Research Methods in Applied Linguistics最新文献

{"title":"A Bayesian approach to implicit L2 learning: Web-based replication of Williams (2005) and Kim et al. (2023) with underrepresented learners","authors":"Kathy Minhye Kim ,&nbsp;Michael Bornstein ,&nbsp;Xiaoyi Liu ,&nbsp;Yongyue Li","doi":"10.1016/j.rmal.2025.100242","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.rmal.2025.100242","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Expanding participation beyond university samples is increasingly seen as key to more inclusive and generalizable SLA research. This study examined the effectiveness of web-based experimentation for L2 grammar learning among adults without post-secondary education—an underrepresented population in the field. Building on Williams (2005) and replicating Kim et al. (2023), we implemented a fully remote, researcher-supervised design to enhance accessibility and participant engagement. Forty-nine participants without college degrees completed a semi-artificial language learning task. Bayesian analyses indicated comparable overall learning outcomes, with greater variability in training accuracy and item reliability in the web-based condition. Crucially, no evidence of implicit learning was found among unaware learners—replicating Kim et al. (2023) and highlighting limits to generalizing such effects to non-traditional populations. These findings underscore the importance of inclusive research designs that expand research access while safeguarding data quality.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":101075,"journal":{"name":"Research Methods in Applied Linguistics","volume":"4 3","pages":"Article 100242"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144703178","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Introducing and comparing two techniques for key lexical bundles analysis","authors":"Tove Larsson,&nbsp;Taehyeong Kim,&nbsp;Jesse Egbert","doi":"10.1016/j.rmal.2025.100245","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.rmal.2025.100245","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Multiword units, specifically lexical bundles, have been found to be important building blocks in language production and processing. We also know that using the text rather than the full corpus as the unit of analysis increases the linguistic validity of the results, given that written language is produced through texts (e.g., Egbert &amp; Biber, 2019). However, researchers wishing to look at which bundles are characteristic of, or <em>key</em> to, a population (e.g., students from a specific first-language background) are currently out of luck if they are interested in using the text as the unit of analysis. The present paper introduces two methods designed for looking at key lexical bundles using texts as the unit of analysis: <em>text dispersion keyness</em> and <em>mean text frequency keyness</em>. We subsequently compare the results from these methods to existing <em>whole-corpus frequency keyness</em>. The results show that the techniques produce similar lists, but that mean text frequency keyness produced the largest number of content generalizable bundles (i.e., bundles that can be generalized across texts in the corpus). By contrast, text dispersion keyness helped us obtain the largest number of content distinctive bundles (i.e., bundles that clearly distinguish the target corpus from the reference corpus). Text dispersion keyness also produced the highest number of bundles that were both content generalizable and distinctive. Researchers may therefore wish to make a choice among these methods based on the objectives of their analysis.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":101075,"journal":{"name":"Research Methods in Applied Linguistics","volume":"4 3","pages":"Article 100245"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144713472","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Focus (on) replication: Focus processing in L1 and L2 English using the fidelity, refinement, and exploratory extension (FiREE) replication framework","authors":"Adam A. Bramlett,&nbsp;Seth Wiener","doi":"10.1016/j.rmal.2025.100275","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.rmal.2025.100275","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>A fundamental challenge in replication studies lies in balancing methodological fidelity with statistical conservatism while also leaving space for deeper theoretical exploration. This paper introduces a replication framework designed to balance these sometimes competing interests: the Fidelity, Refinement, and Exploratory Extension (FiREE) Replication Framework. We demonstrate this framework by using entirely web-based methods to conduct a close replication of an in-person English focus processing eye-tracking experiment (Ge et al., 2021), which found L1 Dutch-L2 English learners showed delayed fixation patterns to focus alternatives compared to L1 English speakers. We selected this study due to the unexpected L1 Dutch effect, the study’s recency and open materials, and its compatibility with individual difference extensions. We adhered closely to the fidelity of the original methodology and analysis. We recruited L1 English and L1 Dutch-L2 English participants via the internet and partially reproduced previous findings by capturing efficient L1 processing and less efficient L2 processing. We then refined the analytical approach and treated time as a continuous, dynamic variable using Generalized Additive Models. Differences between L1 and L2 participants were found not to be static processing deficits, but rather dynamic changes in fixation patterns over time. We show that the L1 speaker advantage may be one of long-term consistency rather than early efficiency. In our exploratory extension, we further tested whether eye movements can be predicted using acoustic measurements of the stimuli and five individual difference measures. We found evidence of acoustics, participants’ perceptual auditory sensitivity, and auditory motor reproduction abilities predicting eye fixations in line with interaction views of auditory processing. Our FiREE framework therefore ensures that replicability is not merely about reproducing a prior effect, but also about clarifying whether findings are meaningful, interpretable, and generalizable across different statistical, methodological, and theoretical contexts.