This survey study, which involved 108 language learners enrolled in first-year Chinese as a foreign language classrooms in the United States, intended to address the research questions, 'What types of Chinese-character learning strategies do US learners use?' and 'Do US learners' Chinese-character learning strategy use differ based on the following learner differences: (1) Gender, (2) Home background, and (3) Previous foreign language learning experiences?' Factor analysis and MANOVA tests were run using the participants' responses in the Character Learning Strategy Inventory and the background surveys. The results of factor analysis illustrated that the participants used six types of strategies: practicing naturalistically, associating, paying attention to the characters, using mechanical techniques, grouping, and paying attention to the pronunciation. The MANOVA test results found significant interactive effect between gender and home background on strategies of using mechanical techniques. Another interactive effect was found among gender, home background, and previous foreign language learning experiences on strategies of paying attention to the characters.

No abstract

No abstract

In this study, the researchers surveyed 130 language learners enrolled in first-year foreign language classrooms in a public university in Utah, United States. This study intended to address the following research questions: (1) What motivational factors are found among learners enrolled in first-year foreign language courses at the university level in the United States?, (2) Do first-year language learners' motivations differ based on the following learner variables: (a) gender, (b) language being learned, (c) major, and (d) religion? and (3) What motivational factors predict learners' interest in continuing foreign language learning? Factor analysis, MANOVA, and multiple regressions were run to answer the questions. The factor analysis results found seven motivational factors: positive learning attitudes/experience and intended efforts, interest in culture, travel, and people, interest in contemporary cultural media, milieu, instrumentality, language requirement, and religion. The MANOVA results showed that major and religion had significant effects on motivation. The results of the multiple regression test indicated that two motivational factors, positive learning attitudes/experience and intended efforts, and interest in culture, travel, and people, predicted the participants' interest in future L2 study.

This study investigated Chinese-character learning strategies employed by 74 first-year American college learners of Chinese. This study attempted to answer the following research questions:(1) what Chinese-character learning strategies are most frequently used by first-year Chinese language learners?; (2) what are the factors underlying the most frequently used strategies?; and (3) are there any linear trends between the most frequently used strategies and character learning performance?. The results found seven most frequently used strategies. Furthermore, four of these strategies were stroke-orthographic-knowledge-based while the remaining three were phonological-semantics-knowledge-based. The stroke-orthographic-knowledge-based strategies accounted for 6.8% of the learners' character learning performance.