While much discussion has focused on what researchers do and should do in second language proficiency assessment, less attention has been given to why persistent trends continue. This study investigated second language acquisition (SLA) researchers’ beliefs, reported practices, and decision-making rationales regarding proficiency assessment. Using an online survey, we collected responses from 111 SLA researchers. Findings revealed that while researchers generally endorsed recommended methodological standards, practical constraints—such as time, accessibility, and ease of administration—frequently influenced their reported practices. A consistent belief–practice gap emerged across several key areas. Notably, reduced redundancy tests were rated favorably for both validity and practicality, reflecting a growing shift toward efficient, validated tools. These findings suggest that although methodological awareness is high, practical barriers continue to challenge the adoption of more rigorous proficiency assessment practices in SLA research.

The present study investigated if/how individual differences in heritage language (HL) experience modulate gender agreement processing among Spanish heritage speakers (HSs). We reanalyzed the data from Luque and colleagues (2023), which reported an aggregate biphasic N400–P600. The present analysis revealed that sensitivity to morphological markedness was positively modulated by HL proficiency and exposure/use. Higher proficiency led to increased P600 across markedness conditions—the typical signature of L1-dominant processing—while increased Spanish exposure/use resulted in increased N400 for Default Errors—a signature attested only in HSs in this domain. Formal instruction led to increased N400 but reduced P600 for Feature Clash Errors. We interpret these results to suggest that the N400 reflects a morphophonological pattern-matching strategy with some HSs relying (more) on this mechanism as Spanish exposure and use increases. Markedness also modulated the relative engagement of pattern-matching (N400) versus automatic grammatical processing (P600), depending on the transparency/saliency of morphophonological patterns.

Non-native languages tend to be acquired through a combination of explicit and implicit learning, where implicit learning requires coordination of language information with referents in the environment. In this study, we examined how learners use both language input and environmental cues to acquire vocabulary and morphology in a novel language and how their language background influences this process. We trained 105 adults with native languages (L1s) varying in morphological richness (English, German, Mandarin) on an artificial language comprising nouns and verbs with morphological features (number, tense, and subject-verb [SV] agreement) appearing alongside referential visual scenes. Participants were able to learn both word stems and morphological features from cross-situational statistical correspondences between language and the environment, without any instruction. German-speakers learned SV agreement worse than other morphological features, which were acquired equally effectively by English or Mandarin speakers, indicating the subtle and varied influence of L1 morphological richness on implicit non-native language learning.

While statistical learning of adjacent constructions is well-documented in SLA, our knowledge of this cognitive mechanism concerning nonadjacent constructions remains limited. To address this, we investigated the acquisition of Mandarin predicate-argument constructions containing the preposition duì. Specifically, via a corpus-based approach, we probed whether learners’ core predicate use within these nonadjacent constructions mirrors the patterns of frequency and contingency in their natural language input. Our findings show that learners’ usage aligns with target language distributional regularities, which is consistent with statistical learning. However, our study underscores the necessity of going beyond a sole focus on distributional factors within learners’ input to more fully comprehend L2 production choices and the intricacies of statistical learning. This includes examining variables that shape learners’ exposure to input, such as input accessibility, proficiency, and prototypicality. Finally, we demonstrate the suitability of mixed-effects negative binomial regression to effectively address non-normality and overdispersion in linguistic data.

The love factor in the field of second language acquisition has gained considerable traction since the turn of the century. This article is the first to take a variationist perspective to investigate how multilingual coupledom affects sociolinguistic development in the second language (L2). Participants were 76 users of L2 German living in Austria, all of whom were in a romantic relationship with an Austrian partner. We analyzed the effects of multilingual coupledom on self-reported changes in learners’ use of, attitudes toward, and proficiency in standard German, the Austrian dialect variety, and first language(s), and whether (psycho-)social variables moderate this relationship. Individual differences in psychological and social variables (e.g., adaptability, Open-mindedness, length of residence, orientation toward the Austrian dialect) predicted reported changes in the sociolinguistic repertoire. Qualitative analysis revealed a blended operation of socioaffective and exposure-related factors, which helped explain why, how, and for whom multilingual coupledom affects (socio-)linguistic development.

Fluency is an essential aspect of second language (L2) oral proficiency. Recent studies have demonstrated that L1 individual speaking style is connected to L2 fluency, suggesting that L2 speech fluency does not solely represent L2-specific skills. Furthermore, task mode (monologue vs. dialogue) has been shown to influence fluency. The present study examines the extent to which these two factors (L1 speaking style and task mode) can predict L2 speech fluency, and how such connections are modified by the learners’ L2 proficiency level. The data consist of monologic and dialogic speech samples from 50 advanced students of English in their L1 (Finnish) and L2 (English). The samples were analyzed for speed, breakdown, repair, and composite fluency. The results of multiple linear regressions demonstrated high predictive power for speed, breakdown, and composite fluency dimensions, while the model for repair fluency showed weak predictive power. The results have implications for L2 fluency research.

