Article In: Journal of Second Language Pronunciation: Online-First Articles
Not all learners benefit equally
Initial comprehensibility moderates the effect of L2 use on Mandarin speakers’ Spanish comprehensibility after study abroad
This content is being prepared for publication; it may be subject to changes.
Abstract
This longitudinal study examines how initial comprehensibility and the amount of L2 use interact to predict Mandarin learners’ Spanish comprehensibility after study abroad (SA). Twenty-seven L1 Mandarin learners of Spanish completed story-retelling tasks before (T1) and after (T2) one academic year of study in Spain. Their speech was rated for comprehensibility. We modeled the T2 comprehensibility score based on the T1 comprehensibility score and the L2 use score. The L2 use score was composed of listening and speaking frequencies in Spanish relative to Mandarin during SA. While the L2 use score positively predicted T2 outcomes, the benefit of L2 use was significantly greater for learners with lower initial comprehensibility than for learners with higher initial comprehensibility. These findings suggest that immersion benefits less proficient learners more than advanced learners. For more advanced learners, naturalistic immersion may not be sufficient to further improve oral skills; targeted pronunciation training may be necessary.
Keywords: comprehensibility, study abroad, L2 use, Spanish, Mandarin
Article outline
- 1.Introduction
- 2.Methods
- 2.1Participants
- 2.2Materials and procedure
- 2.3Data preparation and coding
- 2.4Statistical analysis
- 3.Results
- 4.Discussion
- Data availability statement
- Acknowledgements
- Declaration of conflicting interest
- Note
- Author queries
References
References (30)
Del Río San Román, C. (2013). Perceived foreign accent and comprehensibility in the oral production of adolescent learners of English: Study abroad vs. at home learning contexts [Ph.D. Thesis, Universitat Pompeu Fabra]. In TDX (Tesis Doctorals en Xarxa). (Catalunya). [URL]
Derwing, T. M., & Munro, M. J. (2013). The Development of L2 Oral Language Skills in Two L1 Groups: A 7-Year Study. Language Learning, 63(2), 163–185.
Derwing, T. M., Munro, M. J., Foote, J. A., Waugh, E., & Fleming, J. (2014). Opening the Window on Comprehensible Pronunciation After 19 Years: A Workplace Training Study. Language Learning, 64(3), 526–548.
Derwing, T. M., Munro, M. J., & Thomson, R. I. (2008). A longitudinal study of ESL learners’ fluency and comprehensibility development. Applied Linguistics, 29(3), 359–380.
Freed, B. F., Segalowitz, N., & Dewey, D. P. (2004). Context of learning and second language fluency in French: Comparing Regular Classroom, Study Abroad, and Intensive Domestic Immersion Programs. Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 26(2), 275–301.
Gamer, M., Lemon, J., Fellows, I., & Singh, P. (2019). irr: Various Coefficients of Interrater Reliability and Agreement version 0.84.1[software]. [URL]
Gass, S. M., & Mackey, A. (2014). Input, Interaction, and Output in Second Language Acquisition. In Theories in Second Language Acquisition (2nd ed., pp. 180–206). Routledge.
Hernández, T. A. (2010). The Relationship Among Motivation, Interaction, and the Development of Second Language Oral Proficiency in a Study-Abroad Context. The Modern Language Journal, 94(4), 600–617.
Isaacs, T., & Trofimovich, P. (2012). Deconstructing comprehensibility. Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 34(3), 475–505.
Koo, T. K., & Li, M. Y. (2016). A Guideline of selecting and reporting intraclass correlation coefficients for reliability research. Journal of Chiropractic Medicine, 15(2), 155–163.
Lee, J., Jang, J., & Plonsky, L. (2015). The effectiveness of second language pronunciation instruction: A meta-analysis. Applied Linguistics, 36(3), 345–366.
Li, P., Ioannidou, I., Marazzina, I., Pericacho, P., Reardon, B., & Xing, L. (2024). Exploring the role of personality traits in the imitation abilities of non-native speech in familiar and unfamiliar languages. Proc. Speech Prosody 2024, 265–269.
(2026). The predictive roles of musical aptitude, auditory abilities, and working memory in L2 speech imitation: Differences between familiar and unfamiliar languages. Vigo International Journal of Applied Linguistics, 231, 115–144.
Li, P., Xi, X., & Martin, C. D. (2026). The interaction of auditory acuity and L2 input in suprasegmental cue-weighting shifts after study abroad: Mandarin speakers’ perception of Spanish lexical stress. Second Language Research.
Li, P., Zhang, F., Yu, A., & Zhao, X. (2020). Language History Questionnaire (LHQ3): An enhanced tool for assessing multilingual experience. Bilingualism: Language and Cognition, 23(5), 938–944.
Llanes, À., & Muñoz, C. (2009). A Short Stay Abroad: Does It Make a Difference? System, 37(3), 353–365.
Loewen, S., & Sato, M. (2018). Interaction and instructed second language acquisition. Language Teaching, 51(3), 285–329.
Mora, J. C., & Valls-Ferrer, M. (2012). Oral Fluency, Accuracy, and Complexity in Formal Instruction and Study Abroad Learning Contexts. TESOL Quarterly, 46(4), 610–641.
Munro, M. J., & Derwing, T. M. (1995). Foreign accent, comprehensibility, and intelligibility in the speech of second language learners. Language Learning, 45(1), 73–97.
(2015). A prospectus for pronunciation research in the 21st century. Journal of Second Language Pronunciation, 1(1), 11–42.
(2020). Foreign accent, comprehensibility and intelligibility, redux. Journal of Second Language Pronunciation, 6(3), 283–309.
R Core Team. (2025). R: A language and environment for statistical computing [Computer software]. R Foundation for Statistical Computing. [URL]
Saito, K., & Akiyama, Y. (2017). Video-Based Interaction, Negotiation for Comprehensibility, and Second Language Speech Learning: A Longitudinal Study. Language Learning, 67(1), 43–74.
Saito, K., & Hanzawa, K. (2018). The role of input in second language oral ability development in foreign language classrooms: A longitudinal study. Language Teaching Research, 22(4), 398–417.
Saito, K., Suzuki, S., Oyama, T., & Akiyama, Y. (2021). How does longitudinal interaction promote second language speech learning? Roles of learner experience and proficiency levels. Second Language Research, 37(4), 547–571.
Sun, H., Saito, K., & Dewaele, J.-M. (2024). Cognitive and sociopsychological individual differences, experience, and naturalistic second language speech learning: A longitudinal study. Language Learning, 74(1), 5–40.
Thomson, R. I., Derwing, T. M., & Munro, M. J. (2024). How long can naturalistic L2 pronunciation learning continue in adults? A 10-year study. Language Awareness, 33(2), 201–223.
Turner, J. (2024). The role of L2 input in developing a novel L2 contrast phonetically and phonologically: Production evidence from a residence abroad context. Second Language Research, 41(1), 103–133.
Xi, X., Shea, C., & Li, P. (2026). Perceptual development of second language sound categories in a study abroad program: L1 Mandarin speakers in Spain. Language and Speech.
Zielinski, B., & Pryor, E. (2020). Comprehensibility and everyday English use: An exploration of individual trajectories over time. Journal of Second Language Pronunciation, 6(3), 352–379.