Studies in Second Language Acquisition最新文献

{"title":"How does language distance affect reading fluency and comprehension in English as second language?","authors":"Victor Kuperman","doi":"10.1017/s027226312510065x","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1017/s027226312510065x","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Acquisition of reading skill in a second language (L2) requires development and coordinated use of multiple component skills. This acquisition is less effortful the more similar the first language (L1) of the L2 learner is to that L2. While ways to quantify the L1–L2 distance are well defined in the current literature, the theoretical status of this distance in models of L2 reading acquisition is under-specified. This paper tests whether the L1–L2 distance influences English reading fluency and comprehension directly, via the mediation of component skills of reading, or both. We used text reading data and tests of component skills of English reading from the Multilingual Eye-movement Corpus database, representing advanced L2 readers of English from 18 distinct language backgrounds. Mediation analyses show that the L1–L2 distance has both a direct and an indirect effect on English reading fluency and eye movements, yet it has no effect on reading comprehension. These findings are novel in that they specify the mechanism through which the L1–L2 distance affects L2 reading acquisition.</p>","PeriodicalId":22008,"journal":{"name":"Studies in Second Language Acquisition","volume":"12 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":4.1,"publicationDate":"2025-05-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144153448","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Disfluency doesn’t happen in isolation","authors":"Xun Yan, Ping-Lin Chuang, Yulin Pan, Huiying Cai, Shelley Staples, Mariana Centanin Bertho","doi":"10.1017/s0272263125000245","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1017/s0272263125000245","url":null,"abstract":"The construct of second language (L2) utterance fluency is typically operationalized through various individual temporal features. However, in natural speech, fluency (or disfluency) is often characterized by the clustering of multiple temporal features, collectively revealing the speaker’s effort in speech production or disfluency recovery. In this study, we explore the co-occurrence patterns of disfluency features in L2 speech and their associations with speakers’ L2 oral proficiency. We initially segmented all speech samples into analysis of speech (AS)-units. Within each AS-unit, six individual fluency features were manually coded, standardized, and subsequently subjected to a hierarchical-based <jats:italic>k</jats:italic>-means cluster analysis to examine their co-occurrence patterns. The results revealed four distinct disfluency clusters. A subsequent qualitative analysis of disfluencies in each cluster revealed distinct distributional patterns, disfluency makeup, and communicative functions. Additionally, the proportions of different disfluency clusters were significantly influenced by speakers’ proficiency level, first language background, and their interaction. These findings carry implications for L2 speaking research in general, shedding light on the intricate nature of speech fluency and presenting an alternative approach to the operationalization of this multidimensional construct.","PeriodicalId":22008,"journal":{"name":"Studies in Second Language Acquisition","volume":"18 1","pages":"1-32"},"PeriodicalIF":4.1,"publicationDate":"2025-05-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144097667","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Testing the three-stage model of second language skill acquisition","authors":"Ryo Maie, Aline Godfroid","doi":"10.1017/s027226312500021x","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1017/s027226312500021x","url":null,"abstract":"Skill acquisition theory conceptualizes second language (L2) learning in three stages (declarative, procedural, and automatic), yet competing theoretical models with fewer stages also exist, and the number of stages has never actually been tested. We tested the validity of the three-stage model by investigating the number and nature of learning stages in L2 skill acquisition. Seventy-three participants deliberately learned grammar and vocabulary of a miniature language through explicit-deductive instruction. They systematically practiced comprehending the language until their accuracy and speed of performance did not improve anymore. Participants received a battery of tests assessing individual differences in their declarative and procedural learning abilities. We first applied hidden Markov modeling to participants’ reaction time data (obtained from the language practice) to compare rival hypotheses on the number of stages in L2 skill acquisition. We then examined which cognitive variables predicted participants’ performances (accuracy and speed) in each stage. Our results indicated that participants indeed acquired L2 skills in three stages and that their performance correlated initially with declarative learning ability, but there was a tendency for procedural learning ability to take over in the later stages. Our findings provide the first formal evidence for the influential three-stage model of L2 skill acquisition.","PeriodicalId":22008,"journal":{"name":"Studies in Second Language Acquisition","volume":"219 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":4.1,"publicationDate":"2025-04-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143863018","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Study and instrument quality in perception-based L2 pronunciation research: A methodological synthesis","authors":"Maria Kostromitina, Ekaterina Sudina, Eman Baghlaf","doi":"10.1017/s027226312500018x","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1017/s027226312500018x","url":null,"abstract":"<p>This methodological synthesis surveys study and instrument quality in L2 pronunciation research by scrutinizing methodological practices in designing and employing scales and rubrics that measure accentedness, comprehensibility, and intelligibility. A comprehensive coding scheme was developed, and searches were conducted in several databases. A total of 380 articles (409 samples) that employed 576 target instruments and appeared in peer-reviewed journals from 1977 to 2023 were synthesized. Results demonstrated, among other findings, strengths in reporting several listener and speaker characteristics. Areas in need of improvement include (a) more thorough evaluation and reporting of interrater reliability and instrument validity and (b) greater adherence to methodological transparency and open science practices. We conclude by discussing the implications of these findings for researchers and researcher trainers; by raising awareness of methodological and ethical challenges in psychometric research on L2 speech perception; and by providing recommendations for advancing the quality of instruments in this domain.