I'm studying Japanese and was wondering if you guys knew of any academic articles discussing character acquisition. I'm wanting to do some research to see about maybe changing my methods to make them more efficient. I figure academic articles should be more heavily weighted on real data rather than suggestions based on anecdotal experience.

Any links would be greatly appreciated!

I haven't seen any studies done that weren't just toys, where the students learned a handful of characters using one of two methods and had a pre-test, post-test a week later, and then a delayed recall test a couple weeks after that. I would like to see some higher-quality, real-world studies, but the standards seem very low for computer-assisted language learning (CALL) research. I don't necessarily blame the researchers, because it's extraordinarily difficult to get students to actually study for long periods of time.

In this case, though, I think self-experimentation provides a much more direct route to figuring out what works for you. Here's how you would do it: pick a bunch of characters/words you want to learn. Split them into two groups at random. Learn one group using Method A and the other using Method B. Track how much time you spend on each, and test yourself at the end to see how well you know each group.

As for picking Method A and Method B: look for the most interesting-sounding anecdotal method recommendations.

If you google thesis followed by your search term you can probably find a few academic research articles such as http://lars.yencken.org/papers/phd-thesis.pdf I haven't bothered to read this one yet but it looks interesting. I would like to make a few specific recommendations.


SRS (spaced repetition system)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spaced_repetition
It's been around since 1932 and has had many papers done on it but it has only recently started to become a popular way to study. This is due to modern PCs and software advances (Skritter uses SRS).

Mnemonics
Many different types exist but the one I recommend is Heisig. I am currently using this method now. I find it strange that while mnemonics have been researched and proven to be beneficial the Heisig method has many people clamming it to be damaging (because it goes against the way native Japanese students are taught). I have searched and search for an academic paper that would end the debate but have only found anecdotal evidence that supports his way. It's newer so it doesn't have many papers on it, but here is what I could find.

http://www.kanjiclinic.com/richardson.htm
This is a paper researching how Heisig's method could be applied to Chinese, which he later does with the authors help.

http://www.jaltcall.org/journal/articles/5_1_Lin.pdf
This is a paper on creating interactive tabletops with the Heisig method to create mnemonics through collaborative learning.

http://wenku.baidu.com/view/430fd4d080eb6294dd886c25.html?from=related
This is a paper on how to learn Kanji with the Heisig method using only audio.

I agree with Nick that most of the Kanji learning research needs to be tested on larger groups of people and needs to be more thorough. I came upon my method of studying through mostly trial and error even though I have read many papers and books on second language acquisition.

There should be more on the Heisig Method and articles supporting it. There are

4. T. W. Richardson, James W. Heisig’s System for Remembering Kanji: An Examination of Relevant Theory and Research, and a 1,000-Character Adaptation for Chinese. Doctoral dissertation, The University of Texas at Austin, 1998.

T. W. Richardson, “Chinese Character Memorization and Literacy: Theoretical and Empirical Perspectives on a Sophisticated Version of an Old Strategy,” in Andreas Guder, Jiang Xin, and Wan Yexin, eds., 對外漢字的認知与教學 [The cognition, learning, and teaching of Chinese characters] (Beijing: Beijing Language and Culture University Press, 2007).

The above are footnotes from the Introduction to "Remembering Traditional Hanzi – Book 1".

The introduction and the first part of the book in .pdf form can be obtained at:

http://nirc.nanzan-u.ac.jp/publications/miscPublications/Remembering%20Hanzi%201.htm

Perhaps you might find something published by the MLA.

I would imagine there are references to the Kanji version of the book which was written before the Hanzi book.

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Answer is simple. Best way is to just move to Japan!