Can willingness to communicate, communication in English anxiety, behavioural inhibition and behavioural action predict perceived L2 fluency?

2021 ◽  
pp. 136216882110440
Author(s):  
Reza Zabihi ◽  
Shiva Ghominejad ◽  
Mohammad Javad Ahmadian
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Partial Correlation ◽  
Willingness To Communicate ◽  
Language Teachers ◽  
Proficiency Tests ◽  
Behavioural Inhibition ◽  
L2 Proficiency ◽  
Affective Factors ◽  
The Relationship

This study aimed to investigate whether and how willingness to communicate, communication in English anxiety, behavioural inhibition and action predict perceived second language (L2) fluency. The study also looked at whether L2 proficiency moderates the strength of relationships between these affective factors and L2 perceived fluency. One hundred learners of English were recorded while doing the Suitcase task (a monologic task) and were asked to complete a series of questionnaires and proficiency tests. Speech samples were then prepared for presentation to 26 experienced language teachers (and highly proficient users of English) as raters. Their task was to rate the speech samples in terms of perceived fluency. Results revealed that while willingness to communicate is a strong and positive predictor of perceived fluency, communication in English anxiety negatively predicts perceived L2 fluency. We also found that L2 proficiency does not seem to moderate the relationship between perceived fluency and willingness to communicate (WTC), but it does change the partial correlation figure for communication in English anxiety from r = −0.24 ( p = .013) to r = −0.38 ( p < .001). This variation suggests that less proficient L2 speakers’ perceived fluency could be more severely affected by communication in English anxiety.

英語學習自我效能，閱讀焦慮，與閱讀能力：以非英語系主修的EFL學生為例

2021 ◽  
Vol 26 (26) ◽  
pp. 069-092
Author(s):  
楊逸君 楊逸君 ◽  
吳昱嫺 吳昱嫺
Keyword(s):  
Self Efficacy ◽  
Reading Proficiency ◽  
Language Teachers ◽  
English Learning ◽  
Efl Learners ◽  
Affective Factors ◽  
Foreign Language Reading ◽  
Reading Anxiety ◽  
English Major ◽  
The Relationship

<p>這項研究主要調查台灣非英語系主修的大學生英語閱讀焦慮，英語自我效能以及閱讀能力等三者之間的關係。本研究對象為209名非英語系的大三學生。此次研究採用兩份問卷，外語閱讀焦慮問卷和英語學習自我效能問卷，以及多益閱讀測驗來了解這三項變數之間的關係。研究者在兩份問卷各加入開放式問題，以了解學習者對自身英語學習自我效能和英語閱讀焦慮的認知。結果顯示，學生英語學習自我效能與閱讀能力之間的關係呈正相關，但與英語閱讀焦慮之間則是負相關。另外，學生英語閱讀自我效能和英語學習自我效能呈現高度相關。然而，英語閱讀焦慮與不同程度的閱讀能力並無任何關聯。就閱讀焦慮的因素而言，大多數學生在閱讀陌生的詞彙和句子結構時都會經歷閱讀焦慮。學生英語學習自我效能越高者，在閱讀理解上的表現則愈佳。而閱讀能力在中間的學生，其英語學習自我效能和閱讀焦慮則呈現顯著差異的負相關。總而言之，這項研究增加對於非英語系主修學生在英語學習自我效能以及閱讀焦慮認知上的了解，以及這些因素在英語閱讀能力上產生的影響，同時提供語言教師非英語系主修學生的閱讀焦慮來源。教學建議則提供教師未來於課堂參考，以有效提升學生的英語學習自我效能及降低閱讀焦慮。</p> <p>&nbsp;</p><p>EFL learners’ reading performances can be greatly influenced by affective factors, such as anxiety and self-efficacy. This study investigates the effects of non-English major EFL learners’ reading anxiety and overall-English-learning self-efficacy on their reading proficiency. 209 non-English majors participated in the study. Two questionnaires, the Foreign Language Reading Anxiety Scale and the Questionnaire of English Self-Efficacy, and a TOEIC reading subtest were utilized to examine the relationship between the three variables. Open-ended questions at the end of two questionnaires were added to obtain learners’ perceptions of overall-English-learning self-efficacy and reading anxiety. Results showed that the relationship between overall-English-learning self-efficacy, reading self-efficacy, and reading proficiency was positive respectively whereas that between overall-English-learning self-efficacy and anxiety was negative, particularly for the students in the middle group. Reading anxiety, however, was not correlated with reading proficiency at different levels. Students had the highest level of reading self-efficacy when comparing to the self-efficacy of other language skills. They mostly experienced reading anxiety when reading unfamiliar vocabulary and sentence structures. To conclude, this study can be of importance in understanding the relationship between the three factors and provide language teachers with non-English major students’ sources of reading anxiety. Pedagogical implications are provided for language teachers’ future references.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p>

