English and German speakers perceive movements differently

Different perspectives on movement events

Movements such as running, driving or walking are complex actions that are described differently depending on language and culture. The representation of a movement, for example from point A to point B, comprises various components: start and end point, duration and direction. Zaychenko analyzes how these elements are represented in English and German and which cognitive processes play a role in this.

Theoretically, her work is based on the assumption that native speakers of aspectual languages such as English tend to perceive movement events in a processual way, while speakers of non-aspectual languages such as German focus more on the endpoint. This theory is widespread in research.

Methodology and results

Using corpus analyses, online surveys and experimental methods - including similarity judgments with verbal interference and mouse tracking studies - Zaychenko analyzed native speakers of German with different levels of English. She compared different corpus data sets of German and English native speakers and learners of English, particularly with regard to central movement features such as the marking of durations and endpoints.

The results confirm this: While English speakers perceive and emphasize movement events more strongly as ongoing processes - including through the use of progressive verb forms - the endpoint often goes unnoticed (e.g. He is walking towards the park, - the focus is on the process of walking, not on whether or when the park is reached). In German, on the other hand, the final destination comes more into focus through the use of goal-oriented prepositions (e.g. Er geht zum Park - here it becomes clear that entering the park is the goal of the movement).

These differences are not accidental, but result from the specific grammatical structures of the two language types: Aspect languages such as English have grammatical markers that explicitly indicate whether an action is ongoing or completed. As a result, English speakers emphasize the process of movement. Non-aspect languages such as German have no such markers; here, the temporal perspective is more likely to be determined by the context, the choice of certain prepositions or the verb form. Since German has no grammatical aspect, the focus is instead more on the end point of the movement.

Challenges in foreign language learning

These language-specific differences make it difficult for learners to verbalize movement sequences correctly. For example, German-speaking learners of English often find it difficult to intuitively apply the grammatical aspect, as this concept does not exist in their first language. In addition, cognitive factors such as the perception of movement endpoints and the mental strain of learning new structures influence language acquisition.

"Language teaching should therefore not only focus on teaching vocabulary and grammar, but also take into account the cognitive processes behind language production," explains Zaychenko.

Practical implications for language teaching

The results of the study provide concrete approaches for foreign language teaching. Teachers can specifically address typical learning obstacles and use special exercises to help bridge language-specific differences in perception. For example, targeted training to describe movement events can improve the understanding of foreign language structures and facilitate their use.

"By better understanding the cognitive challenges involved in second language acquisition, we can make language teaching more effective and specifically address the needs of learners," says Zaychenko.

About the researcher

Dr. Katharina Zaychenko studied English and biology to become a teacher at the University of Kassel and completed her first state examination in 2019. She then conducted research in the field of cognitive and applied linguistics and presented her findings at international conferences. She currently works as a teacher at a secondary school in Kassel.

You can find the full study here.