外语损耗研究的动向及建议

Research Trends and Suggestions for Foreign Language Attrition

最近20年,国内外学术界逐渐给予外语损耗研究较多关注。本文系统梳理了14项国际较有影响力的研究,结果发现,在词汇和形态层面,形态最先被损耗,词汇最易受损耗,而语音、句法、语义、语用方面的研究较少;损耗速度整体呈现“前快—中稳—后快”的趋势,但对是否存在起始平台还存在争议;就影响损耗的语外因素而言,语言停用并非导致外语损耗的唯一因素,起始水平对外语损耗具有重要预测作用,不过还需要对语外因素的交互关系进一步研究。本文就如何确定外语损耗研究的基准线、选择合适的研究方法、设计研究的整体框架等方面阐释了对国内研究的建议。

In the last 20 years,more and more attention has been paid to the study of foreign language(FL)attrition.Based on the development of FL attrition,this paper reviews the main findings of 14 relevant international research.The findings are summarised as follows.First,in terms of linguistic features,morphology is the first to be attrited,vocabulary is the most vulnerable to be detected,but few studies specifically target foreign phonology,syntax,semantics,and pragmatics attrition.Second,the rate of attrition presents a trend of“retention curve declines exponentially in first intervals,remains unchanged for next stage and then follow a final decline in the last stage”.Third,there are controversies in particular issues such as the existence of an“initial plateau”.Fourth,in terms of the extralinguistic factors affecting attrition,language contact is not the only factor leading to attrition,and initial proficiency plays an important role in predicting language attrition.F uture research should be carried out on the com bination of factors that have an impact on FL attrition.In the end,we explain the enlightenment to domestic FL attrition research from three aspects:determining the research baseline,choosing the appropriate research methods,and designing the overall research framework to provide a reference for the research in this field.