Complex Systems and Applied Linguistics by Diane Larsen-Freeman; Lynne CameronReview by: Kees de BotThe Modern Language Journal, Vol. 92, No. 4 (Winter, 2008), pp. 644-645Published by: Wiley on behalf of the National Federation of Modern Language Teachers AssociationsStable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/25173115 .

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644 The Modern Language Journal 92 2008

conclude that corpus-based tools will affect both

endeavors in an important way. The next section

contains papers examining corpus design and cor

pora use in the foreign-language classroom, which

is followed by a section on the practical applica tions of corpora in the classroom. It is, admittedly, difficult to produce a coherent series of papers from a conference, and the line between theory and practice in both of these sections is not (and

may not be able to be) well contrasted. The papers that constitute the bulk of these two sections ad

dress the following issues: how to design a corpus for language learners (Braun; Chujo et al.), using

corpora for learners studying a target language for special purposes (e.g., Lam; van Rij-Heyligers;

Fuentes), as well as in communicative classrooms

(Basanta; Papp; Olivier et al.; Cresswell), exami

nations of language use in textbooks (Meunier &

Gouverneur) and how to improve materials vis

a-vis native norms (Coffey; Gesuato), and, finally,

using corpora for learners at more advanced levels

of proficiency (Lavid; Tribble). However, corpus linguistics is a research

design?in other words, a methodology for ob

taining and organizing data. This discipline and

its tools do not constitute a theory of the organi zation of the lexicon or of grammar in the mind

of a learner or native speaker, as is the case with

functional and formalist approaches to linguistic

theory. Thus, the use of corpus analyses in lan

guage instruction endeavors will seem premature to many SLA researchers and language instruc

tion experts. Corpus-based tools allow learners to

see language in authentic situations and how it

varies from one context to another. To readers

who view corpus linguistics in this light, the pa

pers in this volume that will be most informa

tive are those examining the potential of cor

pus tools to help learners understand that the

L2 that they are studying is not monolithic, but

rather that it varies sociolinguistically (e.g., by for

mality, gender, and even within the oral mode). The papers by Braun and Tribble demonstrate

how corpora could help learners understand nu

ances of different discourse types. Lam demon

strates how a proper corpus analysis might better

inform English for Special Purposes students tar

geting the tourism industry. Minugh explores the

use of corpora to examine metaphors in differing

metaphorical and historical contexts.

A couple of papers will interest researchers

looking to exploit corpus-based tools in projects

charting learner development over time, a tech

nique that is growing in English SLA research

but is in its infancy in foreign language research

projects. Guo and Lenko-Szymanska provide in

teresting papers on how to data mine a learner

corpus, whether it be the design of the corpus for

general purposes (i.e., consisting of a variety of

texts and so it could be used to answer various

research questions) or for specific purposes (e.g.,

consisting of texts specifically designed to study the use of learners' use of the past tense).

Taken together, the papers in this volume ad

dress a variety of important issues being discussed

by those interested in corpus-based tools in the

language learning enterprise, whether the per

spective on acquisition or materials development and task design. For researchers or pedagogues interested in knowing the main questions in this

field, Corpora in the Foreign Language Classroom will

be a worthwhile read.

JOSEPH COLLENTINE Northern Arizona University

LARSEN-FREEMAN, DIANE, 8c LYNNE CAMERON. Complex Systems and Applied Linguistics. New York: Oxford University Press,

2008. ISBN 978-0-19-442244-4. $30.50, paper.

In 1997, Diane Larsen-Freeman published her

groundbreaking article on chaos/complexity sci

ence and second language acquisition. As she has

indicated in various publications, it took time for

this article to have an impact. It was clearly ahead

of its time, and apparently too few applied lin

guists understood that it was a new and promising

development in the field. Things are clearly dif

ferent now: A growing community of researchers

interested in complexity theory, dynamic adaptive

systems, and related theoretical approaches is now

adding to the momentum of the dynamic move

ment. With their new book, Complex Systems and

Applied Linguistics, Larsen-Freeman and Cameron

set a new milestone in this movement.

The aim of the book is to show the relevance

of applying theories and concepts from complex

systems to applied linguistics in the broad sense.

