Strategies for Realization of L2-Categories
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Robert McAllister
Abstract
This study focuses on the production of the English /s/-/z/ contrast by native speakers of Swedish. The strategies used by Swedes who produce this contrast successfully would seem to be of interest in two respects with reference to Flege’s Speech Learning Model (SLM). Firstly, in relation to SLM hypothesis 6 regarding the choice of features made by the L2 users to realize a contrast and secondly, regarding the results of a recent study based on the SLM which examined the “feature hypothesis”, which seems to be contradicted by the difficulty Swedes demonstrate in the production of the English /s/-/z/ contrast. 17 native speakers of Swedish were examined with regard to the strategies used in successful productions of this contrast. The results are discussed in light of a hypothesis generated by the SLM which suggests that L2 users may, in the realization of an L2 contrast, use different features or feature weights than natives do. The relative inability of native Swedes to produce the /z/ is also discussed in light of a recent study where a feature hypothesis is advanced to account for the ability of L2 learners to successfully acquire the Swedish quantity contrast.
Abstract
This study focuses on the production of the English /s/-/z/ contrast by native speakers of Swedish. The strategies used by Swedes who produce this contrast successfully would seem to be of interest in two respects with reference to Flege’s Speech Learning Model (SLM). Firstly, in relation to SLM hypothesis 6 regarding the choice of features made by the L2 users to realize a contrast and secondly, regarding the results of a recent study based on the SLM which examined the “feature hypothesis”, which seems to be contradicted by the difficulty Swedes demonstrate in the production of the English /s/-/z/ contrast. 17 native speakers of Swedish were examined with regard to the strategies used in successful productions of this contrast. The results are discussed in light of a hypothesis generated by the SLM which suggests that L2 users may, in the realization of an L2 contrast, use different features or feature weights than natives do. The relative inability of native Swedes to produce the /z/ is also discussed in light of a recent study where a feature hypothesis is advanced to account for the ability of L2 learners to successfully acquire the Swedish quantity contrast.
Kapitel in diesem Buch
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Dedication ix
- Alphabetical List of Contributors xi
- Acknowledgments xv
- Biographical Note xvii
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PART I: The nature of L2 speech learning
- The study of second language speech learning 3
- Nonnative and second-language speech perception 13
- Cross-language phonetic similarity of vowels 35
- Investigating the role of attention in phonetic learning 57
- You are what you eat phonetically 79
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PART II: The concept of foreign accent
- Nativelike pronunciation among late learners of French as a second language 99
- Second language acquisition of a regional dialect of American English by native Japanese speakers 117
- Acoustic variability and perceptual learning 135
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PART III: Consonants and vowels
- Strategies for Realization of L2-Categories 153
- Temporal remnants from Mandarin in nonnative English speech 167
- Cross-language consonant identification 185
- The relationship between identification and discrimination in cross-language perception 201
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PART IV: Beyond consonants and vowels
- Music and language learning 221
- Behavioral and cortical effects of learning a second language 239
- The perception of tones and phones 259
- Prosody in second language acquisition 281
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PART V: Emerging issues
- Implications of James E. Flege’s research for the foreign language classroom 301
- Speech learning, lexical reorganization, and the development of word recognition by native and non-native English speakers 315
- Phonemic errors in different word positions and their effects on intelligibility of non-native speech 331
- The graphical basis of phones and phonemes 349
- References 367
- Author Index 399
- Subject Index 405
Kapitel in diesem Buch
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Dedication ix
- Alphabetical List of Contributors xi
- Acknowledgments xv
- Biographical Note xvii
-
PART I: The nature of L2 speech learning
- The study of second language speech learning 3
- Nonnative and second-language speech perception 13
- Cross-language phonetic similarity of vowels 35
- Investigating the role of attention in phonetic learning 57
- You are what you eat phonetically 79
-
PART II: The concept of foreign accent
- Nativelike pronunciation among late learners of French as a second language 99
- Second language acquisition of a regional dialect of American English by native Japanese speakers 117
- Acoustic variability and perceptual learning 135
-
PART III: Consonants and vowels
- Strategies for Realization of L2-Categories 153
- Temporal remnants from Mandarin in nonnative English speech 167
- Cross-language consonant identification 185
- The relationship between identification and discrimination in cross-language perception 201
-
PART IV: Beyond consonants and vowels
- Music and language learning 221
- Behavioral and cortical effects of learning a second language 239
- The perception of tones and phones 259
- Prosody in second language acquisition 281
-
PART V: Emerging issues
- Implications of James E. Flege’s research for the foreign language classroom 301
- Speech learning, lexical reorganization, and the development of word recognition by native and non-native English speakers 315
- Phonemic errors in different word positions and their effects on intelligibility of non-native speech 331
- The graphical basis of phones and phonemes 349
- References 367
- Author Index 399
- Subject Index 405
