Exploring L2 Comprehension Processes in Viewing Video with L2 Captions in Relation to Learners' Cognitive Styles

Abstract

Field Independence/Dependence (FI/D) refers to a dimension of cognitive style, with FI representing the tendency to perceive the separate parts of a complex figure, problem, or situation, and FD the tendency to process information globally or holistically. There is some research evidence suggesting its relevance to L2 acquisition or learning. This article reports the result of an experiment conducted, involving 88 college students, to investigate how the degree of FI/D affects the subjects' use of comprehension strategies in viewing video with English captions. The subjects' FI/D was measured by GEFT (Group Embedded Figures Test), their English competence by the listening and structure sections of CELT (Comprehensive English Language Test), and the comprehension strategies by a strategy questionnaire prepared by the authors. A comprehension test on the video program used for the experiment was also administered. The results indicated that the subjects' perceived use of strategies varied significantly according to their degree of FI/D. In general, relatively FD subjects used the strategies more often than relatively FI counterparts. Specifically, more often than the FI, the FD combined the voices with the pictures, saw the scenes in reference to previous shots, attended the background scenery, and translated the words into Japanese. Pedagogical implications are discussed and directions for further research are suggested.