Self-Selected Strategies of L2 Learners: Effects on Immediate- and Delayed Word Retention in Intentional and Incidental Vocabulary Acquisition, With Eye-Tracking Implementation

This study establishes the preferences for vocabulary learning strategies (VLSs) in different contexts, by examining two groups of learners of Arabic (one with L1 English and the other with L1 Chinese) as an L2. The first and second experiments were designed to identify the selection and use of VLSs in intentional and incidental modes of vocabulary learning, and to examine the effects of VLSs on immediate and delayed word retention. The third experiment (eye-tracking) explored these strategies in depth, alongside the behaviours utilised for incidental vocabulary acquisition, also assessing the factors influencing be VLS use, using the eye tracking technique to aid stimulated verbal recall.
A mixed methods design was used, based on triangulating the findings from quantitative (vocabulary tests and retrospective reporting of strategies) and qualitative (interviews and stimulated recall interviews using eye-tracking) data collection instruments.
The study identified a list of VLSs that were used in both modes, and these were then systematically classified into four vocabulary learning categories. The quantitative data revealed a number of strategies were vulnerable to the significant effects from predictor variables; i.e., group, mode of learning, and test time. The quantitative data also showed a significant relationship between the VLSs used and the uptake of vocabulary type (noun/verb) and subtypes (concrete/abstract noun & action/state verb) in post and delayed post-test tasks. The qualitative data highlighted different ways of implementing VLS, especially with strategies identified in the incidental mode, such as guessing strategies, and repeated reading. The findings showed further interesting variations in the vocabulary gained, confirming that VLSs are conscious and essential in both modes of learning (intentional/incidental). The implications of these findings as they effect learning and teaching in the intentional and incidental context are presented and discussed.