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Session 6 The Mental Lexicon

Word association (WA) tests Comparing the L1 and L2 mental

lexicons Pedagogic implications

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Word association and the mental lexicon

Cognitive processes -- how words and meanings are organized mentally

(unobservable) ◄=►

Language associative behavior (observable)

Word Association Test

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Prompt Word Associative word Relationship

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Word associations (English)Prompt Word Associative word Relationshi

p

green

water

open

hill

butterfly

truth

powerful

blanket

inclination

hockey

Word AssociationsWord Associationsgreen Grass (collocation)

Red (co-ordination)Color (super-ordination)

water Drink (collocation)Melon (compound noun)Clear (collocation)

open Close (antonym)Door (collocation)

inclination Information (sound – stress pattern)Intonation

hockey Jockey (sound - rhyme)

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How words are stored in the mental lexicon

L1 / L2 equivalence (cognates in related languages e.g. cream in English and crème in French)

Orthographically (words that have similar spelling) Phonologically (rhyme, alliteration, stress pattern,

etc.) Semantically (synonyms, antonyms, hyponyms e.g.

color - red) Collocationally (e.g. make – a wish, catch – a bus) Morphologically (e.g. defensive-offensive;

television-telescope) Encyclopedic associations (based on our

knowledge / experience of the real world)

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Meanings of words

Meanings of words are often understood in relation to other words (like a web) e.g. you understand the meaning of

‘cold’ through your understanding of ‘hot’

e.g. you understand the meaning of ‘roses’ through your understanding of ‘garden’, ‘flowers’ or ‘lilies’

Word Associations and Language Word Associations and Language ProficiencyProficiency

How words are organised / stored in the brain is an indicator of language proficiency level

Or how “native-like” you are

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Paradigmatic associations Always belong to the same word class Substitutable in syntactic strings More semantics-oriented (synonyms, antonyms, superordinates, or hyponyms) E.g. I want to get a doggie for my daughter. pet Terrier cat wombat

Syntagmatic associations Usually belong to a different word class, but sometimes can belong to the same word classCollocate well with prompt words in a grammatical string More grammar-oriented (in a grammatical string) E.g. Dogs bark.E.g. Walk the dog.E.g. Dog collar

Phonological associations / ClangsE.g. dog - fogE.g. hockey - hockey

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L1 mental lexicon

Phonological Syntagmatic Paradigmatic ( developmental process)

( younger children older children )

Commonness / Homogeneity in the their mental lexicons (native speakers tend to give the same word associates – more stable / consistent associations) e.g. blanket: bed, warm, sheet, electric, cover,

warmth, wool, soft, bath, snow

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Mean proportion of NNS and NS response types for WA (Wolter, 2001)

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Para Syntag Phono Noresponse

NNSNS

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L2 mental lexicon similar to

L1 mental lexiconEarlier studies found NS had more

paradigmatic associations than NNS. But later studies (e.g. Zareva, 2007) found tfound the same shift in L2 learners, as they get more proficient in the language, and as they grow older

Phonological Syntagmatic Paradigmatic

Looking at your word Looking at your word associatesassociates

1. What kinds of associations do you have most (phonological, syntagmatic, paradigmatic) in your WA tests?

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Pedagogical Implications

Developmental/ cognitive aspect: Younger learners tend to favor

syntagmatic associations: dog-bark

Older learners tend to favor/ are capable of handling paradigmatic associations / semantically-related groups e.g. synonyms, antonyms, hyponyms: dog-cat or dog-pet

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Superordinates and Hyponyms

Sports

??? ??? ???

???

Lion Tiger Horse

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Superordinates and Hyponyms

Flat

Living room Bedroom Kitchen Bathroom

Fridge Utensils

Saucepan

Frying pan

Word retentionWord retention

teach 8-12 vocabulary items in a 60-minute lesson (Gairns & Redman, 1986)

The chances of learning and retaining a word from one exposure is only 5-14% (Nagy, 1997)

5 – 16 times for a word to be learned (Zahar, Cobb & Spada, 2001)

An important role for recycling (revisiting) of the vocabulary learnt

Importance of RevisionImportance of Revision

Spaced / Distributed Spaced / Distributed RepetitionRepetition

Recycling of vocabularyRecycling of vocabulary Horst & Meara (1999) – far more vocab is learnt if the same

text is read several times (the first reading focuses on understanding meaning, while the later readings focus on the forms)

Following a piece of news for several days (word repetitions and synonyms); encountering the same words in different contexts

Vocabulary quizzes Different parts of speech (e.g. “shoulder” as a noun, and as a

verb) Other meanings (polysemy) of a word (e.g. “head as a body

part, the school head, the department head, head of a queue) Replacing general words by specific words (e.g. nice –

attractive, elegant, terrific)

AssignmentAssignment Deadline: postponed to November 10 Hard copy to Cecilia; Soft copy via www.turnitin.com

(instructions from Cecilia by email) All students have been given the cover sheet Assignments must be within the word limit: 2500

words excluding the reference list (+/-10% of the prescribed length). Assignments that are too long or too short should not be read and should be assigned a Fail grade. See page 7 of the Student Handbook.

Assessment criteria on Course Website Assignments that plagiarize are assigned a Fail grade.

Please paraphrase cited information in your own words and acknowledge the sources using the APA style.

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