AN EXPLORATION OF THE RANGE AND FREQUENCY OF OCCURRENCE OF FORMS IN POTENTIALLY VARIABLE STRUCTURES IN SECOND-LANGUAGE SPANISH

This article adds to the growing body of research focused on second-language (L2) variation and constitutes the first large-scale study of the production of potentially variable grammatical structures in Spanish by English-speaking learners. The overarching goal of the project is to assess the range...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Studies in second language acquisition 2010-09, Vol.32 (3), p.433-463
Main Authors: Geeslin, Kimberly L., Gudmestad, Aarnes
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Audio Equipment
Communicative Competence (Languages)
Copulas
Definitions
Discourse Analysis
English
English as a second language learning
Frequency of occurrence
Frequency ranges
Grammar
Grammatical moods
Individual Characteristics
Interviews
Language
Language Usage
Language Variation
Monolingualism
Native Speakers
Nouns
Oral Language
Phonology
Pragmatics
Second language acquisition
Second Language Learning
Semantics
Semiotics
Sociolinguistics
Spanish
Spanish language
Speech Communication
Speech communities
Subjunctive mood
Syntax
Time
Verbs
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Summary:This article adds to the growing body of research focused on second-language (L2) variation and constitutes the first large-scale study of the production of potentially variable grammatical structures in Spanish by English-speaking learners. The overarching goal of the project is to assess the range of forms used and the degree to which native and L2 speakers of Spanish differ in several independently defined syntactic or discourse-based contexts. The contexts examined in the current study have been the object of sociolinguistic research in monolingual environments and include the following: copula contrast, mood distinction, past-time reference, future-time reference, and subject expression. Interview data from 16 English-speaking learners and 16 native speakers of Spanish from a variety of countries, all of whom are part of a single speech community in the United States, are examined. The analysis focuses on the range of forms used in each of the contexts investigated and the frequency with which these forms appear. A possible relation of individual characteristics, such as country of origin, years of language study, and time spent abroad, to this frequency of use is also considered.
ISSN:0272-2631
1470-1545
DOI:10.1017/S0272263110000033