Grammatical category and L 2 lexical representation * 3

Lee, Junkyu. 2013. Grammatical category and L2 lexical representation. Linguistic Research 30(1), 19-32. Despite a wide range of L2 vocabulary research to date, relatively little attention is paid to a fundamental inquiry such as L2 lexical representation. Provided that the changes in L2 learners’ behavioral patterns are correlated with those in the internal mechanism, an investigation into the representations of the L2 lexicon should be placed in the center of L2 vocabulary research. This paper highlights the interconnectedness of lexicon modules through a necessary linkage between concept and grammatical categories on L2 lexical representation. An L2 group of advanced English proficiency performed an offline semantic-relatedness judgment task, in which the participants evaluated the semantic relatedness of a series of pairs. Half of (abstract) noun pairs and half of verb pairs were utilized as the related pairs, along with the number matched unrelated pairs. Results showed that the L2 group patterned with the L1 group in evaluating the experimental pairs. Both group judged verb pairs as more semantically related than noun pairs. The implication for L2 conceptual representation has been discussed. (Hankuk University of Foreign Studies)