102:Literature, linguistics, and related fields
• Research Institution: Tohoku University (2023); Waseda University (2021-2022)
• Principal Investigator: Uchihara Takumi 東北大学, 国際文化研究科, 講師 (10905847)
• Project Period (FY): 2021-08-30 – 2024-03-31
• Keywords: 外国語教育 / 第二言語習得 / 語彙習得 / 音声語彙 / リスニング

Outline of Final Research Achievements

The purpose of this study was to clarify the relationship between spoken and written vocabulary knowledge and individual difference factors among Japanese learners of English. In particular, we focused on the acquisition of spoken vocabulary knowledge and attempted to measure various aspects of spoken vocabulary knowledge (meaning recall, meaning recognition, and in-context meaning recognition). Experimental results showed that learners' word test scores were lower for meaning recognition, meaning recall, and in-context meaning recognition, in that order. Structural equation modeling analysis also showed that spoken vocabulary knowledge is divided into explicit knowledge (meaning recall and meaning recognition) and automatic knowledge (in-context meaning recognition). It was also found that learners with higher English proficiency in listening comprehension possessed more automated speech lexical knowledge.

Free Research Field

外国語教育

Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements

現状の語彙習得理論は主に筆記語彙知識の測定結果に基づいて構築されてきた。本研究結果は音声語彙知識獲得に焦点を当てることで第二言語語彙習得理論に新たな示唆を与え、更なる発展に寄与すると考えられる。また、より実際の言語使用（例：リスニング力）に直結する「使える」語彙力測定のためのテストの開発により、今後の英語教育実践において語彙指導の在り方に変革を起こす可能性をある。「記憶する＝語彙学習」という概念を超えて、実際のコミュニケーションで「使える」語彙指導の促進が期待される。テストツールは近日一般公開する予定である。