</p>","PeriodicalId":22008,"journal":{"name":"Studies in Second Language Acquisition","volume":"108 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":4.1,"publicationDate":"2025-04-14","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143827636","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Validity evidence for an EIT as an assessment for Spanish heritage speakers and L2 learners","authors":"Sara Saez-Fajardo, Melissa A. Bowles","doi":"10.1017/s0272263125000130","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1017/s0272263125000130","url":null,"abstract":"<p>As the field of heritage language acquisition expands, there is a need for proficiency to compare speakers across groups and studies. Elicited imitation tasks (EITs) are efficient cost-effective tasks with a long tradition in proficiency assessment of second language (L2) learners, first language children, and adults. However, little research has investigated their use with heritage speakers (HSs), despite their oral nature, which makes them appropriate for speakers with variable literacy skills. This study is a partial replication of Solon, Park, Dehghan-Chaleshtori, Carver &amp; Long (2022), who administered an EIT originally developed for advanced L2 learners on a group of HSs. In this study, we administered the same EIT with minor modifications to 70 HSs and 132 L2 learners of Spanish with different levels of proficiency and ran a Rasch analysis to evaluate the functioning of the task with the two groups. To obtain concurrent validity evidence, scores on the EIT were compared with participants’ performance in an oral narration; evaluated for complexity, accuracy, and fluency (CAF); and compared with a standardized oral proficiency test, the Versant Spanish Test. Results of Rasch analyses showed that the EIT was effective at distinguishing different levels of ability for both groups, and analyses showed moderate to strong correlations between CAF measures and the EIT and very strong correlations between the EIT and the Versant Spanish Test. These results provide evidence that the EIT is an efficient and adequate proficiency test for HSs and L2 learners of Spanish; its use in research settings is recommended.</p>","PeriodicalId":22008,"journal":{"name":"Studies in Second Language Acquisition","volume":"25 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":4.1,"publicationDate":"2025-04-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143813986","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"The relationship between boredom and second language achievement: A multilevel meta-analysis","authors":"Fangwei Huang, Haijing Zhang","doi":"10.1017/s0272263125000142","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1017/s0272263125000142","url":null,"abstract":"There has been a growing emphasis on researching foreign language boredom in second language acquisition in recent years. However, existing research has yet to reach a consensus regarding the effect of foreign language boredom on learners’ learning achievement. To address this gap, the present study employs multilevel meta-analysis to analyze 47 effect sizes from 33 empirical studies involving a total sample size of 27,838 participants. The findings reveal that foreign language boredom illustrates a small negative effect (<jats:italic>r</jats:italic> = -.24, <jats:italic>p</jats:italic> &lt; .001) on language achievement. Furthermore, the moderation analysis reveals that the magnitude of the effect size varies crossing educational stages, achievement measurements, domain-specific language skills, foreign language boredom measurements, teaching modes, and learning contexts. This study provides robust evidence to support the detrimental role of foreign language boredom in language acquisition and identified substantive gaps in this research field, offering valuable directions for future research.","PeriodicalId":22008,"journal":{"name":"Studies in Second Language Acquisition","volume":"22 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":4.1,"publicationDate":"2025-03-31","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143736588","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"The interplay of learners’ cognitive abilities in the learning and automatization of miniature language grammar","authors":"Małgorzata Foryś-Nogala, Olga Broniś, Aleksandra Janczarska","doi":"10.1017/s0272263125000117","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1017/s0272263125000117","url":null,"abstract":"This study focused on the relative contributions of cognitive aptitudes to the incidental learning and automatization of mini-language grammar. Over three sessions, participants (<jats:italic>N</jats:italic> = 45; first language [L1] Polish; age range: 19–35) completed computerized training in MiniItaliano as well as tasks tapping into working memory, general intelligence, and language analytic ability (LAA). The overt aim of the training was to comprehend messages placed in the context of an Italian supermarket; however, its actual goal was to acquire the target syntactic rules (i.e., subject-verb agreement, gender agreement, word order). The final session included a surprise post-test with untimed and timed grammaticality judgment tasks (GJTs) as measures of explicit and automatized knowledge, respectively. Results showed that performance on both tasks was predicted by LAA over and above other cognitive and control measures. Additionally, scores on the untimed GJTs were related to reliance on (self-discovered) rules, while timed GJTs involved general IQ.","PeriodicalId":22008,"journal":{"name":"Studies in Second Language Acquisition","volume":"377 