25 a variant of suffix -ous, suffix -eous typically puts the stress either on the penult or
on the antepenult Plag, 2003: 97.
Unusual as it sounds, the Indo-European suffix -ko- is the ancestor of several suffixes including Greek’s -iko-, Latin’s -ticus, and English’s -ic Miller, 2006,
pp. 160-161. Since -ic is a relational suffix, it attaches itself to foreign bases especially nouns and bound roots Plag, 2003: 96. A relational suffix makes a
relational adjective because the suffix implies a certain degree of relation that belongs to the noun as in allergic,
which means ‘having an allergy’ or ‘caused by an allergy.’
B. Theoretical Framework
This part highlights the elaboration of theories and how they are used to conduct the research. In this research, the theories function as the ground of analysis
of the research results. In regard to analyzing the data, the researcher combined the theories of stress and suffixes elaborated in the previous subchapter.
The theories of stress and pronunciation combined with the theories of suffixes are used to answer research question number one and two. These theories
are from Burzio 1996, Crosswhite 2004, Dardjowidjodjo 2009, Hayes 2009, Katamba 1996, Kager 2007, McMahon 2002, Miller 2006, Plag 2003,
Poldauf 1984, Roach 1998, and Yavas 2011. By incorporating the theories of Syafei 1988, Kreidler 2004 and Kenworthy 1988 that concern the nature of
26 English pronunciation, the researcher related
students’ perception with their performance.
Since the second research problem is about students’ mastery of stress in English suffixed words, the researcher used the theories explaining the effect of
syllable weight from Katamba 1996, McMahon 2002, Hayes 2009, and Kager 2007. These theories imply that there are certain qualifications by which stress
rules are applied. In addition to syllable weight, word-formation theories, notably those that explain the relation between suffixation and root support the analysis of
the second research problem. Apart from these phonological theories, theories on pronunciation and language teaching support the analysis because they correlate
between phonological or morphological concept and students’ pronunciation.
English pronunciation is difficult for some EFL learners due to less familiar vowels, diphthongs, and consonants compared to those of Indonesian such as i:, u:, æ,
ʌ, and ɔ: Syafei, 1988; Dardjowidjojo, 2009. If this problem persists for a long time, it is likely that learners will substitute vowels continuously that results in
unintelligible pronunciation. An intelligible pronunciation is not the same as a native-like pronunciation.
EFL learners, however, should comprehend how to stress words and sentences and how to use proper intonation and rhythm Kenworthy, 1987, pp. 13-14. Generally,
one can determine word stress by examining the heavy syllable or the syllable having the highest sonority McMahon, 2002; Kager, 2007. Also true is the notion
that stress is a part of a syllable because a vowel, a consonant, or a diphthong cannot bear the stress Hayes, 2009: 272. For monosyllabic words that consist of a
27 diphthong and a consonant, for example, the stress always falls on the first syllable
no matter what sound it has Katamba, 1996: 234. In English phonology, not all allophones and phonemes are permissible to occur under uncommon circumstances,
and therefore, a syllable can regulate how a speaker should pronounce words Katamba, 1996, pp. 164-166.
A lighter syllable can sometimes bear the stress because of the [ ə] nuclei on
the syllable or because the stress is already on the final syllable by default Yavas, 2011: 158. This theory is used to answer the second research question since the
students’ mastery of stress placement of English suffixed words depends on how good they notice the nuclei and the heavy syllable. Poldauf 1984 claims that
vowels in unstressed syllables often become ə, ɪ, ɪə or ʊ p. 15. Nonetheless, the
unstressed vowel sometimes maintains full vowel quality due to the effect of word formation as in representation [
ˌreprɪzenˈteɪʃn] that comes from represent [
ˌreprɪˈzent] Poldauf, 1984: 15. Although that is the case for some instances, most of the time, an unstressed vowel has its syllable reduced and this is called vowel
reduction Crosswhite, 2004: 191. Besides using those eight theories, the researcher also used the theory from
Roach 1998 that underlines the degree of strength of a syllable. He states that stress normally prevails in syllables containing a distinguishable vowel length and
quality Roach, 1998: 86. Stress is affected by not only syllables, but also by affixes Roach, 1998: 96. In line with that, Plag 2003 suggests that suffix -ion is
a verb-attracting suffix that changes the stress of a word because it always moves the stress to the penult i.e. second syllable from the last p. 91. Thus, most of the
28 time, -ion makes for nouns that come from verbal bases, especially those of Latinate
origin Miller, 2006: 76. The notion that -ity suffix changes the stress placement is true because it attracts foreign bases Plag, 2003; Miller, 2006. The relational
suffix -ic also pulls the stress away from the root and attracts non-verbal bases Plag, 2003: 96. Both Plag 2003 and Miller 2006 agree that -ous suffix sticks
to Latinate bases and is primarily denominal i.e. it can make adjectives out of nouns Plag, 2003; Miller, 2006. Burzio 1996, adds, the final syllable of a word that has
a semi-vowel or a null vowel can attract stress naturally if there is -eous suffix added in the final syllable pp. 288-289.
29
CHAPTER III RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
This chapter summarizes six main parts related to methodology used in this research. In order to clearly give understanding upon the research, the researcher
categorizes these parts into the research method, the research setting, the research participants, the instrument and data gathering technique, the data analysis
technique and the research procedure.
A. Research Method
This research utilized a survey method because the researcher tried to infer the results from the sample of the population. The intent of this research was to
determine whether 116 students of batch 2011 had varied mastery of stress placement of English suffixed words. The first research problem was about the
perception of the students with regard to English stress and the second was students’ mastery of the stress placement of English words ending with -ic, -ion, -ity, and -
eous suffixes. According to Creswell 2009, a survey is a method in which the researcher studies the population or the sample and tries to make numeric
descriptions of the result p. 145. A survey research, according to Ary, Jacobs, Sorensen, and Razavieh 2010 is broadly applied by researchers to investigate
specific attitudes, trends or problems of a certain population or a sample within the time constraint p. 414. As what has been proposed by Creswell 2009, a survey
is best used since the design is cost-effective p. 146. Likewise, Johnson and
