Hostname: page-component-78c5997874-4rdpn Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-05T10:50:19.892Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Aptitude, phonological memory, and second language proficiency in nonnovice adult learners

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 April 2009

KIRSTEN M. HUMMEL
KIRSTEN M. HUMMEL*
Affiliation:
Laval University
*
ADDRESS FOR CORRESPONDENCE Kirsten M. Hummel, Département de Langues, Linguistique et Traduction, Laval University, Quebec City, Quebec G1V 0A6, Canada. E-mail: [email protected]
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

This study explores the relationship between aptitude, phonological memory (PM), and second language (L2) proficiency in nonnovice adult learners of English as an L2. Native speakers of French (N = 77) enrolled in a university Teaching English as a Second Language program were the participants in the study. Exploratory factor analysis revealed three main factors corresponding to the variables examined: L2 proficiency, aptitude, and PM. Multiple regression analyses revealed aptitude subtests and PM together predicted 29% of the variance in L2 proficiency. Additional regression analyses carried out on lower and higher proficiency subgroups, created by a median split on proficiency scores, revealed that none of the variables predicted L2 proficiency in the higher proficiency subgroup. PM remained as a significant predictor for the lower proficiency subgroup, extending the pattern of results found elsewhere in younger populations to adult nonnovice L2 learners.

Type
Articles
Information
Applied Psycholinguistics , Volume 30 , Issue 2 , April 2009 , pp. 225 - 249
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2009

