Warning Notes in a Learner’s Dictionary: a Study of the Effectiveness of Different Formats

Abstract

This study used an online correction task to explore the extent to which different types of warning notes in Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English Online were heeded when users tried to correct errors in the use of L2 target words. The task was completed by 332 participants, yielding 1,819 answers produced after clicking on links to relevant entries. Warning notes were categorised in terms of their formatting features, but there were found to be inconsistencies in the way the dictionary associated different categories with different kinds of learner error. Participants judged warning notes with more visual enhancements to be more useful, but in the correction task the position of the warning notes also seemed to affect the degree to which the warnings were successfully applied. Different types of warning notes in learners’ dictionaries have not been examined previously in any depth, and the results suggest that some adjustments to formatting and placement might make them more effective.