Corpora: overuse and underuse of learner English

[xiaotian guo]

Dear All

I am making a contrastive study of learner English and NS learner English.
While I was making some kind of analysis, I got somewhat confused about the
analysis of overuse and underuse. It is unavoidable to touch overuse and
underuse in the study of corpora comparison. But to what extend does the
difference of a certain figure reach when we can say overuse or underuse
occurs (I am poor in statistics)? To what extent will the difference in the
overuse and underuse need to reach when we can say it is significant in one
way or another? How much can we benefit from the study of overuse and
underuse? Do we investigate overuse and underuse because they are really
significant in one way or another, or because the current software allows
this type of retrieval and we can do very little about other spheres? What
could be more important than the study of overuse and underuse in learner
English study? That is to say what else points can we possibley think of to
reveal learner language behaviour as contrasted against NS English? How can
we avoid to take a lot of trouble looking for overuse and underuse but end
up with no significance, as Granger called the "so-what syndrome"?

Comments and criticism are welcome.
With best wishes

GUO Xiaotian
PhD student
The English Department
The University of Birmingham
www.guoxiaotian.com

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