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

REFERENCES

Adams, A.-M., & Gathercole, S. E. (1996). Phonological working memory and spoken language development in young children. Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology, 49, 216–223.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Atkins, P. W. B., & Baddeley, A. D. (1998). Working memory and distributed vocabulary learning. Applied Psycholinguistics, 19, 537–552.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Avons, S. E., Wragg, C. A., Cupples, L., & Lovegrove, W. J. (1998). Measures of phonological short-term memory and their relationship to vocabulary development. Applied Psycholinguistics, 19, 583–601.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Baddeley, A. D. (1986). Working memory. Oxford: Oxford University Press.Google ScholarPubMed
Baddeley, A. D. (2000). The episodic buffer: A new component of working memory? Trends in Cognitive Science, 4, 417–423.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Baddeley, A. D. (2003). Working memory and language: An overview. Journal of Communication Disorders, 36, 189–208.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Baddeley, A. D., Gathercole, S. E., & Papagno, C. (1998). The phonological loop as a language learning device. Psychological Review, 105, 158–173.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Baddeley, A. D., & Hitch, G. (1974). Working memory. In Bower, G. (Ed.), The psychology of learning and motivation (pp. 47–90). New York: Academic Press.Google Scholar
Baddeley, A. D., Papagno, C., & Vallar, G. (1988). When long-term learning depends on short-term storage. Journal of Memory and Language, 27, 586–595.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Carroll, J. B. (1974). Psychometric tests as cognitive tasks: A new “structure of intellect.” Research Bulletin, 74–116.Google Scholar
Carroll, J. B. (1981). Twenty-five years of research on foreign language aptitude. In Diller, K. (Ed.), Individual differences and universals in language learning aptitude (pp. 83–118). Rowley, MA: Newbury House.Google Scholar
Carroll, J. B. (1990). Cognitive abilities in foreign language aptitude: Then and now. In Parry, T. S. & Stansfield, C. W. (Eds.), Language aptitude reconsidered (pp. 11–29). Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall.Google Scholar
Carroll, J. B., & Sapon, S. (1959). Modern language aptitude test. New York: Psychological Corporation.Google Scholar
Cheung, H. (1996). Nonword span as a unique predictor of second-language vocabulary learning. Developmental Psychology, 32, 867–873.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Dornyei, Z. (2005). The psychology of the language learner: Individual differences in second language acquisition. Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum.Google Scholar
Dornyei, Z., & Skehan, P. (2003). Individual differences in second language learning. In Doughty, C. & Long, M. H. (Eds.), The handbook of second language acquisition (pp. 589–630). Malden, MA: Blackwell.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Dufva, M., & Voeten, M. J. M. (1999). Native language literacy and phonological memory as prerequisites for learning English as a foreign language. Applied Psycholinguistics, 20, 329–348.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ehrman, M. E., & Oxford, R. (1995). Cognition plus: Correlates of language learning success. Modern Language Journal, 79, 67–89.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ellis, N. C. (1996). Sequencing in SLA: Phonological memory, chunking, and points of order. Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 18, 91–126.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ellis, N. C., & Sinclair, S. G. (1996). Working memory in the acquisition of vocabulary and syntax: Putting language in good order. Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology, 49, 234–250.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
English Language Institute, University of Michigan. (1977). Michigan Test of English Language Proficiency. Ann Arbor, MI: Author.Google Scholar
French, L. M. (2004). Phonological working memory and L2 acquisition: A developmental study of Quebec Francophone children learning English (Doctoral dissertation, Université Laval, 2003). Dissertation Abstracts International, 65 (2-A), 487.Google Scholar
French, L. M., & O'Brien, I. (2008). Phonological memory and children's second language grammar learning. Applied Psycholinguistics, 29, 463–487.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Gardner, R. C., & MacIntyre, P. D. (1992). A student's contribution to second language learning: Part I, cognitive factors. Language Teaching, 25, 211–220.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Gathercole, S. E. (1995). Is nonword repetition a test of phonological memory or long-term knowledge? It all depends on the nonwords. Memory and Cognition, 23, 83–94.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Gathercole, S. E., & Baddeley, A. D. (1989). Evaluation of the role of phonological STM in the development of vocabulary in children: A longitudinal study. Journal of Memory and Language, 28, 200–213.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Gathercole, S. E., & Baddeley, A. D. (1993). Working memory and language. Hove: Erlbaum.Google Scholar
Gathercole, S. E., Service, E., Hitch, G. J., Adams, A. M., & Martin, A. J. (1999). Phonological short-term memory and vocabulary development: Further evidence on the nature of the relationship. Applied Cognitive Psychology, 13, 65–77.3.0.CO;2-O>CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Gathercole, S. E., & Thorn, A. (1998). Phonological short-term memory and foreign language learning. In Healy, A. F. & Bourne, L. E. (Ed.), Foreign language learning: Psycholinguistic studies on training and retention (pp. 141–158). Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum.Google Scholar
Gathercole, S. E., Willis, C. S., Emslie, H., & Baddeley, A. D. (1991). The influences of number of syllables and wordlikeness on children's repetition of nonwords. Applied Psycholinguistics, 12, 349–367.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Gathercole, S. E., Willis, C. S., Emslie, H., & Baddeley, A. D. (1992). Phonological memory and vocabulary development during the early school years: A longitudinal study. Developmental Psychology, 28, 887–898.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Harley, B., & Hart, D. (1997). Language aptitude and second language proficiency in classroom learners of different starting ages. Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 19, 379–400.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Harrington, M., & Sawyer, M. (1992). L2 working memory capacity and L2 reading skill. Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 14, 25–38.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Henry, L., & MacLean, M. (2003). Relationships between working memory, expressive vocabulary, and arithmetic reasoning in children with and without intellectual disabilities. Educational and Child Psychology, 20, 51–63.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Horwitz, E. K. (1987). Linguistic and communicative competence: Reassessing foreign language aptitude. In VanPatten, B., Dvorak, T. R., & Lee, J. F. (Eds.), Foreign language learning: A research perspective (pp. 146–157). Cambridge: Newbury House.Google Scholar
