THE PSYCHOLOGY OF

SECOND LANGUAGE ACQUISITION

 AGE SEX
APTITUDE

COGNITIVE MOTIVATION
STYLE

LEARNING
STRATEGIES
PERSONALITY

DIFFERENCES IN LEARNERS
AGE
Children are more successful L2 learners?
1. initial rate learning (success)
2. older learners have an advantage (popular belief)
3. learners who are introduced to the L2 in childhood (ultimate
achievement)
4. Critical period hypothesis(Lenneberg hypothesis):Genie
younger learners achieve ultimately higher levels of L2 proficiency
And probably more successful in informal and naturalistic L2

adolescents and adults learn faster in initial stagesa and better in formal
instructional settings
SEX
Are female better L2 learners?
verbal fluency
women’s brain may be less asymmetrically organized than men’s
for speech (Kimura 1992).
women: better at memorizing complex forms // men: better at
computing compositional rules (Halpern 2000)
differences related to hormonal variables
APTITUDE

Phonemic coding ability: the capacity to process auditory input into

segments which can be stored and retrieved. If the hearer cannot
analyze the incoming stream of speech into phonemes in order to
recognize morphemes, input may not result in intake.
Inductive language learning ability and grammatical sensitivity
concerned with central processing:infer structure, identify patterns,
make generalizations, recognize the grammatical function of elements,
and formulate rules.
APTITUDE

Associative memory capacity: how linguistic items are stored and

with how they are recalled and used in output (speaker fluency).
Skehan (1998 )concludes that language learning aptitude “is not
completely distinct from general cognitive abilities.”
MOTIVATION

Significant goal or need

• Desire to attain the goal
• Perception that learning L2 is relevant to fulfilling the goal or
meeting the need
• Belief in the likely success or failure of learning L2
• Value of potential outcomes/rewards
MOTIVATION

Integrative motivation emotional or affective factors are dominant.

Instrumental motivation practical value or benefit in learning the L2
Internal natural curiosity
vs
External factors (teacher, society, etc)
How have these two kinds of motivation influenced your L2 learning?
COGNITIVE STYLE
Refers to individual’s preferred way of processing: (perceiving,
conceptualizing, organizing and recalling information.)
 COGNITIVE STYLE

Field independent learners prefer to work with information in a step-by-step

format and learn most effectively when information is presented sequentially. Th
prefer to work with details first and to construct the big picture from the details.
language learners, they are often more accurate than fluent learners because pa
attention to details is their natural way of processing information.
Field dependent
learners prefer to work with information that is presented in context, such as wh
the main concepts are identified and details are supplied at a later date. As langu
learners, they are often quite fluent; however, they may have difficulty in focusing
on the details and developing accuracy.
 PERSONALITY
Anxiety :most attention in SLA
research.Low anxiety facilitates language
learning.
Instructional context or task influences
anxiety and reporting. (oral
performance)
Systematic cultural differences are found
between groups of learners. (face
concept)
Low anxiety and high self-confidence
increase Ss motivation to learn.
LEARNING STRATEGIES

Behaviors and techniques they adopt in their efforts

to learn a second language.
LEARNING STRATEGIES
Metacognitive strategies are strategies for thinking about one’s own learning,

planning, advance organization (such as previewing the text, getting the main ideas, and
identifying the organizing principles), organizational planning (i.e., planning what tasks to do
and in what order to do them), and self-management (i.e., selecting and arranging the
conditions that help one learn).
monitoring, monitoring comprehension (i.e., checking one’s comprehension while listening
and reading) and monitoring production (i.e., checking one’s speaking and writing while it’s
taking place).
evaluating. the ability to self-assess, such as when learners keep a
learning log or are able to reflect back on what they have learned.
LEARNING STRATEGIES
Metacognitive: e.g. previewing a concept or principle in anticipation of a learning activity;
deciding in advance to attend to specific aspects of input; rehearsing linguistic components
which will be required for an upcoming language task; self-monitoring of progress and
knowledge states.
• Cognitive: e.g. repeating after a language model; translating from L1; remembering a new
word in L2 by relating it to one that sounds the same in L1, or by creating vivid images;
guessing meanings of new material through inferencing.
• Social/affective : e.g. seeking opportunities to interact with native speakers; working
cooperatively with peers to obtain feedback or pool information; asking questions to obtain
clarification; requesting repetition, explanation, or examples.
 LEARNING STRATEGIES
Cognitive strategies focus on learning how to think
resourcing (i.e., the ability to use reference materials), grouping (i.e., the ability to
classify information and construct graphic organizers),
elaboration of prior knowledge (i.e., the ability to use what one knows to further one’s
learning),
note-taking,
deduction/induction (i.e., the ability to apply rules or figure them out), summarizing,
imagery (i.e., using mental images to solve problems),
auditory representation (i.e., mentally replaying words and information in one’s mind),
making inferences (i.e., using text information to guess meaning or to make predictions)
 LEARNING STRATEGIES
Socio affective strategies focus on helping students develop skills for
working with others and for creating a positive learning environment.
questioning,
cooperation (i.e., working with others to complete tasks and solve
problems), and
self-talk (i.e., private, internal speech directed towards positive
thinking).
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