The cognitive process of translation in L2 writing
Abstract
As a widely used strategy in second language (L2) writing, translation has received limited attention in ESL writing studies. This research attempts to explore the cognitive process of translation, or the informational coding, decoding, and reformulation at various cognitive levels, in L2 writing. Based on recent studies in psycholinguistics and neuroscience, the researcher first formulated a mental translation model for L2 writing and hypothesized two primary translation paths for skilled and unskilled L2 writers respectively. Next, a think-aloud study involving 6 Chinese-speaking subjects was conducted. It was found that skilled L2 writers use more L2 to think aloud and they struggle more on translation activities at semantic level; whereas unskilled L2 writers use more L1 to think aloud and they tend to focus more on translation activities at syntactic level.
Degree
Ph.D.
Advisors
Silva, Purdue University.
Subject Area
Linguistics|Language|Cognitive therapy
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