As the authors mention in their preface, they were faced with two major problems. The first was

to come to grips with the vast and often techni

cal literature on complex systems (the term they

propose to refer to the class of theories on com

plexity, dynamic systems, and chaos); the second

was to translate that information for applied lin

guists. This is a formidable job, and the authors

have been effective in dealing with many of these

challenges in most cases. However, at times one

gets the impression that it was hard to deal with

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Reviews 645

some of the technical and conceptual issues at a

meta-level. In such cases, the authors have pru

dently opted to use literal citations from the orig inal texts to invite the reader to make those con

nections they are able to find.

A 1,000-word review cannot do justice to the

richness of this book, which sets the scene for

discussions on the relevance of complex systems for applied linguistics. The book is organized into

eight chapters. The first three chapters provide an introduction to the basics of complex systems as they have emerged in related fields of research.

Chapters 4 and 5 discuss language and first and

second language acquisition from a dynamic per

spective. Chapters 6 and 7 describe the applica tion of the concepts and tools of complex systems theories to the study of discourse and the analysis of what goes on in language classrooms. Finally, in chapter 8, information is provided on how ap

plied linguistic issues can be studied. Several ap

proaches to research are discussed, but the infor

mation given is generally not enough to actually do the research proposed.

I tend to use a yellow marker when reading rel

evant literature. Important parts of the text are

highlighted with the aim to make rereading eas

ier and to help focus on parts of the text. In the

copy of the book used for this review, most of the

pages in the first four chapters are almost com

pletely yellow. This highlighting may reflect the

high density of the text or my own cognitive limi

tations, but most likely a combination of the two.

Chapters 6 and 7 rest comfortably on the theo

retical notions laboriously elucidated in the previ ous chapters. These two chapters can be read; the

other chapters must be studied.

One of the main problems with the adoption of a new theoretical framework is that we tend

to think and speak in terms of the concepts with

which we are already familiar. As the authors write:

"In writing this book, we have faced the dilemma

of how to talk about matters of complexity theory. This is because our ways of knowing are so bound

up with the language we use to discuss them_

It is easy to fall back into old ways of thinking, and

it requires continual monitoring to ensure that

ways of talking (or writing) reflect complex dy namic ways of thinking" (p. x). In the book there

are many instances in which the reader feels the

authors have taken great pains to explain various

issues in such a way that they are not too triv

ial, technical, or circular. Still, even with all the

care given, some traces of earlier paradigms re

main. An example can be found in their discus

sion of formative experiments and dynamic as

sessment in the chapter on researching complex

systems. Larsen-Freeman and Cameron say: "For

mative experiments attempt to investigate the po tential of a system rather than its state" (p. 244).

This statement seems to be a return to the com

petence/performance distinction to which the

authors vehemently object. WTiat is potential in

dynamic terms? If a runner does the 100-meter

sprint in 10 seconds one day and in 11 seconds

the next day, does that mean that he didn't use

his potential on the first day, in the sense that he

could have run faster? The point is that he didn't;

he used his resources to run as fast as he could.

The system does what it does in its trajectory over

time. The fact that on other occasions the set of

resources was different does not mean that there

is potential. It is not important what the resources

may be; what matters is what they are at a given moment. All we have is variation, but that does

not necessarily imply potential. The audience for this book is not easy to define.

A simple solution would be to advise all applied

linguists and their students to read it because it

is an important book on a potentially important

development in the field, but that may be taking it too far. As indicated earlier, this book is not

bedside reading. For a novice reader or a student

without a solid background in second language

acquisition (SLA) literature, it will be hard work.

It is aimed more at advanced M.A. students and

researchers than at students who are beginning to explore the area. Reading some of the earlier

work on dynamic systems and SLA, like the articles

in the recent special issue of The Modern Language

Journal (92.2), may be recommended first.

The authors summarize their view on the rele

vance of complex systems as follows: "We feel that

seeing the evolution of language, its development, its learning, and its use as complex, adaptive, dy namic, non linear processes rings truer to us than

the theories in which we were trained or in what

our professional experience has been since. We

think that we are not alone in this regard" (p.

251). Indeed, they are not, and this book will no

doubt lead to an increase of the number of people who share their views and who are willing to think

along with them.

KEES DE BOT

University of Groningen

OMONIYI, TOPE, & GOODITH WHITE. (Eds). The Sociolinguistics of Identity. London: Contin

uum, 2006. Pp. x, 239. $160.00, cloth. ISBN 0

58901-118-X.

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