The effects of L1, task, and classifier type in Chinese-L2 learners’ use of classifiers

Abstract

Abstract This study explores three potential factors that influence Chinese L2 learners’ classifier use in a classroom setting: L1 background, task, and classifier type. We developed a picture-prompted test, including composition, free cloze, and multiple-choice cloze questions to elicit the use of classifiers. Participants were 50 Chinese L2 learners from Arabic, English, and Japanese L1 backgrounds. Although Japanese L1 participants performed numerically better than their Arabic and English counterparts, statistical analysis suggests that L1 was not a significant predictor of test performance. The composition task was shown to be conducive to the use of test-taking strategies, and it revealed a higher classifier accuracy than the more constrained multiple-choice task. Meanwhile, there was an interaction between L1 and task, suggesting that L1 influence may be conditioned by task type. Moreover, our logistic model predicts different levels of accuracy for classifier use by type, which potentially suggests a developmental path of acquiring classifiers licensed by the most prominent noun feature they are associated with, with shape being the earliest, followed by animate, inanimate, and concept.