The Interaction of Mediating Factors in Recast Efficacy on Noticing and L2 Development

This study investigated whether the degree of recast explicitness and learners’ language anxiety levels interact in mediating recast effectiveness on noticing and development of L2 implicit and explicit knowledge. An experiment was conducted with 69 participants assigned to six groups formed according to whether their anxiety was high or low, whether they engaged in recast treatment tasks, and whether received recasts were explicit or implicit. Learners’ anxiety levels were determined based on their responses to a questionnaire. Four experimental groups engaged in question recall tasks in which recasts were provided and from which noticing levels were calculated. All groups completed pretests, immediate posttests, and delayed posttests to assess their implicit and explicit knowledge. Results show that the two factors independently mediate recast efficacy on noticing with no interaction while they interact in mediating recasts’ beneficial effect on the development of explicit knowledge. It is further revealed that recasts do not work and thus the factors have no mediating role for the development of implicit knowledge. Pedagogical implications for these findings and directions for future research are suggested.