| Acknowledgements | 第4-5页 |
| Abstract | 第5-6页 |
| 摘要 | 第7-12页 |
| Chapter One Introduction | 第12-15页 |
| 1.1 General description of the study | 第12-13页 |
| 1.2 Motivations for the study | 第13-14页 |
| 1.3 Significance of the study | 第14页 |
| 1.4 The organization of the thesis | 第14-15页 |
| Chapter Two Literature Review | 第15-34页 |
| 2.1 Definition of key terms in the study | 第15-17页 |
| 2.1.1 Language attrition | 第15-17页 |
| 2.1.2 Lexical attrition | 第17页 |
| 2.2 Theoretical bases in the study | 第17-19页 |
| 2.2.1 The Inverse Hypothesis | 第17-18页 |
| 2.2.2 The Activation Threshold Hypothesis | 第18-19页 |
| 2.3 Previous studies on language attrition abroad and in China | 第19-26页 |
| 2.3.1 Previous studies on language attrition abroad | 第19-25页 |
| 2.3.2 Previous studies on language attrition in China | 第25-26页 |
| 2.4 Previous studies on lexical attrition abroad and in China | 第26-34页 |
| 2.4.1 Previous studies on lexical attrition abroad | 第27-30页 |
| 2.4.1.1 Previous studies on lexical attrition at macro-level abroad | 第27-28页 |
| 2.4.1.2 Previous studies on lexical attrition at micro-level abroad | 第28-30页 |
| 2.4.2 Previous studies on lexical attrition in China | 第30-34页 |
| Chapter Three Methodology | 第34-40页 |
| 3.1 Research questions | 第34页 |
| 3.2 Research design | 第34-40页 |
| 3.2.1 Subjects | 第34-35页 |
| 3.2.2 Instruments | 第35-37页 |
| 3.2.2.1 Vocabulary test | 第35-37页 |
| 3.2.2.2 Questionnaire | 第37页 |
| 3.2.3 Data collection | 第37-38页 |
| 3.2.4 Data analysis | 第38-40页 |
| Chapter Four Results and Discussion | 第40-55页 |
| 4.1 Differences in lexical attrition between high achievers and low achievers | 第40-43页 |
| 4.2 Differences in lexical attrition between high achievers and low achievers in terms of word frequency | 第43-47页 |
| 4.3 Differences in lexical attrition between high achievers and low achievers in terms of word length | 第47-50页 |
| 4.4 Differences in lexical attrition between high achievers and low achievers in terms of word class | 第50-55页 |
| Chapter Five Conclusion | 第55-60页 |
| 5.1 Main findings of the study | 第55-56页 |
| 5.2 Implications | 第56-58页 |
| 5.3 Limitations and suggestions for future research | 第58-60页 |
| References | 第60-67页 |
| Appendixes | 第67-83页 |
| Appendix Ⅰ Vocabulary test | 第67-81页 |
| Appendix Ⅱ Questionnaire | 第81-82页 |
| Appendix Ⅲ Data obtained from the questionnaire | 第82-83页 |
