scholarly journals Language-independent talker-specificity in first-language and second-language speech production by bilingual talkers: L1 speaking rate predicts L2 speaking rate

2017 ◽  
Vol 141 (2) ◽  
pp. 886-899 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ann R. Bradlow ◽  
Midam Kim ◽  
Michael Blasingame
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Speech Production ◽  
First Language ◽  
Speaking Rate ◽  
L2 Speaking ◽  
Second Language Speech Production

scholarly journals Second language speech production: Investigating linguistic correlates of comprehensibility and accentedness for learners at different ability levels

2015 ◽  
Vol 37 (2) ◽  
pp. 217-240 ◽  
Author(s):  
KAZUYA SAITO ◽  
PAVEL TROFIMOVICH ◽  
TALIA ISAACS
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Speech Production ◽  
Native Speaker ◽  
Japanese Learners Of English ◽  
Proficiency Level ◽  
L2 Speaking ◽  
Ability Levels ◽  
Second Language Speech Production ◽  
Japanese Learners ◽  
High Level

ABSTRACTThe current project aimed to investigate the potentially different linguistic correlates of comprehensibility (i.e., ease of understanding) and accentedness (i.e., linguistic nativelikeness) in adult second language (L2) learners’ extemporaneous speech production. Timed picture descriptions from 120 beginner, intermediate, and advanced Japanese learners of English were analyzed using native speaker global judgments based on learners’ comprehensibility and accentedness, and then submitted to segmental, prosodic, temporal, lexical, and grammatical analyses. Results showed that comprehensibility was related to all linguistic domains, and accentedness was strongly tied with pronunciation (specifically segmentals) rather than lexical and grammatical domains. In particular, linguistic correlates of L2 comprehensibility and accentedness were found to vary by learners’ proficiency levels. In terms of comprehensibility, optimal rate of speech, appropriate and rich vocabulary use, and adequate and varied prosody were important for beginner to intermediate levels, whereas segmental accuracy, good prosody, and correct grammar featured strongly for intermediate to advanced levels. For accentedness, grammatical complexity was a feature of intermediate to high-level performance, whereas segmental and prosodic variables were essential to accentedness across all levels. These findings suggest that syllabi tailored to learners’ proficiency level (beginner, intermediate, or advanced) and learning goal (comprehensibility or nativelike accent) would be advantageous for the teaching of L2 speaking.

The Word Unit in Second Language Speech Production and Perception

1994 ◽  
Vol 16 (4) ◽  
pp. 381-411 ◽  
Author(s):  
James Emil Flege ◽  
Murray J. Munro
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Speech Production ◽  
Voice Onset Time ◽  
Onset Time ◽  
Speech Acquisition ◽  
Language Identity ◽  
Phonetic Errors ◽  
Early Learners ◽  
Second Language Speech Production ◽  
Entire Word

The purpose of this study, which focused on the wordtacoas spoken in Spanish and English, was to explore the word as a unit in second language (L2) speech acquisition. As expected, acoustic measurements revealed that Spanish and English monolinguals' renditions oftacodiffered systematically. It was also shown that the extent to which Spanish/English bilinguals approximated English phonetic norms for any one segment oftacowas correlated with their approximation for the other three segments, and that early learners differentiated Spanish versus Englishtacomore than did late learners. It also appeared that the bilinguals produced /t/ with less English-like voice onset time (VOT) values in Englishtacothan in other English words without a cognate in Spanish. In a perception experiment, listeners were able to identify the native language of Spanish and English monolinguals on the basis of their production oftaco. The listeners heard larger differences between Spanish and Englishtacotokens spoken by early than late learners of English L2. Two additional perception experiments assessed further the phonetic dimensions that listeners use to determine language identity and to gauge bilinguals' speech production accuracy. Listeners assigned to language identification and goodness rating tasks responded to acoustic information distributed over all four segments intaco, although the VOT of the word-initial /t/ appeared to be the single most important phonetic dimension. Taken together, the results of this study suggest that (a) bilinguals' accuracy in producing the various segments of a second language word may be interrelated and (b) in judging L2 speech, listeners respond to phonetic errors distributed over the entire word.

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