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":101075,"journal":{"name":"Research Methods in Applied Linguistics","volume":"4 3","pages":"Article 100275"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145361441","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Assessing the validity of syntactic alternations as criterial features of proficiency in L2 writings in English","authors":"Cyriel Mallart ,&nbsp;Andrew Simpkin ,&nbsp;Nicolas Ballier ,&nbsp;Paula Lissón ,&nbsp;Rémi Venant ,&nbsp;Bernardo Stearns ,&nbsp;Jen-Yu Li ,&nbsp;Thomas Gaillat","doi":"10.1016/j.rmal.2025.100238","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.rmal.2025.100238","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>This article addresses Second Language (L2) writing development through an investigation of alternation-based metrics. We explore the paradigmatic production in learner English by linking language functions to specific grammatical paradigms. Using the EFCAMDAT as a gold standard and a corpus of French learners as an external test set, we employ a supervised learning framework to operationalize and evaluate seven alternations. We show that learner levels are associated with these seven alternations. Using ordinal regression Modeling for evaluation, the results show that all syntactic alternations are significant but yield a low impact if taken individually. However, their influence is shown to be impactful if taken as a group. These alternations and their measurement method suggest that it is possible to use them as part of broader-purpose Computer-Assisted Language Learning (CALL) systems focused on proficiency assessment.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":101075,"journal":{"name":"Research Methods in Applied Linguistics","volume":"4 3","pages":"Article 100238"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144766490","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Transparency and representativity in online experimentation: A response to Kim & Chen (2025)","authors":"Charlie Nagle","doi":"10.1016/j.rmal.2025.100282","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.rmal.2025.100282","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>In this response to Kim and Chen, I focus on online sampling practices in popular crowdsourcing platforms. I agree with the authors that care must be taken when considering the extent to which online samples are representative of the target population to which researchers which to generalize. I discuss the ever-evolving dynamics of the online user base, and I advocate for detailed reporting on exactly when online data have been collected, how long tasks have been made available, and, in cases where tasks have been redeployed multiple times, the amount of data collected in each wave. I close by calling for replication studies that use the same filtering criteria and deployment characteristics as the predecessor research.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":101075,"journal":{"name":"Research Methods in Applied Linguistics","volume":"4 3","pages":"Article 100282"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145415161","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Does data collection mode matter for word learning trajectory: processing variability in lab and web environments","authors":"Yingzhao Chen ,&nbsp;Danni Zhang","doi":"10.1016/j.rmal.2025.100262","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.rmal.2025.100262","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Critics have expressed concerns about reaction time (RT) data collected online due to their sensitivity to timing accuracy (Chetverikov &amp; Upravitelev, 2016). While research involving first-language speakers has largely demonstrated the comparability of web and lab RT data, second-language (L2) researchers have only recently started to do so (Patterson &amp; Nicklin, 2023). Further, there is a lack of research on whether learning trajectories captured by RTs in-person studies may be generalized to the web environment. This study compares how L2 word learning progressed as indexed by RTs and the coefficient of variation (CV) online and in person. Eighty-three first-language speakers of English studied 20 Swahili words and then went through 20 rounds of animacy judgment tasks. Participants completed the experiment in a lab or online. We found markedly different trends for RTs and CVs in lab and web environments. In general, results from the lab largely replicated previous in-person studies on the same topic: RTs declined significantly, and CVs followed an inverted U-shape before a plateau. For the web participants, RTs showed smaller changes while CVs were stable throughout learning. We discussed the viability of conducting learning experiments online where the outcome is assessed by RT-based measures.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":101075,"journal":{"name":"Research Methods in Applied Linguistics","volume":"4 3","pages":"Article 100262"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145157423","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Oral task repetition research via videoconferencing","authors":"Joe Kakitani","doi":"10.1016/j.rmal.2025.100232","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.rmal.2025.100232","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>A substantial body of research has demonstrated the benefits of oral task repetition in enhancing second language (L2) performance. However, empirical studies investigating its effects on L2 development through longitudinal designs remain limited. This limitation may be partly due to the methodological challenges of traditional classroom- and laboratory-based research, such as participant attrition and scheduling difficulties. This paper explores the potential of online oral experimentation via videoconferencing—experiments conducted through synchronous computer-mediated communication using platforms like Zoom and Microsoft Teams—to advance L2 oral task repetition research. After reviewing research on task repetition and the methodological characteristics of conventional classroom- and laboratory-based studies that may present challenges within this domain, this article discusses the advantages of online experiments conducted via videoconferencing, including greater convenience and flexibility, increased efficiency, improved control of extraneous factors, and automated speech transcription. In addition, it examines the ecological validity of online video-based oral experiments. Methodological recommendations are also provided to help researchers address some of the challenges associated with conducting experiments via videoconferencing.