Aptitude–treatment interaction (ATI) research is of both theoretical and practical interest to second language (L2) learning, since it provides insights into the processes linking learner‐internal individual difference factors and learner‐external contextual variables including instructional approach—variables that jointly determine L2 outcomes. The present study employed a full range of aptitude measures

A significant body of research supports the affective benefits of drama activities in foreign language (FL) learning, yet little is known about how to train teachers to implement such activities. In this study, we tested a professional development program (PDP) aimed at galvanizing FL teachers to integrate improvisational drama techniques (IDTs) into their repertoire. IDTs are defined here as activities

It is, perhaps, with some surprise that I find the native/non-native divide again attracting attention. The first I remember of this being an issue was when we were informed that the native speaker was dead (Paikeday, 1985). Needless to say, to those of us who did not feel at all deceased, this came as a surprise, but the announcement certainly attracted attention. The next contribution to the debate

The concept of willingness to communicate (WTC) is pivotal in understanding student engagement in English as a foreign language (EFL) classrooms. As a dynamic and multifaceted construct, WTC is subject to continual fluctuations throughout the communication process, often changing situationally. Traditionally, learner silence in class or during second language (L2) conversations is perceived negatively

Al-Hoorie et al. (2024: Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 1–23) illuminate a validation crisis within the second language (L2) Motivational Self System (L2MSS), revealing empirical flaws in its current measurement. Their analysis indicates a persistent lack of discriminant validity among the system’s constructs, issuing a fundamental challenge in distinguishing the concepts. These findings, echoing

In the face of transnational mobility and migration, globally networked communities and super-diverse social environments, traditional research practices of speaker categorization such as the distinction between native and non-native speakers, first, second, and third language users and mono-, bi-, and pluri-/multilinguals, which rest on the assumption of categorical differences between types of speakers

A large mass of research has reported the significance and power of positive psychology (PP) constructs in second/foreign language (L2) education. As an offshoot of PP, altruistic teaching, which highlights teaching without self-focus, has recently initiated its way into L2 research territory. However, the way altruistic teaching influences L2 students’ academic literacy skills, such as abstract writing

People are frequently concerned about the impressions they make on others (referred to as metaperceptions), but their insights are often inaccurate. Illustrating the phenomenon called the liking gap, speakers interacting in their first language (L1) and second language (L2) tend to underestimate how much they are liked by their interlocutor, and these judgments often predict their desire to engage

Research yields contradictory results on the relationship between an individual’s spirituality, that is, the relationship with God/the Transcendent, and their cultural development. To address this gap, we conceptualize a model that investigates the effects of two spirituality dimensions, namely felt love for God and love for others, on the behavioral aspect of intercultural competence, that is, intercultural

This article examines the relationship between collective memory and individual second‐language (L2) learning motivation as articulated in a qualitative research study with language revitalization practitioners. These practitioners learn and teach their languages and engage in other activities in order to bring Indigenous or ancestral languages into new use following a period of loss. In this study

Taking the perspective of a language program director (LPD), this practitioner research (PR) study describes how analysis of learners’ reflections written for an advanced undergraduate German course in the United States helped an LPD see how students had experienced learning grammar in lower-level instruction. The study analyses a semester-long project based on the PR framework of exploratory practice

Is it possible to acquire a sensitivity to a regularity in language without intending to and without awareness of what it is? In this conceptual replication and extension of an earlier study (Williams, 2005) participants were trained on a semiartificial language in which determiner choice was dependent on noun animacy. Participants who did not report awareness or recognition of this rule were nevertheless

Using computational Social Network Analysis (SNA), this longitudinal study investigates the development of the interaction network and its influence on the second language (L2) gains of a complete cohort of 41 U.S. sojourners enrolled in a 3‐month intensive study‐abroad Arabic program in Jordan. Unlike extant research, our study focuses on students’ interactions with alma mater classmates, reconstructing

Considering the undeniable importance of examining the role of domain- and skill-specific individual difference factors in second-language (L2) writing research, this study examined the possible roles of English-as-a-foreign-language (EFL) learners’ ideal L2 writing self and growth L2 writing mindset in their L2 writing grit, which may in turn contribute to their L2 writing achievement (WA). Data were

Theories of learning and attention predict a positive relationship between reading times on unfamiliar words and their learning; however, empirical findings of contextual learning studies range from a strong positive relationship to no relationship. To test the conjecture that longer reading times may reflect different cognitive and metacognitive processes, the need to infer novel word meanings from

Over the past decades, bilingualism researchers have come to a consensus around a fairly strong view of nonselectivity in bilingual speakers, often citing Van Hell and Dijkstra (2002) as a critical piece of support for this position. Given the study’s continuing relevance to bilingualism and its strong test of the influence of a bilingual’s second language on their first language, we conducted an approximate

