INFLUENCE OF LANGUAGE EXPOSURE ON MENTAL LEXICON

Abstract

The present study highlights the relationship between English language exposure and lexical access with L2 mental lexicon. It also explores the factors which influence the L2 mental lexicon. For this purpose, the Bilingual Interactive Activation Model (Dijkstra & van Heven, 2002) is used as a theoretical framework to analyze the L2 mental lexicon of ESL (English as a Second Language) learners at the Intermediate level. Furthermore, the quantitative approach and correlation research design were utilized to investigate the association between English language exposure to formal education and self-practices in familiar and unfamiliar words, i.e., lexical words and non-words. One hundred ESL learners of intermediate levels were selected from five selected colleges using a non-probability convenience sampling technique. The results implicated a moderate positive association between formal education of English language exposure and lexical access to familiar words. However, the self-practice activities of English language exposure showed the strongest correlation and lexical access to familiar words. The findings show that traditional methods of activating words in the L2 mental lexicon are insufficient. The study concluded that it is quite helpful in learning and teaching distinct ways to improve the process of retrieval by exploring the influencing factors of the L2 mental lexicon.