This chapter has two broad aims: to relate aptitude tests and recent aptitude research, including that reported in this volume, to proposed second language acquisition stages; and to relate aptitude testing to the contrasts between domain-generality and domain-specificity, on the one hand, and explicit and implicit processes, on the other. Regarding SLA stages, a broad distinction is made between stages concerned with developing knowledge and those concerned with developing control. It is argued that aptitude tests have concentrated on the first and that there is scope to develop more aptitude tests to assess the second. Regarding the two major contrasts, it is argued that analysing aptitude tests in these terms is useful as a means of indicating what underlying theories they have. In that respect it is interesting that the most recent major battery (HiLAB: domain-general, often implicit) contrasts with older batteries (e.g. MLAT: domain specific, explicit). It is argued that aptitude tests, viewed in this way, can make theoretical contributions to second language acquisition more generally in characterising what language learning abilities consist of.
Article outline
1.Introduction
2.SLA stages, psycholinguistic processes, and recent research
3.Domain specificity-generality and explicit-implicit knowledge
Carroll, J.B. (1965). The prediction of success in intensive foreign language training. In R. Glaser (Ed.), Training, Research, and Education (pp. 87–136). New York, NY: Wiley & Sons.
Carroll, J.B. (1973). Implications of aptitude test research and psycholinguistic theory for foreign language teaching. International Journal of Psycholinguistics, 2, 5–14.
Carroll, J.B. (1993). Human cognitive abilities: A survey of factor-analytic studies. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Chan, E., Skehan, P., & Gong, G. (2011). Working memory, phonemic coding ability and foreign language aptitude: Potential for construction of specific language aptitude tests—the case of Cantonese. Ilha Do Desterro: A Journal of English language, literatures and cultural studies, 60, 45–73.
Clark, H.H., & Clark, E.V. (1977). Psychology and Language. New York, NY: Harcourt, Brace, Jovanovitch.
de Graaff, R. (1997). The eXperanto experiment: Effects of explicit instruction on second language acquisition. Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 19, 249–276.
De Keyser, R. (2000). The robustness of critical period effects in second language acquisition. Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 22, 499–533.
De Keyser, R. (2007). Conclusion: The future of practice. In R. DeKeyser (Ed.), Practice in a second language (pp. 287–304). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Ellis, N.C., O’Donnell, M.B., & Romer, U. (2013). Usage-Based Language: Investigating the Latent Structures That Underpin Acquisition. Language Learning 63, (Supp. 1), 25–51.
Ellis, R. (2009). Measuring implicit and explicit knowledge of a second language. In R. Ellis, S. Loewen, C. Elder, R. Erlam, J. Philp, & H. Reinders (Eds.), Implicit and explicit knowledge in second language learning, testing and teaching (pp. 31–64). Clevedon, UK: Multilingual Matters.
Ellis, R. (2015). Understanding second language acquisition (2nd ed.). Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Ellis, R., & Shintani N. (2014). Exploring language pedagogy through second language acquisition research. London: Routledge.
Goo, J. (2012). Corrective feedback and working memory capacity in interaction-driven L2 learning. Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 34, 445–474.
Granena, G. (2013). Individual differences in sequence learning ability and second language acquisition in early childhood and adulthood. Language Learning, 63, 1–39.
Granena, G., & Long, M. (2013a). Age of onset, length of residence, language aptitude, and ultimate L2 attainment in three linguistic domains. Second Language Research, 29, 311–343.
Grigorenko, E.L., Sternberg, R.J., & Ehrman, M. (2000). A theory based approach to the measurement of foreign language learning ability: the Canal-F theory and test, Modern Language Journal, 84, 390–405.
Kempe, V., & Brooks, P. (2008). Second language learning of complex inflectional systems. Language Learning, 54, 703–746.
Li, S. (2015). The Associations between language aptitude and second language grammar acquisition: A meta-analytic review of five decades of research. Applied Linguistics, 36, 385–408.
Linck, J.A., Hughes, M.M., Campbell, S.G., Silbert, N.H., Tare, M., Jackson, S.R., Smith, B.K., Bunting, M.F., & Doughty, C.J. (2013). Hi-LAB: A new measure of aptitude for high-level language proficiency. Language Learning, 63, 530–566.
MacWhinney, B. (2001). The competition model: The input, the context, and the brain. In P. Robinson (Ed.), Cognition and Second Language Instruction (pp. 69–90). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
MacWhinney, B. (2005). A unified model of language acquisition. In J.F. Kroll & A.M.B. De Groot (Eds.), Handbook of Bilingualism: Psycholinguistic Approaches (pp. 49–67). Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Meara, P. (2005). LLAMA Language Aptitude Tests: The Manual. Lognostics: University of Swansea. <[URL]>
Mackey, A., & Goo, J. (2007). Interaction research in SLA: A meta-analysis and research synthesis. In A. Mackey (Ed.), Conversational interaction in second language acquisition (pp. 407–452). Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Miyake, A., & Friedman, N.P. (1998). Individual differences in second language proficiency: Working memory as language aptitude. In A.F. Healy & L.E. Bourne (Eds.), Foreign language learning: Psycholinguistic studies on training and retention (pp. 339–364). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.
