歧义容忍度对EFL写作语言特征的影响

The Effects of Ambiguity Tolerance on the Linguistic Features of EFL Writing

本文探讨歧义容忍度对非限时选题作文复杂度、准确度、流利度的影响。研究以101名英语专业三年级学生为对象,采用量化分析方法,数据包括用Ely的量表测得的学生歧义容忍度水平以及用Range32和L2SCA分析作文得到的七项指标的数值,即词汇广度、词汇深度、T单位密度、子句密度、T单位中的无错T单位数、T单位长度以及子句长度。结果发现:高歧义容忍度组在词汇运用深度上优于低歧义容忍度组,不过后者在选词和介词使用上的准确性高于前者,两组在词汇广度、句法复杂性和流利性上未见显著差异,因此教学中不宜对歧义容忍度进行统一干预。

This article explores the influence of ambiguity tolerance(TA)on the complexity,accuracy and fluency in time-unconstrained EFL writing with self-selected topics.This study invited 101 English major juniors as subjects and adopted a quantitative approach.The data include the students’level of TA determined by Ely’s Se cond Language Tolerance of Ambiguity Scale,as well as the WT/√2W,lexical frequency profile,C/T,DC/C,EFT/T,W/T and W/C of the essays calculated mostly by Range 32 and L2 SCA.The results show the high-ambiguity tolerance group performed better in lexical sophistication than the low-ambiguity tolerance group,but the latter demonstrated a higher level of accuracy in diction and use of pronouns than the former.No significant differences are found between the two groups in lexical variation,syntactic complexity and fluency.Therefore,pedagogical interventions in ambiguity tolerance are not supposed to be implemented without discrimination.