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":101075,"journal":{"name":"Research Methods in Applied Linguistics","volume":"4 3","pages":"Article 100232"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144549575","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Can you quantify the qualitative? Developing a coding and video annotation method for L2 interaction","authors":"Nicholas Glasson ,&nbsp;Daniel M.K. Lam","doi":"10.1016/j.rmal.2025.100283","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.rmal.2025.100283","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Studying interactional discourse involving L2 learners is recognisably an important endeavour in applied linguistics research. Such inquiries, however, have been approached rather differently across sub-disciplines of L2 studies. Quantitative approaches often involve coding interactional discourse using conventional measures (e.g. number of turns) or pre-determined interactional features (e.g. agreeing/disagreeing). Such analyses might miss important, non-frequency-related insights about interactional practices of L2 learners, and risk crude, imprecise categorisations on which distributional patterns are identified. Conversation analysis (CA) offers much more nuanced insights into the co-constructed and locally contingent nature of interactional practices, but is less amenable to empirical generalisation and exploration of relationships between variables that some disciplines or research purposes demand. This article proposes a CA-informed coding framework and video annotation method for analysing L2 spoken interaction. Using an example study involving 56 L2 English learners in a speaking assessment task, this article demonstrates how a more robust coding framework can be developed based on CA principles and findings; how the qualitative data analysis application MAXQDA can facilitate coding and intercoder reliability checks; and how complementary quantitative and qualitative findings can be presented. The proposed method contributes to L2 research by striking a balance between precise, micro-level analysis of interactional phenomena and gaining macro-level insights into distributional patterns and relationships. We conclude by suggesting some potential applications in future L2 interactional competence (IC) studies such as pedagogical interventions, assessing IC in monologic tasks, and learner-AI interactions.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":101075,"journal":{"name":"Research Methods in Applied Linguistics","volume":"4 3","pages":"Article 100283"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145570918","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Frequentist vs. Bayesian methods: Choosing appropriate statistical methods in second language research","authors":"Shotaro Ueno ,&nbsp;Osamu Takeuchi","doi":"10.1016/j.rmal.2025.100256","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.rmal.2025.100256","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Null hypothesis significance testing (NHST) with <em>p</em>-values is one of the most commonly used statistical procedures in second language research. This statistical approach follows the principles of the frequentist method, and although it has various advantages, some researchers have noted its limitations and proposed Bayesian methods as an alternative. To contribute to this debate, this article introduces the basic principles of Bayesian statistics, specifically Bayesian hypothesis testing (BHT), and explores its advantages and limitations compared to the frequentist approach, particularly NHST. The article first outlines the foundational concepts of NHST and reviews the main criticisms associated with its use. It then presents the core ideas of Bayesian methods, with a primary focus on the Bayes factor, followed by a description of general procedures for conducting BHT and an overview of its potential benefits in applied research contexts. Additionally, several challenges and criticisms of Bayesian methods are discussed, emphasizing that they are not always a superior alternative. Based on these discussions, the article argues that both frequentist and Bayesian methods have strengths and limitations, and that specific research goals, questions, and contexts should guide the choice of statistical framework.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":101075,"journal":{"name":"Research Methods in Applied Linguistics","volume":"4 3","pages":"Article 100256"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144931891","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Unique and shared roles of the LLAMA subtests for prediction of initial L2 achievement: An application of regression commonality analysis","authors":"Philip S. Dale ,&nbsp;Lars Bokander ,&nbsp;Richard L. Sparks","doi":"10.1016/j.rmal.2025.100224","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.rmal.2025.100224","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Little research has examined the relations of the LLAMA subtests beyond predictive correlations and simple regressions. In this secondary analysis of data from Bokander (2020), we use regression commonality analyses (RCA) to address multicollinearity by decomposing the LLAMA predictive variance into unique components for each subtest alone and for each possible subtest combination. Fifty-five students with Germanic L1 backgrounds completed the LLAMA, followed by an introductory Swedish course, and then a written C-test. LLAMA-D, sound-sequence recognition, was the most important unique predictor of L2 achievement. LLAMA-E (sound-symbol association) unique variance and shared variance with LLAMA-D and LLAMA-B (vocabulary learning) was the next most important contributor to prediction. Similar to results for MLAT, these results demonstrate the major role of phonetic script/sound-symbol relationship skills both uniquely and shared with other subtests. The most important difference is the equally important, distinct role of speech sound-sequence recognition, a skill not previously included in aptitude tests prior to the LLAMA. The paper concludes with a discussion of the strengths and limitations of regression commonality analysis, which appears to have considerable usefulness for studies involving prediction.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":101075,"journal":{"name":"Research Methods in Applied Linguistics","volume":"4 3","pages":"Article 100224"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144322639","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}