Rebuschat, P. (2013). Measuring implicit and explicit knowledge in second language research. Language Learning, 63, 595–626.
Robinson, P. (1995). Learning simple and complex rules under implicit, incidental, rule-search, and instructed conditions. Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 18, 27–67.
Robinson, P. (2007). Aptitudes, abilities, contexts and practice. In R.M. DeKeyser (Ed.), Practice in second language learning: Perspectives from applied linguistics and cognitive psychology (pp. 256–286). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Sasaki, M. (1996). Second language proficiency, foreign language aptitude, and intelligence. Quantitative and qualitative analyses. New York, NY: Peter Lang.
Skehan, P. (1982). Memory and motivation in language aptitude testing. Unpublished PhD dissertation, University of London.
Skehan, P. (1986). Where does language aptitude come from? In P. Meara (Ed.), Spoken language (pp. 95–113). London: Centre for Information on Language Teaching.
Skehan, P. (1989). Individual differences in second language learning. London: Edward Arnold
Skehan P. (1996). A framework for the implementation of task based instruction. Applied Linguistics, 17, 38–62.
Skehan, P. (1998). A cognitive approach to language learning. Oxford: OUP.
Skehan, P. (2002). Theorising and updating aptitude. In P. Robinson (Ed.), Individual differences and instructed language learning (pp. 69–94). Amsterdam: John Benjamins.
Skehan, P. (2012). Language aptitude. In S. M. Gass & A. Mackey (Eds.), The Routledge handbook of second language acquisition (pp. 381–395). New York, NY: Routledge.
Skehan, P. (2013a). Nurturing noticing. In J.M. Bergsleithner, S.N. Frota, & J. Yoshioka (Eds.), Noticing and second language acquisition: Studies in honor of Richard Schmidt (pp. 169–180). Honolulu, HI: University of Hawaii Press.
Skehan, P. (2013b). Carroll, John B. In C. Chapelle (Ed.), The Encyclopedia of Applied Linguistics. New York, NY: John Wiley & Sons.
Ullman, M.T. (2005). A cognitive neuroscience perspective on second language acquisition: The declarative/ procedural model. In C. Sanz (Ed.), Mind and context in adult second language acquisition: Methods, theory and practice (pp. 141–178). Washington, DC: Georgetown University Press.
Wen, Z. (2012). Working memory and second language learning. International Journal of Applied Linguistics, 22, 1–22.
Wesche, M. B. (1981). Language aptitude measures in streaming, matching students with methods, and diagnosis of learning problems. In K. C. Diller (Ed.), Individual differences and universals in language learning aptitude (pp. 119–154). Rowley, MA: Newbury House.
Wray, A. (2008). Formulaic language: Pushing the boundaries. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Cited by (33)
Cited by 33 other publications
Chingchit, Ornuma
2024. The contribution of written corrective feedback and its association with working memory on the development of EFL learners’ English plurals. Language Teaching Research
2024. Bilinguals outperform trilinguals in implicit language aptitude: the mediating role of selective attention. Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development► pp. 1 ff.
Huang, Yan, Mengmeng Wang & Hengyi Rao
2024. Working memory as a partial mediator of the relationship between multilingualism and foreign language aptitude. International Journal of Multilingualism 21:1 ► pp. 18 ff.
Iizuka, Takehiro & Robert DeKeyser
2024. Scrutinizing LLAMA D as a measure of implicit learning aptitude. Studies in Second Language Acquisition 46:1 ► pp. 28 ff.
Roehr‐Brackin, Karen, Karolina Baranowska, Renato Pavlekovic & Paweł Scheffler
2024. The role of individual learner differences in explicit language instruction. The Modern Language Journal 108:4 ► pp. 815 ff.
Sun, Hui, Kazuya Saito & Jean‐Marc Dewaele
2024. Cognitive and Sociopsychological Individual Differences, Experience, and Naturalistic Second Language Speech Learning: A Longitudinal Study. Language Learning 74:1 ► pp. 5 ff.
Zhou, Yang
2024. Aptitude, Anxiety, and Success in L2 Speech Development: A Longitudinal Study of Chinese EFL College-Level Learners. Language and Speech
Öztekin, Elifcan & Ecehan Candan
2024. The role of language aptitude probed within extensive instruction experience: morphosyntactic knowledge of advanced users of L2 English. International Review of Applied Linguistics in Language Teaching 62:2 ► pp. 693 ff.
