Complex Systems and Applied Linguistics

Complex Systems and Applied Linguistics PDF

Author: Diane Larsen-Freeman

Publisher: OUP Oxford

Published: 2008-04-17

Total Pages: 300

ISBN-13: 9780194422444

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Accessible introduction to rapidly growing field of interest across disciplines. Explains key constructs: chaos; complexity; dynamic systems; emergence etc. Demonstrates applications to areas of applied linguistics. Illustrates how complex systems thinking can challenge established ideas. Discusses implications for theory, research, and practice.

Research Methods for Complexity Theory in Applied Linguistics

Research Methods for Complexity Theory in Applied Linguistics PDF

Author: Phil Hiver

Publisher: Multilingual Matters

Published: 2019-12-06

Total Pages: 301

ISBN-13: 1788925769

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This book provides practical guidance on research methods and designs that can be applied to Complex Dynamic Systems Theory (CDST) research. It discusses the contribution of CDST to the field of applied linguistics, examines what this perspective entails for research and introduces practical methods and templates, both qualitative and quantitative, for how applied linguistics researchers can design and conduct research using the CDST framework. Introduced in the book are methods ranging from those in widespread use in social complexity, to more familiar methods in use throughout applied linguistics. All are inherently suited to studying both dynamic change in context and interconnectedness. This accessible introduction to CDST research will equip readers with the knowledge to ensure compatibility between empirical research designs and the theoretical tenets of complexity. It will be of value to researchers working in the areas of applied linguistics, language pedagogy and educational linguistics and to scholars and professionals with an interest in second/foreign language acquisition and complexity theory.

Language as a Complex Adaptive System

Language as a Complex Adaptive System PDF

Author: Nick C. Ellis

Publisher: John Wiley & Sons

Published: 2009-12-30

Total Pages: 290

ISBN-13: 144433400X

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Explores a new approach to studying language as a complex adaptive system, illustrating its commonalities across many areas of language research Brings together a team of leading researchers in linguistics, psychology, and complex systems to discuss the groundbreaking significance of this perspective for their work Illustrates its application across a variety of subfields, including languages usage, language evolution, language structure, and first and second language acquisition "What a breath of fresh air! As interesting a collection of papers as you are likely to find on the evolution, learning, and use of language from the point of view of both cognitive underpinnings and communicative functions." Michael Tomasello, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology

Complexity Theory and Language Development

Complexity Theory and Language Development PDF

Author: Lourdes Ortega

Publisher: John Benjamins Publishing Company

Published: 2017-11-15

Total Pages: 252

ISBN-13: 9027264961

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This volume is both a state-of-the-art display of current thinking on second language development as a complex system. It is also a tribute to Diane Larsen-Freeman for her decades of intellectual leadership in the academic disciplines of applied linguistics and second language acquisition. The chapters therein range from theoretical expositions to methodological analyses, pedagogical proposals, and conceptual frameworks for future research. In a balanced and in-depth manner, the authors provide a comprehensive and interdisciplinary understanding of second language development, with a wealth of insights that promise to break the status-quo of current research and take it to exciting new territory. The book will appeal to both seasoned and novice researchers in applied linguistics, second language acquisition, bilingualism, cognitive psychology, and education, as well as to practitioners in second or foreign language teaching of any language.

Complexity Applications in Language and Communication Sciences

Complexity Applications in Language and Communication Sciences PDF

Author: Àngels Massip-Bonet

Publisher: Springer

Published: 2019-01-11

Total Pages: 331

ISBN-13: 3030045986

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This book offers insights on the study of natural language as a complex adaptive system. It discusses a new way to tackle the problem of language modeling, and provides clues on how the close relation between natural language and some biological structures can be very fruitful for science. The book examines the theoretical framework and then applies its main principles to various areas of linguistics. It discusses applications in language contact, language change, diachronic linguistics, and the potential enhancement of classical approaches to historical linguistics by means of new methodologies used in physics, biology, and agent systems theory. It shows how studying language evolution and change using computational simulations enables to integrate social structures in the evolution of language, and how this can give rise to a new way to approach sociolinguistics. Finally, it explores applications for discourse analysis, semantics and cognition.

