Causative constructions in process: How do they come into existence in learner writing?

Abstract

Abstract This article examines the processes through which English causative constructions with MAKE are produced by French-speaking learners. It relies on data from the Process Corpus of English in Education (PROCEED), in which every text is accompanied by a keylog file and a screencast video. These data make it possible to observe the process paths of constructions as they unfold, from their appearance in the text to their evolution (and possible disappearance) through revision. The analysis shows that almost 20% of the causative constructions do not make it to the final version of the text, either because the idea of causation disappears altogether or because it is expressed in a different way. Among the causative constructions that are kept in the finished text, most still undergo some changes, which range from the simple correction of a typo to the transformation of the complement type (e.g. a verbal complement becoming an adjectival complement). Some of these changes are the result of dictionary consultation, also visible in the process data. In addition, the keylog files reveal the presence of pauses during writing, whose investigation can improve our understanding of the mental processing of causative constructions. It thus turns out that in almost 40% of the cases, the causative constructions are immediately preceded and followed by a pause, which could indicate that they are stored holistically in learners’ minds. Besides providing insights into the processes through which causative constructions come into existence in learner writing, this study also illustrates how writing process data can bring us closer to what the reality of writing looks like for language learners.