Conceptual Structure And Conceputal Fossilization

In the past few decades, the construct of fossilization has been defined, redefined and refined by different researchers from different theoretical stances with different methodologies for different purposes since its introduction into the field of second language acquisition by Larry Selinker in 1972. In a chronological order, definitions of fossilization have gone through stages from its initial "backsliding" to "cessation of learning" to "stabilization" and to "ultimate attainment", though different researchers may use different terms in naming it. In line with these various definitions, numerous factors or variables are provided to account for causes of fossilization, and different methodologies are adopted and designed to test it. Undoubtedly, all these studies have contributed greatly to the development of the theory of fossilization and the field of second language acquisition as well. However, what shall not be neglected is that due to the lack of consistency in interpretation and application of the construct, researchers have come to different and even opposing views on the nature of fossilization and its causes. For some researchers, fossilization is a product while for others it is a process; and for still others, it is both a product and process. In some researchers' eyes, fossilization is both permanent and resistant, but for others, it is just a temporary phenomenon which can be changed given optimal learning conditions; it occurs globally as well as locally. As for its causes, some think it is decided by environmental factors, some think it is determined by cognitive variables or neuro-biological or socio-affective factors. In lieu of offering a viable solution to the study of fossilization, situation like this creates more confusion than clarity in the field of second language acquisition.An obvious reason for the vagueness in definition and uncertainty in explanation in the study of fossilization is its lack of uniformity in both theoretical foundation and empirical operation. In an attempt to solve this problem and then set up a new unified model to account for fossilization, this dissertation tends to hand the issue from a conceptualist point of view. Particularly, it turns to conceptual structure theory in cognitive linguistics and claims that fossilization occurs at the conceptual level instead of the language level. In essence, the second or foreign language learners' incorrect use the target language forms and rules over time is just the externalized representation of their fossilized conceptual structure. The theoretical base for this consideration lies in the assertion in Cognitive Linguistics that linguistic structure is representative of conceptual structure in human mind. As such, the learning of any language, including first language, second or foreign language, and even third or fourth language, is not simply the learning of its forms and rules, but the learning of its conceptual structures associated with those forms and rules. For second or foreign language learners, to achieve a native-like target language proficiency, they have not only to master the grammatical structures and communicative particularities of the new language, but also to restructure or reorganize their existing conceptual structures to accord with those in the new language. However, as conceptual structure is closely related to human embodiment and is always culture- and language-specific in nature, it is quite hard for the second or foreign language learners to build up a target-language-like conceptual structure out of their pre-existing first language structure. A corollary of this is that they usually rely on the conceptual base of their mother tongue and attempt to map target language forms onto their first language ways of conceptualization. As a consequence, it may be possible for the second or foreign language learners to pronounce as native speakers of the target language do, to recite as many words as native speakers of the target language do, and to know the grammatical rules as well as native speakers of the target language do, but, it may not be possible for them to have the same conceptual structure as the monolingual native speakers of the target language do. In this case, if there are no sufficient stimuli for the second or foreign language learners to reconstruct their conceptual structure, they will tend to fossilize at the conceptual level.To give a clear elucidation of this theoretical reconstruction of fossilization in second language acquisition, this dissertation comprises five chapters. Chapter 1 as a general introduction clears the ground for the study. In particular, it depicts briefly a few prevalent research traditions in the second language acquisition field and verifies the applicability of a cognitive linguistic approach to the study of second language acquisition phenomena. Also introduced in this part are some related theoretical terminologies such as second language acquisition, foreign language learning, fossilization, conceptual structure, and so on. Chapter 2 concentrates mainly on the construct of fossilization in the realm of second language acquisition. It tackles such fundamental issues intertwined with fossilization as its definitions, causes, explanatory models, empirical studies, and some ensuing problems associated with these issues, and therefore the need for a new explanatory account. Chapter 3 is aimed at laying the theoretical foundation for explanation of fossilization at the conceptual level. It deals with some key issues related to conceptual structure theory within the purview of Cognitive Linguistics, such as the formation of conceptual structure, features of conceptual structure and models proposed to account for conceptual structure, and so forth. Chapter 4 is the core of this dissertation. It analyzes firstly the relationship between language and cognition and thereof conceptual structure, and comes to the conclusion that language as the primary tool to study human cognition is an explicit manifestation of human conceptual structure. On the other hand, from a relativist point of view, this part suggests that language can also have some influence on the way we conceptualize the world, which reveals the language-specific feature of conceptual structure. As a whole, this part claims that the learning of a second or foreign language is essentially the learning of a new conceptual structure, which turns out to be a difficult task for the learners to fulfill due to the embodied, culture- and language-specific characteristics of conceptual structure. As a result, fossilization may occur to the second or foreign language learners at their conceptual level, which in turn leads to the learners' long-term incorrect or erroneous use of the target language forms and rules. The last chapter, Chapter 5, servers as a general conclusion of the whole dissertation. Some theoretical and pedagogical implications of this tentative theoretical reconstruction are provided, together with some of its limitations and future research proposals.A theoretical reconstruction like this suffers its due deficiency, especially when we take its empirical base into consideration. What can not be denied, however, is that with properly designed research methodologies, this newly born theoretical construct may well shed some new lights on both theoretical development and practical application in both the fields of Second Language Acquisition and Cognitive Linguistics.