2022. Preliminary evidence that applied cognitive linguistics is effective for novice learners regardless of their individual differences. Language Teaching Research
Roehr-Brackin, Karen
2022. Investigating explicit and implicit L2 knowledge and learning: Replications of Erlam (2005) and Roehr-Brackin and Tellier (2019). Language Teaching 55:2 ► pp. 271 ff.
Sok, Sarah & Hye Won Shin
2022. INVESTIGATING THE ROLE OF COGNITIVE VARIABLES IN SECOND LANGUAGE LEARNERS’ LISTENING COMPREHENSION: APTITUDE AND METACOGNITIVE AWARENESS. International Journal of Listening 36:2 ► pp. 138 ff.
Suzuki, Yuichi, Satoko Yokosawa & David Aline
2022. The role of working memory in blocked and interleaved grammar practice: Proceduralization of L2 syntax. Language Teaching Research 26:4 ► pp. 671 ff.
2022. The Hare and the Tortoise: The Race on the Course of L2 Learning. The Modern Language Journal 106:4 ► pp. 764 ff.
Zhang, Weiwei, Meijuan Zhao & Ye Zhu
2022. Understanding Individual Differences in Metacognitive Strategy Use, Task Demand, and Performance in Integrated L2 Speaking Assessment Tasks. Frontiers in Psychology 13
Cao, Thuy Hong, Jae Yup Jung & Susen Smith
2021. The Career Intentions of Gifted English as a Foreign Language High School Students in Vietnam. Gifted Child Quarterly 65:3 ► pp. 262 ff.
Doughty, Catherine J. & Alison Mackey
2021. Language aptitude: Multiple perspectives. Annual Review of Applied Linguistics 41 ► pp. 1 ff.
Kim, Ji Hyun
2021. The relative effect of recasts on L2 Korean learners’ accuracy development of two different forms and its relationship with language analytic ability. Language Teaching Research 25:3 ► pp. 451 ff.
Saito, Kazuya, Yui Suzukida, Mai Tran & Adam Tierney
2021. Domain‐General Auditory Processing Partially Explains Second Language Speech Learning in Classroom Settings: A Review and Generalization Study. Language Learning 71:3 ► pp. 669 ff.
Suzukida, Yui
2021. The Contribution of Individual Differences to L2 Pronunciation Learning: Insights from Research and Pedagogical Implications. RELC Journal 52:1 ► pp. 48 ff.
Wen, Zhisheng (Edward) & Peter Skehan
2021. Stages of Acquisition and the P/E Model of Working Memory: Complementary or contrasting approaches to foreign language aptitude?. Annual Review of Applied Linguistics 41 ► pp. 6 ff.
Blake, John
2020. Intelligent CALL. In New Technological Applications for Foreign and Second Language Learning and Teaching [Advances in Educational Technologies and Instructional Design, ], ► pp. 1 ff.
Kourtali, Nektaria‐Efstathia & Andrea Révész
2020. The Roles of Recasts, Task Complexity, and Aptitude in Child Second Language Development. Language Learning 70:1 ► pp. 179 ff.
Zalbidea, Janire & Cristina Sanz
2020. Does learner cognition count on modality? Working memory and L2 morphosyntactic achievement across oral and written tasks. Applied Psycholinguistics 41:5 ► pp. 1171 ff.
2019. On Bilingual Aptitude for Learning New Languages: The Roles of Linguistic and Nonlinguistic Individual Differences. Language Learning 69:2 ► pp. 478 ff.
Curcic, Maja, Sible Andringa & Folkert Kuiken
2019. The Role of Awareness and Cognitive Aptitudes in L2 Predictive Language Processing. Language Learning 69:S1 ► pp. 42 ff.
Robinson, Peter
2019. Aptitude in Second Language Acquisition. In The Encyclopedia of Applied Linguistics, ► pp. 1 ff.
2021. Individual differences in memory predict changes in breakdown and repair fluency but not speed fluency: A short-term fluency training intervention study. Applied Psycholinguistics 42:4 ► pp. 969 ff.
2019. Cognitive Individual Differences as Predictors of Improvement and Awareness Under Implicit and Explicit Feedback Conditions. The Modern Language Journal 103:3 ► pp. 686 ff.
Saito, Kazuya
2017. Effects of Sound, Vocabulary, and Grammar Learning Aptitude on Adult Second Language Speech Attainment in Foreign Language Classrooms. Language Learning 67:3 ► pp. 665 ff.
Suzuki, Yuichi & Robert DeKeyser
2017. The Interface of Explicit and Implicit Knowledge in a Second Language: Insights From Individual Differences in Cognitive Aptitudes. Language Learning 67:4 ► pp. 747 ff.
This list is based on CrossRef data as of 11 january 2025. Please note that it may not be complete. Sources presented here have been supplied by the respective publishers.
Any errors therein should be reported to them.