Syntactic Complexity in Written L2 English : A Comparative Study of Finnish-speaking and Swedish-speaking Upper Secondary School Students

Abstract

This thesis compares syntactic complexity in written L2 English essays produced by Finnish-speaking and Swedish-speaking upper secondary school students, with the aim of examining the differences and similarities between the two language groups. The study further explores how syntactic structures are reflected in high-complexity and low-complexity English essays by identifying the language features that contribute to syntactic complexity. The primary data for the analysis consisted of thirty essays by Finnish-speaking students and thirty-five essays by Swedish-speaking students. Syntactic complexity was assessed using The L2 Syntactic Complexity Analyzer (L2SCA), an automatic analyser tool that measures syntactic complexity in written English across 14 indices. The L2SCA results were then statistically analysed in Microsoft Excel and IBM SPSS Statistics 28 and the essays were evaluated based on their scores in the 14 indices. Following the statistical analysis, an extreme case analysis was conducted to examine the syntactic structures in essays representing the highest and lowest levels of complexity.

The statistical analysis revealed that Swedish speakers on average, demonstrate higher syntactic complexity in written language than Finnish speakers. However, there are statistically significant differences between the groups in only four indices, which measure the length of production and amount of coordination. Therefore, Swedish-speaking participants tend to produce longer syntactic structures and use more coordination. The qualitative extreme case analysis found that high syntactic complexity may be expressed in long, dense syntactic structures with multiple subordination layers, while low complexity may manifest in short, simple structures with minimal coordination and subordination.

Therefore, the findings of this thesis suggest that specific syntactic structures contribute significantly to the complexity differences observed between the two language groups. Additionally, L1 background may also influence syntactic complexity in written L2 English. These insights highlight the importance of considering L1-specific factors in language instruction to better support the development of syntactic complexity in L2 writing.