Learner beliefs about sociolinguistic competence: A qualitative case study of four university second language learners

• Published in: Language learning in higher education (Berlin, Germany) Germany), 2015-05, Vol.5 (1), p.157-180
• Main Authors: Yang, Jinsuk, Rehner, Katherine
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Advanced Students; Applied Linguistics; Beliefs; Case Studies; Classroom Environment; Cognitive Psychology; Communicative Competence (Languages); Competence; context; Context Effect; Expectation; Foreign Countries; French; Immersion Programs; Individual Differences; Interviews; L2 beliefs; L2 learning; Language Attitudes; Learning Experience; Learning Strategies; Linguistic Competence; Motivation Techniques; Observation; Opportunities; Qualitative Research; Researchers; Resistance (Psychology); Second Language Learning; Self Efficacy; Social Distance; Social Environment; Social Theories; sociolinguistic competence; Sociolinguistics; Statistical Analysis; Student Attitudes; Student Surveys; Study Abroad; Undergraduate Students
• ISSN: 2191-611X; 2191-6128
• DOI: 10.1515/cercles-2015-0008

This article explores the beliefs about second language (L2) sociolinguistic competence of four university-level advanced L2 learners. It places particular emphasis on 1) how these university learners conceptualized L2 sociolinguistic competence; 2) how they thought about two different language learning contexts (viz., the L2 classroom versus study abroad) for their development of sociolinguistic competence; and 3) the L2 strategies they employed to develop their L2 sociolinguistic knowledge. The study found, first, that the university learners conceived of sociolinguistic competence as the ability to adjust their language to reflect the social distance between themselves and other speakers. Second, it demonstrates that the university learners believed that the classroom environment might provide them with insufficient opportunities to utilize those L2 registers that are most sensitive to context. Nevertheless, their beliefs about the necessity of having sociolinguistic competence played a pivotal role in helping most of them to find meaningful L2 learning opportunities in the classroom, as well as in study-abroad contexts. Finally, while immersive experiences can help learners sustain L2 motivational strategies according to their ultimate L2-related goals, the present study lends support to the observation that contexts cannot function as meaningful L2-rich environments.