A Brief Introduction and Overview of Complex Systems in Applied Linguistics

Abstract

This overview paper is an attempt to provide a brief background and introduction to complex systems theory in applied linguistics as well as a review of the more recent work being done in the field. It is divided into two sections: developmental and theoretical backgrounds of complex systems theory, and a survey of research from a complexity perspective in applied linguistics. First, a short developmental background of complexity theory and how it entered applied linguistics is provided. A theoretical background of some of the key ideas in complex systems is then discussed. The second half of the paper begins with an overview of the past 20 years of complex systems work in applied linguistics which also touches on relevant work in cognitive development. Finally, current research being conducted in applied linguistics from a complexity approach is presented, followed by a proposal of future avenues of complexity research which may benefit the specific area of applied linguistics and the general understanding of human language.