ABSTRACT
In the field of error analysis (EA), little attention has been paid to learner errors in conjunction with construction use. Few studies have examined how learner errors are related to second language mental representation, cognitive processing and learning path from a constructional point of view. This study adopts a usage-based approach (UBA) to investigate learner errors on a frequently used Chinese construction of verb complement of manner/state (VCM/S or 方式/情态补语) in Chinese as a second language (CSL). Using a corpus of 1,136 compositions at four ACTFL proficiency levels by CSL learners, this chapter develops a novel EA framework that examines VCM/S construction development in terms of both between and within constructional types, including, specifically, construction mixing, modality errors, collocation errors, component errors, process verb–related errors and mixing of multiple types. Employing both quantitative and qualitative analyses, we found that VCM/S error patterns at the two dimensions of a construction coincide with the developmental traits of a general construction acquisition path (Ellis, 2012). Finally, pedagogical suggestions based on the findings of VCM/S errors and developmental patterns are made with regard to both implicit and explicit instructions.