Studies investigating the acquisition of multiword items (MWIs) from reading have furnished evidence that the likelihood of acquisition improves considerably if such items are typographically enhanced (e.g., bolded or underlined) in the texts. In the case of captioned audio-visual materials, however, an earlier study by the authors did not find such compelling evidence. In that study, indications of

Research on second language (L2) pronunciation self‐assessment reports a general misalignment between self‐ and other‐assessment. This has been attributed to the object of self‐assessment, the self‐assessment task, the measures to which self‐assessment is compared, and speakers’ characteristics. Here, we examined self‐assessment of a discrete phonological feature—sentence stress—by L2 English speakers

One of the most powerful and enduring ideas in written discourse analysis is that genres can be described in terms of the moves which structure a writer’s purpose. Considerable research has sought to identify these distinct communicative acts, but analyses have been beset by problems of subjectivity, reliability, and the time-consuming need for multiple coders to confirm analyses. In this article,

While a growing body of literature has illustrated how neoliberal discourses of English and employment have come to shape English language teaching (ELT) textbooks in a globalized world, little is known about how the translation of these discourses into pedagogical practices is mediated by the social class structures in postcolonial societies. In this article, we draw on a larger qualitative case study

High variability phonetic training using perceptual tasks such as identification and discrimination tasks has often been reported to improve L2 perception. However, studies comparing the efficacy of different tasks on different measures are rare. Forty-four Catalan/Spanish bilingual learners of English were trained with identification or categorical discrimination tasks and were tested on both measures

The present study examined the neural correlates of emotion effects evoked by emotion-label and emotion-laden nouns in Chinese-English bilinguals’ two languages through the emotion categorization t...

This study examines the effects of task complexity on second language (L2) pronunciation accuracy and global pronunciation measures in pronunciation-unfocused tasks and assesses the relationship between acoustic and listener-based pronunciation measures. Eighty-two Catalan/Spanish learners of English performed simple and complex versions of a problem-solving monologic speaking task, for which the oral

Based on correlational and factorial analysis of data collected from 384 middle and high school students in South Korea, Al–Hoorie et al. (2024) claimed the existence of a discriminant validity crisis within the L2 motivational self-system research tradition and advocated for abandoning research in this area. In this response, we critically examined the evidence presented, re-analyzed their data, and

This paper reports a replication of part of Tavakoli and Foster’s (2008) investigation into the influence of narrative task design on second language (L2) oral performance. The initial study found in part that narratives with both foreground and background information elicited significantly greater syntactic complexity than those with only foreground information. This close replication adds the variable

Framed by family language policy (FLP), in conjunction with the Douglas Fir Group's ecological transdisciplinary framework for second language acquisition, this multiple case study investigates the FLPs of two Hmong–American families in relation to a Hmong–English dual‐language program (DLP) where their children are enrolled. Interviews, artifacts, and family‐recorded interactions were utilized to

Second language acquisition is a complex process that involves numerous challenges and is influenced by various factors, including linguistic competence and classroom settings. This study examines the concerns and emotions experienced by 43 adult international students learning Maltese as a second language. By employing a mixed-methods approach, the research collected both qualitative and quantitative

Although multiple factors influence language proficiency in instructed settings, the prevalence of content and language integrated learning (CLIL) research in recent decades has placed intensity of exposure (via CLIL lessons) at center stage, sidelining other variables. This study aims to rectify this by examining the impact of CLIL alongside three additional factors: extramural English (EE), socioeconomic

This study evaluates the Dual Language Program (DLP) implemented at a Title I public school in Baltimore City during the 2019–2020 and 2020–2021 school years. Building on previous research, the DLP...

This study investigated phonological whole-word measures in bilingual Arabic-English speakers to explore how the target approximations influence children’s phonological development. To this end, fi...

This study explores the ways diverse educators’ lived experiences shape their understanding of dual language bilingual education (DLBE) goals, responding to calls for research to better understand ...

The use of students’ first language (L1) in additional language (L2) instruction has been a recurring theme in language education research. While research has documented the amount of L1 use and its purposes in L2 instruction, little research has investigated the multifaceted motives that influence language choices at the micro level of social activity where language learning takes place. This study

The potential of model texts as a feedback instrument (MTFI) in second language (L2) writing has been explored for about two decades and continues to receive increasing interest from L2 scholars. However, to date, there is still an absence of a comprehensive review of studies in this particular area. Following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) procedure

This systematic review synthesizes the literature (involving 62 empirical studies) regarding the effectiveness of cognitive linguistics‐inspired language pedagogies (CL‐ILPs) on second language (L2) learning. It begins with an overview of the main theoretical tenets of cognitive linguistics followed by a description of the data selection, coding, and analysis. Then, besides noting a sharp increase

