DOMAIN-GENERAL AUDITORY PROCESSING EXPLAINS MULTIPLE DIMENSIONS OF L2 ACQUISITION IN ADULTHOOD

• Published in: Studies in second language acquisition Vol. 44; no. 1; pp. 57 - 86
• Main Authors: Saito, Kazuya, Sun, Hui, Kachlicka, Magdalena, Alayo, John Robert Carvajal, Nakata, Tatsuya, Tierney, Adam
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: New York, USA Cambridge University Press 01.03.2022
• Subjects: Acoustics; Adult learning; Adults; Auditory Perception; Auditory processing; Autism Spectrum Disorders; Cognitive ability; Correlation; Determiners; Foreign language learning; Grammar; Hypotheses; Immersion Programs; Individual Differences; Intonation; Laboratory Training; Language Acquisition; Language Aptitude; Language Processing; Language Proficiency; Learning Problems; Length of residency; Linguistic Competence; Linguistic Input; Linguistic Theory; Morphosyntax; Native Language; Overseas Employment; Perceptions; Phonemes; Phonology; Prosody; Puberty; Reading Instruction; Research Article; Scores; Second Language Learning; Semantics; Short Term Memory; Suprasegmentals; Syntax; Teaching Methods; Vowels

In this study, we propose a hypothesis that domain-general auditory processing, a perceptual anchor of L1 acquisition, can serve as the foundation of successful post-pubertal L2 learning. This hypothesis was tested with 139 post-pubertal L2 immersion learners by linking individual differences in aud...