Hu, C.-F. (2003). Phonological memory, phonological awareness, and foreign language word learning. Language Learning, 53, 429–462.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hummel, K. M. (2002). Second language acquisition and working memory. In Fabbro, F. (Ed.), Advances in the neurolinguistics of bilingualism: Festschrift for Michel Paradis (pp. 95–117). Udine, Italy: Forum.Google Scholar
Institute of Psychological Research. (1980). Test d'aptitude aux langues vivantes (TALV) manuel, formule A. Montréal: Author.Google Scholar
Jolliffe, I. T. (1972). Discarding variables in a principal component analysis I: Artificial data. Applied Statistics, 21, 160–173.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Masoura, E. V., & Gathercole, S. E. , S. E. (2005). Phonological short-term memory skills and new word learning in young Greek children. Memory, 13, 422–429.Google Scholar
Miyake, A., & Friedman, N. P. (1998). Individual differences in second language proficiency: Working memory as language aptitude. In Healy, A. F. & Bourne, L. E. (Eds.), Foreign language learning: Psycholinguistic studies on training and retention (pp. 339–364). Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum.Google Scholar
Mizera, G. J. (2006). Working memory and L2 oral fluency. Unpublished PhD dissertation, University of Pittsburgh.Google Scholar
O'Brien, I., Segalowitz, N., Collentine, J., & Freed, B. (2006). Phonological memory and lexical, narrative, and grammatical skills in second language oral production by adult learners. Applied Psycholinguistics, 27, 377–402.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
O'Brien, I., Segalowitz, N., Freed, B., & Collentine, J. (2007). Phonological memory predicts second language oral fluency gains in adults. Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 29, 557–582.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Papagno, C., Valentine, T., & Baddeley, A. (1991). Phonological short-term memory and foreign-language vocabulary learning. Journal of Memory and Language, 30, 331–347.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Papagno, C., & Vallar, G. (1992). Phonological short-term memory and the learning of novel words: The effects of phonological similarity and item length. Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology, 44, 47–67.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Papagno, C., & Vallar, G. (1995). Verbal short-term memory and vocabulary learning in polyglots. Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology, 48, 98–107.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Robinson, P. (1996). Learning simple and complex second language rules under implicit, incidental, rule-search, and instructed conditions. Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 18, 27–67.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Robinson, P. (1997). Individual differences and the fundamental similarity of implicit and explicit adult L2 learning. Language Learning, 46, 45–99.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Robinson, P. (2002). Individual differences in intelligence, aptitude, and working memory during adult incidental second language learning: A replication and extension of Reber, Walkenfeld, and Hernstadt (1991). In Robinson, P. (Ed.), Individual differences and instructed language learning (pp. 211–266). Amsterdam: Benjamins.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Robinson, P. (2005). Aptitude and second language acquisition. Annual Review of Applied Linguistics, 25, 46–73.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Sawyer, M., & Ranta, L. (2001). Aptitude, individual differences, and instructional design. In Robinson, P. (Ed.), Cognition and second language instruction (pp. 319–353). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Service, E. (1992). Phonology, working memory, and foreign-language learning. Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology, 45, 21–50.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Service, E., & Kohonen, V. (1995). Is the relation between phonological memory and foreign-language learning accounted for by vocabulary acquisition? Applied Psycholinguistics, 16, 155–172.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Skehan, P. (1986). Cluster analysis and the identification of learner types. In Cook, V. (Ed.), Experimental approaches to second language acquisition (pp. 81–94). Oxford: Pergamon Press.Google Scholar
Skehan, P. (1989). Individual differences in second-language learning. London: Edward Arnold.Google Scholar
Skehan, P. (1998). A cognitive approach to language learning. Oxford: Oxford University Press.Google Scholar
Sparks, R. L., & Ganschow, L. (1991). Foreign language learning differences: Affective or natural language aptitude differences? Modern Language Journal, 75, 3–16.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Sparks, R. L., & Ganschow, L. (1993). Searching for the cognitive locus of foreign language learning difficulties: Linking first and second language learning. Modern Language Journal, 77, 289–302.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Sparks, R. L., Patton, J., Ganschow, L., Humbach, N., & Javorsky, J. (2006). Native language predictors of foreign language proficiency and foreign language aptitude. Annals of Dyslexia, 56, 129–160.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Thorn, A., & Gathercole, S. E. (1999). Language-specific knowledge and short-term memory in bilingual and non-bilingual children. Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology, 52, 303–324.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Wesche, M. B. (1981). Language aptitude measures in streaming, matching students with methods, and diagnosis of learning problems. In Diller, K. (Ed.), Individual differences and universals in language learning aptitude (pp. 119–54). Rowley, MA: Newbury House.Google Scholar
Williams, J., & Lovatt, P. (2003). Phonological memory and rule learning. Language Learning, 53, 67–121.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Winke, P. (2005). Individual differences in adult Chinese second language acquisition: The relationships among aptitude, memory, and strategies for learning. Unpublished PhD dissertation, Georgetown University.Google Scholar