Effects of speaker types and L1 backgrounds on the linguistic complexity of learners’ writingEffects of speaker types and L1 backgrounds on the linguistic complexity of learners’ writing

Abstract: This study investigated the differences in linguistic complexity between different types of English users, including native speakers (NS), English as a foreign language (EFL) learners, and English as a second language (ESL) learners in terms of Kolmogorov complexity. Furthermore, we explored how first language backgrounds affect linguistic complexity. Our dataset contains 2272 argumentative essays produced by English NSs and upper-intermediate learners from four ESL and six EFL countries/regions. Results showed that significant differences existed between the writings of NS, EFL, and ESL regarding overall and syntactic complexity. Specifically, the rank of overall complexity (NS > ESL > EFL) indicates that learners from countries/regions with higher exposure to English tend to produce overall more complex writings. Concerning syntactic complexity, EFL learners produce the most complex writings, while NS produces the least complex, indicating that essays written by EFL learners contain the most fixed word order patterns. In contrast, no significant difference was detected in morphological complexity among the NS, ESL, and EFL groups, suggesting that native and upper-intermediate non-NSs exhibit a similar range of morphological forms in their writings. Additionally, our results showed a larger effect of first language backgrounds over English speaker types on linguistic complexity, thus informing teachers to implement targeted writing instructions for learners from different countries.

摘要： 本研究以 Kolmogorov 复杂度为指标，考察不同类型英语使用者——英语母语者（NS）、英语作为外语（EFL）学习者和英语作为二语（ESL）学习者——在语言复杂度上的差异，并进一步探讨母语背景对语言复杂度的影响。数据包括英语母语者以及来自 4 个 ESL 和 6 个 EFL 国家/地区的中高级学习者撰写的 2272 篇议论文。结果显示，NS、EFL 和 ESL 的写作在整体复杂度和句法复杂度上存在显著差异。具体而言，整体复杂度的排序（NS > ESL > EFL）表明，英语接触程度更高的国家/地区的学习者，写作整体上更复杂。在句法复杂度上，EFL 学习者的写作最复杂，NS 最低，说明 EFL 学习者的作文中固定词序模式最多。相比之下，NS、ESL 和 EFL 三组在形态复杂度上没有显著差异，表明母语者与中高级非母语者在写作中使用的形态形式范围相近。此外，母语背景对语言复杂度的影响大于英语使用者类型的影响，这提示教师应针对不同国家/地区的学习者开展有针对性的写作教学。