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":4.1,"publicationDate":"2025-03-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143723119","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Exploring the potential of content-embedded working memory capacity tasks for advancing second language acquisition research","authors":"Janire Zalbidea, Bernard I. Issa","doi":"10.1017/s0272263125000154","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1017/s0272263125000154","url":null,"abstract":"This article explores the utility of content-embedded working memory capacity (WMC) tasks for advancing second language (L2) research. While both complex span and content-embedded tasks implement a dual-task paradigm that requires processing and maintenance of information, they differ in that the former demand maintenance of extraneous memory elements during processing, while the latter demand processing and maintenance of the same elements. Since manipulating information stored in working memory is critical for L2 processing and development, particularly in intentional learning contexts, content-embedded tasks may serve as strong predictors of several linguistic outcomes. We report preliminary evidence suggesting that both content-embedded tasks (available in IRIS [<jats:uri xmlns:xlink=\"http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink\" xlink:href=\"https://www.iris-database.org/details/iv6nR-HD9NQ\">https://www.iris-database.org/details/iv6nR-HD9NQ</jats:uri>]) and complex span tasks can be significant predictors of explicit L2 aptitude and L2 reading comprehension, but that content-embedded tasks can show advantages over complex span tasks in some instances. We discuss methodological implications for the measurement of WMC in L2 research.","PeriodicalId":22008,"journal":{"name":"Studies in Second Language Acquisition","volume":"71 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":4.1,"publicationDate":"2025-03-25","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143695752","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"New data on text reading in English as a second language: The Wave 2 expansion of the Multilingual Eye-Movement Corpus (MECO)","authors":"Victor Kuperman, Sascha Schroeder, Cengiz Acartürk, Niket Agrawal, Dominick M. Alexandre, Lena S. Bolliger, Jan Brasser, César Campos-Rojas, Denis Drieghe, Dušica Filipović Đurđević, Luiz Vinicius Gadelha de Freitas, Sofya Goldina, Romualdo Ibáñez Orellana, Lena A. Jäger, Ómar I. Jóhannesson, Anurag Khare, Nik Kharlamov, Hanne B. S. Knudsen, Árni Kristjánsson, Charlotte E. Lee, Jun Ren Lee, Marina P. T. Leite, Simona Mancini, Nataša Mihajlović, Ksenija Mišić, Miloslava Orekhova, Olga Parshina, Milica Popović Stijačić, Athanassios Protopapas, David R. Reich, Anurag Rimzhim, Rui Rothe-Neves, Thais M. M. Sá, Andrea Santana Covarrubias, Irina Sekerina, Heida M. Sigurdardottir, Anna Smirnova, Priyanka Srivastava, Elisangela N. Teixeira, Ivana Ugrinic, Kerem Alp Usal, Karolina Vakulya, João M. M. Vieira, Ark Verma, Denise H. Wu, Jin Xue, Sunčica Zdravković, Junjing Zhuo, Laoura Ziaka, Noam Siegelman","doi":"10.1017/s0272263125000105","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1017/s0272263125000105","url":null,"abstract":"<p>This paper reports an expansion of the English as a second language (L2) component of the Multilingual Eye Movement Corpus (MECO L2), an international database of eye movements during text reading. While the previous Wave 1 of the MECO project (Kuperman et al., 2023) contained English as a L2 reading data from readers with 12 different first language (L1) backgrounds, the newly collected dataset adds eye-tracking data on English text reading from 13 distinct L1 backgrounds (<span>N</span> = 660) as well as participants’ scores on component skills of English proficiency and information about their demographics and language background and use. The paper reports reliability estimates, descriptive statistics, and correlational analyses as means to validate the expansion dataset. Consistent with prior literature and the MECO Wave 1, trends in the MECO Wave 2 data include a weak correlation between reading comprehension and oculomotor measures of reading fluency and a greater L1-L2 contrast in reading fluency than reading comprehension. Jointly with Wave 1, the MECO project includes English reading data from more than 1,200 readers representing a diversity of native writing systems (logographic, abjad, abugida, and alphabetic) and 19 distinct L1 backgrounds. We provide multiple pointers to new venues of how L2 reading researchers can mine this rich publicly available dataset.</p>","PeriodicalId":22008,"journal":{"name":"Studies in Second Language Acquisition","volume":"21 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":4.1,"publicationDate":"2025-03-12","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143599931","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Why you should stop using the ideal L2 self and the L2 motivational self-system to measure motivation (Reaction to Al-Hoorie, Hiver & In’nami, 2024)","authors":"Neil McClelland, Jenifer Larson-Hall","doi":"10.1017/s0272263124000779","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1017/s0272263124000779","url":null,"abstract":"<p>This paper responds to Al-Hoorie, Hiver, and In’nami’s (2024) critique of the second language (L2) Motivational Self System (L2MSS) by advocating for an immediate cessation of its use in the absence of substantial revision and validation. We revisit foundational studies in the tradition, exposing critical methodological flaws that we feel undermine empirical support for the model. Further, we examine systemic factors that contributed to the largely uncritical acceptance of the model. Drawing on our own experiences, we reflect on how these dynamics have obstructed the adoption of more robust motivational theories available in psychology and education. We further caution that without a stronger emphasis on validating measurement instruments, similar distractions may continue to hinder progress in the field.</p>","PeriodicalId":22008,"journal":{"name":"Studies in Second Language Acquisition","volume":"91 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":4.1,"publicationDate":"2025-03-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143582798","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}