Acknowledgements:

　　I would like to grant oceans of thanks to all my respected teachers and friendswho have offered me cordial assistance during the two and a half years.

　　First and foremost, I owe a special debt of gratitude to my respected supervisorProfessor Li Changbao, for his patient guidance, insightful suggestions and constantencouragement through the whole process of my thesis. Without his inspiringinstructions and invaluable suggestions, it would really be a difficult task for me tocomplete this thesis by myself.

　　Special thanks should also go to all the excellent professors who have taught mein this university over the past two years, for leading me into the field of researchwork, and giving me tremendous inspiration, courage and confidence during my studyhere. Their insightful lectures have made my study delightful and enjoyable.

　　Finally, I am also deeply indebted to all my family members and friends for theirencouragement which inspires me every time when I have no motivation to continue.

　　I must mention all my roommates, who give me a comfortable atmosphere to studyand do me a lot of favor when I need help.

　　Acknowledgements:

　　I would like to extend my deep gratitude to all those who have offered me a lot ofhelp and support in the process of my thesis writing.

　　First and foremost, my sincere thanks go to Professor Li Changbao, my supervisor,who has offered me numerous valuable comments and suggestions with incomparablepatience and encouraged me profoundly throughout my postgraduate study. Without hispainstaking teaching and insightful advice, the completion of this thesis would havebeen impossible.

　　Also, I owe many thanks to all the professors who have taught me during myprevious study in this university, for leading me into a challenging yet fascinating fieldof academic research. The profit that I gained from them will be of everlastingsignificance to my future research.

　　Last but not least, I am deeply indebted to my family and friends, who have helpedme and shared with me my worries, frustrations, and happiness.

　　Acknowledgements:

　　The writing of a PhD dissertation is not an easy task, especially for someone whohas just begun her academic journey. During the evolution of this dissertation. I amdeeply indebted to a number of people who have guided and supported me in manyways.

　　I would like to express my utmost gratitude to my research supervisor. ProfessorShen Li for her sincere and selfless support, prompt and useful advice during myresearch. She gives me a lifetime unforgettable memory of her benevolence, patience,intelligence,diligence and erudition.

　　My gratitude also goes to Professor Chu Xiaoquan, Qu Weiguo and Shen Yuan ofthe Department of English, College of Foreign Languages and Literature, FudanUniversity. They gave me substantial suggestions for the refinement of thisdissertation during my pre-oral defense.

　　I would also like to thank Professor Zhang Chunbai of the College of ForeignLanguages, East China Normal University. Professor Huang Guowen of the Collegeof Foreign Languages, Zhongshan University and Professor Wang Tongshun of theCollege of Foreign Languages, Shanghai Jiaotong University, for careful review ofmy dissertation and their valuable comments.

　　I would like to extend my special thanks to Professor Wu Zhongwei ofInternational Cultural Exchange School. Fudan University. Being my supervisorduring the MA studies, he awakened my interest in SLA and TCSOL in particular. Thesame gratitude also goes to Professor Chen Liangmin of the Department of French,College of Foreign Languages and Literature, Fudan University. He introduced me theelegance of the French language which I chose as my major for bachelor's study and Iwould never forget what I have learnt from him.

　　My special thanks also go to my mentor Professor Shen Xiaoxiao ofInternational Cultural Exchange School. Fudan University. He provided metremendous guidance and support for my administrative work as master students'counselor and built a perfect model of a teacher, an advisor and a leader.

　　I am also grateful to Mme Zhang Shiyu' Li Lin. Shen Anyi and He Shijin fortheir spiritual support during my project. I am always indebted to the encouragementsthey gave me.

　　Lastly and most importantly. I would like to acknowledge the endless support,encouragement patience and understanding of my family. They gave me the incentiveto do this work and have put up unquestioningly with the difficult person that I hadbecome in the last few critical months of finalizing this dissertation. I love themforever.

　　Acknowledgements:

　　First and foremost, I would like to send my sincere gratitude to my supervisorProfessor Li Changbao. Without his devoted guidance during the whole course fromthe selection of the topic to the final manuscript and the efforts he has made to revisethe manuscript, this thesis would not be what it is now. Meanwhile, during the pasttwo and half years, he also provided me with valuable suggestions about study andlife which may benefit me in my whole life.

　　High tribute shall also be paid to all the teachers who have taught me during mygraduate study. Profound and intelligent, they endowed me with new insights towardsmy study. Among those teachers, I am really grateful to Mr. Teng Chao and Ms. ChenXianghong who are so gentle and considerate to share with me the importantmaterials I need when writing the thesis.

　　Finally, I am indebted to my parents and friends who have always supported meand encouraged me during the course of the thesis writing.

　　Acknowledgements:

　　The acconq）lishment of this thesis is owing to the unreserved instruction and persistentendeavour from a lot of people,to whom I would express my sincere gratitude, for this thesiscan't come into being without their joint effort.

　　First and foremost, my sincerest thanks go to my distinguished supervisor,ProfessorShao Zhihong, who is always granting me constant instruction, and showing me anenlightment when I'm in confusion. From the thesis proposal, structure to the content, he hasgiven precious inspiration. I am deeply encouraged by his profound knowledge, insightfulteaching and conscientious modification.

　　Secondly, my sincere appreciation also goes to all course instructors whose excellentprofession and good virtue have presented me with wisdom and intuition. Thanks for theirgenerous sharing which has prepared me for the thesis.

　　Finally, I'd like to extend my thanks to my parents and my friends who often give mecare and encouragement in the process of my study. Under their love,I can go with strongmotivation and power and that now I can be here,completing my postgraduate studysmoothly.

　　Acknowledgements:

　　Before concluding this thesis, I would like to take the precious opportunity to extend mywholehearted gratitude to all who have been helping me with my accomplishment of thispaper.

　　First and foremost,I owe my deepest gratitude to my distinguished supervisor, ProfessorYan Jinglan,who empowered me with inspiration and instruction, guided me in collection ofabundant materials, and enlightened me while in confusion. I am deeply grateful for thecontinuous support throughout my post-graduate study, especially during the time I studied atImperial College London. Without her dedicated assistance and insightfiil supervision, Iwould not have the courage to pursue for another master degree at Imperial, let alone thisthesis.

　　My sincere appreciation also goes to my prestigious master programme team at EastChina University of Science and Techonlogy, just to name a few, Professor Yu Yuguo,Professor Shao Zhihong,Professor Wang Jianguo, Professor Yang Huimin,Ms. Zhang Pan,Ms. Lin Mei, etc.,whose thought-provoking instruction imparted profound knowledge andmorality and who accredited me the opportunity to study abroad and experience in the globalcontext within my post-graduate study.

　　Last but not least,I am so gratefial to the programme team at Imperial College BusinessSchool, which allowed me getting access to the facilities and data polls,represented by MarcoMongiello, MBA programme senior director and Frankie Galati, senior programmecoordinator and associate professor Sankalp Chaturvedi, supporting me with direct data andkey facts about course designs through personal emails and interviews. Without their kindestassistance, this study would have gone nowhere.