The Contribution of Guessing from Context and Dictionary Use to Receptive and Productive Vocabulary Knowledge: A Structural Equation Modeling Approach
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| Title: | The Contribution of Guessing from Context and Dictionary Use to Receptive and Productive Vocabulary Knowledge: A Structural Equation Modeling Approach |
|---|---|
| Language: | English |
| Authors: | Takumi Uchihara (ORCID |
| Source: | Language Teaching Research. 2025 29(6):2583-2606. |
| Availability: | SAGE Publications. 2455 Teller Road, Thousand Oaks, CA 91320. Tel: 800-818-7243; Tel: 805-499-9774; Fax: 800-583-2665; e-mail: journals@sagepub.com; Web site: https://sagepub.com |
| Peer Reviewed: | Y |
| Page Count: | 24 |
| Publication Date: | 2025 |
| Document Type: | Journal Articles Reports - Research |
| Education Level: | Higher Education Postsecondary Education |
| Descriptors: | Dictionaries, Vocabulary Skills, Language Tests, Correlation, Learning Strategies, Second Language Learning, Receptive Language, Expressive Language, Prediction, Second Language Instruction, College Students, Foreign Countries, English (Second Language), Learning Processes |
| Geographic Terms: | Japan |
| DOI: | 10.1177/13621688221122138 |
| ISSN: | 1362-1688 1477-0954 |
| Abstract: | This study investigated the relationships between two vocabulary learning strategies (guessing from context and dictionary use) and two aspects of vocabulary knowledge (receptive and productive vocabulary knowledge). One hundred and thirty-five university students in Japan completed a vocabulary learning strategies survey, the Updated Vocabulary Levels Test, the Productive Vocabulary Levels Test, and Lex30. Results showed that the dictionary strategy significantly predicted receptive vocabulary knowledge, whereas no significant relationship between the guessing strategy and receptive vocabulary knowledge was observed. Neither guessing nor dictionary use significantly predicted productive vocabulary knowledge. Mediation analyses showed that dictionary use, but not guessing, had a significant indirect effect on productive lexicons via the development of receptive vocabulary knowledge. However, the extent to which the dictionary strategy is associated with productive vocabulary knowledge depended on how the knowledge was measured. The advantage of dictionary consultation in light of the quality of attention and type of focus induced by the strategy were discussed, and implications for second language (L2) vocabulary instruction were considered. |
| Abstractor: | As Provided |
| Entry Date: | 2025 |
| Accession Number: | EJ1477963 |
| Database: | ERIC |
| Abstract: | This study investigated the relationships between two vocabulary learning strategies (guessing from context and dictionary use) and two aspects of vocabulary knowledge (receptive and productive vocabulary knowledge). One hundred and thirty-five university students in Japan completed a vocabulary learning strategies survey, the Updated Vocabulary Levels Test, the Productive Vocabulary Levels Test, and Lex30. Results showed that the dictionary strategy significantly predicted receptive vocabulary knowledge, whereas no significant relationship between the guessing strategy and receptive vocabulary knowledge was observed. Neither guessing nor dictionary use significantly predicted productive vocabulary knowledge. Mediation analyses showed that dictionary use, but not guessing, had a significant indirect effect on productive lexicons via the development of receptive vocabulary knowledge. However, the extent to which the dictionary strategy is associated with productive vocabulary knowledge depended on how the knowledge was measured. The advantage of dictionary consultation in light of the quality of attention and type of focus induced by the strategy were discussed, and implications for second language (L2) vocabulary instruction were considered. |
|---|---|
| ISSN: | 1362-1688 1477-0954 |
| DOI: | 10.1177/13621688221122138 |