This study aimed to investigate the relationship between lexical coverage and TV viewing comprehension. Previous studies have indicated that 95% to 98% of lexical coverage may be needed for reading comprehension (Hu & Nation, 2000). To understand informal listening passages, lower coverage figures (95%-90%) may suffice. However, no study has researched the lexical coverage needed to understand audiovisual

The issue of the research of emotional lexemes is conditioned upon pragmatic relations, which constitute an important basis in the definition of expressive language units. The purpose of the research is to analyse features of emotional and expressive linguistic units, considering the cognitive and linguistic nature of words in M. Auezov’s work ‘The Way of Abai.’ The methods used to achieve the research

Research into second or foreign language (L2) learning has demonstrated that L2 anxiety, perceived proficiency, and L2 willingness to communicate (L2WTC) profoundly impact language learning outcomes. However, the complex interplay between these variables has yet to be fully explored, as these factors are dynamic and context-specific and can vary across different learners and learning environments.

This paper reports on the process of developing an original framework for conceptualising and measuring language learner well-being within the context of heritage language (HL) learning. Drawing on...

The socio-educational model suggests that social milieu influences individual characteristics, which in turn affect engagement in learning contexts, ultimately impacting linguistic and non-linguistic outcomes. Operationalized representations of the model tend to focus on relations among integrativeness, attitudes to the learning situation, motivation, language anxiety, and language achievement. While

This study investigated changes in motivation, self‐efficacy beliefs, and a range of emotions, including enjoyment, hope, pride, curiosity, anxiety, boredom, apathy, confusion, and shame, from a complex dynamic systems theory (CDST) perspective over a 2‐year period in the Hungarian English as a Foreign Language (EFL) context. Using the same questionnaire, we collected data four times throughout 4 semesters

This study explores the interplay between task repetition and task motivation in second language (L2) writing, specifically focusing on syntactic complexity, accuracy, and lexical complexity (CAL). Aligning with Dörnyei’s call to balance cognitive and affective factors in task-based language teaching (TBLT), the research involved 100 advanced mid-level learners of English as a second language (ESL)

Evidence from recent studies has shown that sustained perseverance and passion for long-term goals in the domain of second language (L2) learning – a personality trait called L2 grit – is associated with various aspects of language learning, including positive psychological attributes (e.g. motivation, beliefs, and emotions), actions (e.g. learning efforts and strategy use), and achievement (e.g. course

Empirical work exploring additional language (L+) learning emotions has both proliferated and expanded its focus over the past 15 years. The current article explores one possibility for responding to the challenge of capturing and describing emotions in order to furnish a more contextualized, multidimensional picture of emotions in L+ learning: the small‐lens approach. From the perspective of the author

Over the past two decades in the applied linguistics subfield of second language (L2) writing, there has been considerable interest in the topic of collaborative writing (CW). Studies in this domain have investigated different phenomena such as the nature of learner-to-learner interactions, the learning outcomes of CW, and students' perceptions of these activities when implemented in the classroom

This longitudinal study examines the effects of a pre‐study abroad (SA) pedagogic intervention and subsequent SA experience on second language (L2) Mandarin fluency. It explores two temporal aspects of oral fluency—planning time and speech rate—along with one performance measure, duration of response. Additionally, L2 contact data were included as a supplementary variable in the analysis. The experimental

This qualitative case study explores how rural teachers in the Colombian periphery perceive and appropriate national bilingual policies. I drew theoretically on coloniality/decoloniality, bilingual...

This study tested whether encouraging prediction enhances prediction in second language (L2) speakers. L2 English speakers listened to English sentences like The woman … will read/buy one of the newspapers while viewing the target (a newspaper) and distractor objects (a rose, a bowl, and a mango) on a screen and clicked on the target as quickly as possible. The target was predictable (read) or unpredictable

An important issue in second-language acquisition concerns the role of explicit information (EI) and how it is affected by individual differences. The present study explored this question through a partial replication and extension of Fernández (2008: Experiment 2), which investigated the effects of EI in processing instruction (PI) for the Spanish present subjunctive. This replication compared training

This study investigated how repeating a video‐lecture‐based task affects second language (L2) learners’ processing and incidental acquisition of technical vocabulary as well as the relationship between processing and lexical gains. The participants were 75 Chinese learners of L2 English. Thirty participants performed the task once (control group), whereas another 30 participants did the same task three

We closely replicated Nurmukhamedov and Sharakhimov (2021), which was the first study to examine the lexical profile of general-audience English podcasts. Nurmukhamedov and Sharakhimov (2021) found that podcast listeners should have a knowledge of the most frequent 3,000 word families and 5,000 word families, respectively, plus proper nouns, marginal words, transparent compounds, and acronyms in order

While existing research has documented that the reading medium significantly impacts language learners’ reading comprehension processes and outcomes, empirical evidence on how the reading medium influences reading emotions is lacking. The present study contributes to the field by investigating whether reading emotions (i.e. enjoyment, anxiety, and boredom) of learners of Spanish as a second language