AGE OF ONSET AND NATIVELIKE L2 ULTIMATE ATTAINMENT OF MORPHOSYNTACTIC AND PHONETIC INTUITION

2012 ◽  
Vol 34 (2) ◽  
pp. 187-214 ◽  
Author(s):  
Niclas Abrahamsson
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Adult Learners ◽  
Negative Correlation ◽  
Critical Period ◽  
Age Of Onset ◽  
L2 Proficiency ◽  
Critical Period Hypothesis ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Ultimate Attainment ◽  
The Relationship

Research has consistently shown there is a negative correlation between age of onset (AO) of acquisition and ultimate attainment (UA) of either pronunciation or grammar in a second language (L2). A few studies have indeed reported nativelike behavior in some postpuberty learners with respect to either phonetics/phonology or morphosyntax, a result that has sometimes been taken as evidence against the critical period hypothesis (CPH). However, in the few studies that have employed a wide range of linguistic tests and tasks, adult learners have not exhibited nativelike L2 proficiency across the board of measures, which, according to some, suggests that the hypothesis still holds. The present study investigated the relationship between AO and UA and the incidence of nativelikeness when measures of phonetic and grammatical intuition are combined. An additional aim was to investigate whether children and adults develop the L2 through fundamentally different brain mechanisms—namely, whether children acquire the language (more) implicitly as an interdependent whole, whereas adults learn it (more) explicitly as independent parts of a whole.

Generative phonology and contrastive studies

1976 ◽  
Vol 21 (2) ◽  
pp. 171-179 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jacek Fisiak
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Language Learning ◽  
Second Language Learning ◽  
Applied Linguistics ◽  
Language Teachers ◽  
Precise Formulation ◽  
Clear Cut ◽  
Theoretical Status ◽  
Methodological Status ◽  
The Relationship

The development of contrastive studies (CS) in recent years, judging by the proliferation of projects and published materials, has been accompanied since the late sixties by vigorous discussions and controversies concerning the theoretical status of CS, their form and their place in both general and applied linguistics.Many linguists and language teachers have gone so far as to reject the validity and usefulness of CS (cf. Alatis, 1968). It seems that this attitude results from a number of misunderstandings created by such factors as the peculiar methodological status of CS, the lack of a clear-cut distinction between theoretical and applied CS (Stockwell, 1968:25; Fisiak, 1971:88ff), and the lack of any precise formulation of the different aims of theoretical CS and applied CS, as well as the confusion of the relationship between CS, psycholinguistic theories of interference and errors, and the theory of second language learning (Zabrocki, 1976). Some confusion also stems from the misunderstanding of the relationship between CS and linguistic theory.

Segmental error patterns in Finnish-accented English

2021 ◽  
Vol 0 (0) ◽  
Author(s):  
Camilla Søballe Horslund ◽  
Parker F. Van Nostrand
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Language Teachers ◽  
Foreign Accent ◽  
Language Experience ◽  
Error Patterns ◽  
Pronunciation Instruction ◽  
Accented English ◽  
Second Language Speech Production ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Sheer Number

Abstract Research suggests that explicit pronunciation teaching improves second language speech production, but language teachers often lack the relevant knowledge to teach pronunciation. This study examined segmental error patterns in Finnish-accented English and the relationship between segmental errors and foreign accent ratings in two groups differing in amount of second language experience. Our study identified a number of common segmental error patterns in Finnish-accented English, which may guide formal pronunciation instruction. We further found that the sheer number of segmental errors in a sentence affected foreign accent ratings as did the number of vowel errors in a sentence. We speculate that the detrimental effect of vowel errors may be related to the finding that vowel errors resulted in non-English segments more often than consonant errors did. Finally, we found a facilitative effect of second language experience on foreign accent rating that cannot be reduced to number of segmental errors, despite the finding that number of consonant errors was reduced with increased second language experience.

ELICITED IMITATION TASKS AS A MEASURE OF L2 PROFICIENCY

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-26
Author(s):  
Maria Kostromitina ◽  
Luke Plonsky
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Effect Sizes ◽  
Independent Effect ◽  
L2 Proficiency ◽  
Elicited Imitation ◽  
Discussion Section ◽  
Comprehensive View ◽  
Transparent Reporting ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Practical Measure

Abstract Elicited imitation tasks (EITs) have been proposed and examined as a practical measure of second language (L2) proficiency. This study aimed to provide an updated and comprehensive view of the relationship between EITs and other proficiency measures. Toward that end, 46 reports were retrieved contributing 60 independent effect sizes (Pearson’s r) that were weighted and averaged. Several EIT features were also examined as potential moderators. The results portray EIT as a generally consistent measure of L2 proficiency (r = .66). Among other moderators, EIT stimuli length was positively associated with stronger correlations. Overall, the findings provide support for the use of EITs as a means to greater consistency and practicality in measuring L2 proficiency. In our Discussion section, we highlight the need for more transparent reporting and provide empirically grounded recommendations for EIT design and for further research into EIT development.

