Two Types of Error Source in Performance by Korean Advanced English Learners: Conceptual Mismatch and Complex-rule Drivenness

Two error sources well addressed in SLA are conceptual mismatch between a form of the target L2 and its equivalent of L2, and complexity of rules or features constraining usage of a target form of L2. Errors which originate from these sources have a strong tendency to resist instruction and persist longer than any other type of error. These errors persist even in highly advanced learners of the target language. In this respect they are likely to fall in the zone of fossilization. This study also deals with such errors to see which of these two error sources is the more difficult for Korean advanced learners of English to overcome as well as to see what learning pattern they show for each. The current study found that complex rule drivenness is the more challenging than conceptual mismatch. And Korean learners showed such a learning pattern that they learned and forgot the target forms of conceptual mismatch more easily than those forms of complex rule drivenness. (165 words)