ABSTRACT
Quantification is the use of numbers to represent facts about the world. It is used to inform the decision-making process in countless situations. For example, a doctor might prescribe some form of treatment if a patient’s blood pressure is too high. Similarly, a university may accept the application of a student who has attained the minimum required grades. In both these cases, numbers are used to inform decisions. In L2 research, quantification is also used. For example,
researchers in SLA might investigate the effect of feedback on students’ writing by comparing the writing scores of a group of students that received feedback with the scores of a group that did not. They may then draw conclusions regarding the effect of that feedback;
researchers in cross-cultural pragmatics might code requests made by people from different cultures as direct or indirect and then use the codings to compare those cultures; and
researchers may be interested in the effect of a study-abroad program on students’ language proficiency level. In this case, they may administer a language proficiency test prior to the program, and another following the program. Analysis of the test scores can then be carried out to determine whether it is worthwhile for students to attend such programs.