The Relationship between Willingness to Communicate and Vocabulary Learning Strategies among Iranian EFL Learners

2017 ◽  
Vol 7 (11) ◽  
pp. 1119
Author(s):  
Amir Marzban ◽  
Mojgan Firoozjahantigh
Keyword(s):  
Language Learning ◽  
Learning Strategies ◽  
Vocabulary Learning ◽  
Willingness To Communicate ◽  
Language Teachers ◽  
Review Of Literature ◽  
Efl Learners ◽  
Learning And Teaching ◽  
Vocabulary Learning Strategies ◽  
The Relationship

Two of the variables apparently contributing to the processes of EFL achievement are Willingness to Communicate (WTC) and Vocabulary Learning Strategies (VLS). They seem to be fundamental among Iranian EFL learners due to the fact that semantics and its backbone—vocabulary—as well as the incentive or motivation, Willingness to Communicate (WTC)—influence the progress and improvement of the proficiency of Iranian EFL learners. Moreover, the review of literature clarifies the fact that few studies have tried to open up the relationship between these two variables, i.e. WTC and VLS. Hence, the present study explored the relationship between the WTC and VLS among Iranian EFL learners. Based on this, 137 intermediate Iranian EFL learners who were studying in a language institute in Tehran were selected as the participants of the study. They were asked to fill out two questionnaires including WTC and VLS. The finding indicated that there is a significant correlation between the two variables. The study provided some pedagogical implications for those who are concerned with language learning and teaching including language teachers, teacher trainers, syllabus designers, and EFL learners.

scholarly journals The Relationship between Ideal L2 Self and Willingness to Communicate Inside the Classroom

2017 ◽  
Vol 6 (4) ◽  
pp. 229 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nihan Bursali ◽  
Huseyin Oz
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Language ◽  
Academic Research ◽  
Private University ◽  
Willingness To Communicate ◽  
Language Teachers ◽  
Specific Level ◽  
Ideal L2 Self ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
The Ideal

Over the past decades there has been a dramatic increase in academic research on motivation to learn a second or foreign language (L2). The present study tried to investigate the relationship between the ideal L2 self as a motivational variable and willingness to communicate in English (L2 WTC) inside the classroom. Participants were 56 university students majoring in English as a foreign language (EFL) at a private university in Ankara, Turkey. Data were collected using the Ideal L2 Self Scale and Willingness to Communicate inside the Classroom Scale. Findings of descriptive statistics indicated that 32.1% of the participants had high L2 WTC inside the classroom, 30.4% had moderate L2 WTC inside the classroom, and 37.5% had low L2 WTC inside the classroom. Findings also revealed a significant relationship between these two constructs noticing the relations at a skills specific level. The implications are discussed to present ideas to language teachers, teacher trainers, and curriculum designers to raise their awareness on the impact of ideal L2 self on willingness to communicate.

Foreign and second language anxiety

2010 ◽  
Vol 43 (2) ◽  
pp. 154-167 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elaine K. Horwitz
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Foreign Language ◽  
Language Learning ◽  
Language Learners ◽  
Language Teachers ◽  
Language Anxiety ◽  
Foreign Language Anxiety ◽  
Anxiety State ◽  
Unique Form ◽  
The Relationship

The possibility that anxiety interferes with language learning has long interested scholars, language teachers, and language learners themselves. It is intuitive that anxiety would inhibit the learning and/or production of a second language (L2). The important term in the last sentence is ‘anxiety’. The concept of anxiety is itself multi-faceted, and psychologists have differentiated a number of types of anxiety including trait anxiety, state anxiety, achievement anxiety, and facilitative-debilitative anxiety. With such a wide variety of anxiety-types, it is not surprising that early studies on the relationship between ‘anxiety’ and achievement provided mixed and confusing results, and Scovel (1978 – this timeline) rightly noted that anxiety is ‘not a simple, unitary construct that can be comfortably quantified into ‘high’ or ‘low’ amounts’ (p. 137). Scovel did not, however, anticipate the identification in the mid-1980s of a unique form of anxiety that some people experience in response to learning and/or using an L2. Typically referred to as language anxiety or foreign language anxiety (FLA), this anxiety is categorized as a situation-specific anxiety, similar in type to other familiar manifestations of anxiety such as stage fright or test anxiety.

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