A Cognitive Investigation of the Interaction between Negative Transfer and Overgeneralization in Teaching Persian as a Second Language

Articles in Press

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

1 PhD. in Linguistics, Center for Teaching Persian to Non-Persian Speakers, Bu-Ali-Sina University, Hamedan, Iran

2 Associate Professor, Department of English and Linguistics, Faculty of Language and Literature, University of Kurdistan, Sanandaj, Kurdistan, Iran.

Abstract

This study adopted a cognitive approach to examine the interaction between two key mechanisms, namely negative transfer and overgeneralization. The aim was to explain the simultaneous role of these two phenomena in the formation of interlanguage and to provide a cognitive analysis of errors produced by non-native learners of Persian. This study integrates Interlanguage Theory (Selinker, 1980), Error Analysis (Corder, 1967), and a cognitive approach to second language (Tomasello, 2003). Data were collected from 30 learners with diverse linguistic backgrounds, including Turkish, Kurdish, Arabic, Chinese, and Nigerian languages, at elementary and intermediate proficiency levels through writing tasks, interviews, and questionnaires. A mixed-methods approach was used for data analysis, and errors were classified according to type and source. The results indicated that negative transfer is the most frequent source of errors, mainly occurring at syntactic and morphological levels, whereas overgeneralization is more frequently observed at the lexical level. Overall, 63% of errors were attributed to negative transfer and 27% to overgeneralization.

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Main Subjects

Linguistic Studies: Theory and Practice

Articles in Press, Accepted Manuscript
Available Online from 22 June 2026

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History

  • Receive Date: 11 November 2024
  • Revise Date: 02 February 2025
  • Accept Date: 15 March 2025

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