Task Effectiveness Predictors: Technique Feature Analysis versus Involvement Load Hypothesis

Abstract

How deeply a word is processed has long been considered as a crucial factor in the realm of vocabulary acquisition. In literature, two frameworks have been proposed to operationalize the depth of processing, namely the Involvement Load Hypothesis (ILH) and the Technique Feature Analysis (TFA). However, they differ in the way they have operationalized it specially in terms of their attentional components. The present study made attempts to compare the predictability of these two frameworks for foreign language vocabulary learning task effectiveness. Seventy-six adult EFL learners in Chabahar Maritime University were randomly given one of the four vocabulary learning tasks which were ranked differently by the two frameworks and were required to learn the meaning of 10 target words. The results of the study revealed that TFA had a better explanatory power in predicting vocabulary learning gains than the ILH. The results have implications for language teachers, material developers and syllabus designers.