Language and Complex Systems

Language and Complex Systems PDF

Author: William A. Kretzschmar, Jr

Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Published: 2015-05-28

Total Pages: 245

ISBN-13: 1316368807

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An understanding of language as a complex system helps us to think differently about linguistics, and helps us to address the impact of linguistic interaction. This book demonstrates how the science of complex systems changes every area of linguistics: how to make a grammar, how to think about the history of language, how language works in the brain, and how it works in social settings. Kretzschmar argues that to construct the best grammars of languages it is necessary to understand the complex system of speech. Each chapter makes specific recommendations for how linguists should manage empirical data in order to form better generalizations about a language and its varieties. The book will be welcomed by students and scholars working in linguistics and English language, especially the study of language variation and the historical development of English.

Complex Dynamic Systems Theory and L2 Writing Development

Complex Dynamic Systems Theory and L2 Writing Development PDF

Author: Gary G. Fogal

Publisher: John Benjamins Publishing Company

Published: 2020-06-04

Total Pages: 324

ISBN-13: 9027261148

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This volume integrates complex dynamic systems theory (CDST) and L2 writing scholarship through a collection of in-depth studies and commentary across a range of writing constructs, learning contexts, and second and foreign languages. The text is arranged thematically across four topics: (i) perspectives on complexity, accuracy, and fluency, (ii) new constructs, approaches, and domains of L2-writing scholarship, (iii) methodological issues, and finally (iv) curricular perspectives. This work should appeal to graduate students and academics interested in expanded discussions on CDST, highlighting its utility for theorizing and researching language change, and to L2 writing scholars curious about how this fresh approach to researching L2 development can inform understandings of how L2 writing develops. As a CDST approach to language change has matured and taken a place among the dominant epistemologies in the field, students and researchers of L2 development alike will benefit from this volume.

Individual Differences in Language Learning

Individual Differences in Language Learning PDF

Author: Carol Griffiths

Publisher: Springer Nature

Published: 2020-12-01

Total Pages: 228

ISBN-13: 3030529002

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This textbook takes a Complex Systems Theory approach to examine individual differences between learners and the potential impact of these variables on the process of acquiring a second language. The authors argue that individual variables cannot provide the complete picture, and that they must instead be understood as part of an interconnected and dynamic system of different factors in order to be useful in a language learning context. Written in an accessible style and suitable for final-year undergraduate and Masters-level students, the book includes clear definitions of key terms, discussion questions for classroom use, practical exercises and activities, and examples of real empirical studies that students and teachers can replicate in their own contexts. This textbook will be of interest to students taking TESOL and SLA courses and modules, as well as those on broader Applied Linguistics programmes.

An Introduction to Complex Systems

An Introduction to Complex Systems PDF

Author: Joe Tranquillo

Publisher: Springer

Published: 2019-02-13

Total Pages: 405

ISBN-13: 3030025896

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This book explores the interdisciplinary field of complex systems theory. By the end of the book, readers will be able to understand terminology that is used in complex systems and how they are related to one another; see the patterns of complex systems in practical examples; map current topics, in a variety of fields, to complexity theory; and be able to read more advanced literature in the field. The book begins with basic systems concepts and moves on to how these simple rules can lead to complex behavior. The author then introduces non-linear systems, followed by pattern formation, and networks and information flow in systems. Later chapters cover the thermodynamics of complex systems, dynamical patterns that arise in networks, and how game theory can serve as a framework for decision making. The text is interspersed with both philosophical and quantitative arguments, and each chapter ends with questions and prompts that help readers make more connections. “The text provides a useful overview of complex systems, with enough detail to allow a reader unfamiliar with the topic to understand the basics. The book stands out for its comprehensiveness and approachability. It will be particularly useful as a text for introductory physics courses. Tranquillo’s strength is in delivering a vast amount of information in a succinct manner.... A reader can find information quickly and efficiently—that is, in my opinion, the book’s greatest value.” (Stefani Crabtree, Physics Today)