Linguistic alignment that occurs during interaction has been found to be a useful language learning mechanism. Recent second language (L2) research on alignment has primarily focused on syntactic alignment in face-to-face oral interactions (Kim & Michel, 2023). This study expands the scope of L2 alignment research by examining pragmatic alignment in group mobile text-chat tasks conducted in Korean. Furthermore, it investigates how the source of alignment (i.e., prime, recast) and learner factors (i.e., L2 proficiency, prior knowledge of the target feature, mobile literacy, and Korean typing skills) influence the extent of L2 alignment and subsequent alignment-driven language learning. Over a period of six days, 87 Korean language learners were randomly distributed across either a prime, recast prime, or control condition and completed the following: a background survey, a pretest, four alignment tasks, two posttests, and a Korean proficiency test. During the alignment text-chat tasks, learners used the KakaoTalk mobile text-chat application to interact with two native Korean speakers who elicited Korean honorific request-making expressions in specified scenarios. The prime group received model examples prior to their production, while the recast prime group received recasts in response to non-target-like production. The learners’ use of honorific expressions was evaluated for both suppliance and accuracy across the pretests, alignment task performance, and posttests. The results revealed evidence of pragmatic alignment, with the recast prime condition demonstrating greater effects on honorific request head acts compared to the prime condition. Additionally, prior knowledge of request-making strategies facilitated L2 alignment. The implications of pragmalinguistic development through alignment-driven text-chat tasks are further discussed.

Word processing during reading is known to be influenced by lexical features, especially word length, frequency, and predictability. This study examined the relative importance of these features in word processing during second language (L2) English reading. We used data from an eye-tracking corpus and applied a machine-learning approach to model word-level eye-tracking measures and identify key predictors. Predictors comprised several lexical features, including length, frequency, and predictability (e.g., surprisal). Additionally, sentence, passage, and reader characteristics were considered for comparison. The analysis found that word length was the most important variable across several eye-tracking measures. However, for certain measures, word frequency and predictability were more important than length, and in some cases, reader characteristics such as proficiency were more significant than lexical features. These findings highlight the complexity of word processing during reading, the shared processes between first language (L1) and L2 reading, and their potential to refine models of eye-movement control.

Selecting appropriate texts for second language (L2) learners is essential for effective education. However, current text difficulty models often inadequately classify materials for L2 learners by proficiency levels. This study addresses this deficiency by employing the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR) as its foundational framework. A cohort of expert English-L2 educators classified 1,181 texts from the CommonLit Ease of Readability corpus into CEFR levels. A random forest model was then trained using 24 linguistic complexity features to predict the CEFR levels of English texts for L2 learners. The model achieved 62.6% exact-level accuracy across the six granular CEFR levels and 82.6% across the three overarching levels, outperforming a baseline model based on three existing readability formulas. Additionally, it identified shared and unique linguistic features across different CEFR levels, highlighting the necessity to adjust text classification models to accommodate the distinct linguistic profiles of low- and high-proficiency readers.

In a close replication study of Darcy et al., (2016), Huensch (2024) reported a lack of clear relationships between inhibitory control (IC) and phonological processing, contrary to the initial findings. Given the general unreliability of response-time differences, which are often the basis of IC measures and could potentially mask small effects, we performed secondary analyses on Huensch’s (2024) open data set to investigate (a) the extent to which the reliability of IC measures could be improved using model-based approaches (Hui & Wu, 2024), (b) the correlations between the different IC tasks, and (c) their predictive power for phonological processing, based on the more reliable indices. Results showed that model-based approaches generally improved reliability, and particularly for the Stroop and Simon tasks to acceptable levels. Yet, correlations between IC tasks remained low, and partial correlation and hierarchical regression still failed to reveal significant relationships between IC and phonological processing, further confirming Huensch’s (2024) findings.

This study revisits the relationship between second-language (L2) learners’ ability to distinguish sounds in non-native phonological contrasts and to recognize spoken words when recognition depends on these sounds, while addressing the role of methodological similarity. Bilingual Catalan/Spanish learners of English were tested on the identification of two vowel contrasts (VI) of diverging difficulty, /i/-/ɪ/ (difficult) and /ɛ/-/æ/ (easy), in monosyllabic minimal pairs, and on their recognition of the same pairs in a word-picture matching task (WPM). Learners performed substantially better with /i/-/ɪ/ in VI than in WPM, and individual scores were only weakly correlated. By replicating previous findings through a more symmetrical design, we show that an account of prior work rooted in methodological dissimilarity is improbable and provide additional support for the claim that accuracy in sound identification does not guarantee improvements in word recognition. This has implications for our understanding of L2-speech acquisition and L2 pronunciation training.

This paper introduces the Chinese Learner English Corpus (CLEC), comprising argumentative texts written by Chinese lower and upper secondary school students. CLEC expands learner corpus research by including texts from intermediate-level learners and rich metadata on their backgrounds, including engagement with self-initiated, so-called Extramural English (EE) activities outside the classroom. To illustrate potential uses, two case studies are presented. The first uses a keyword analysis to reveal thematic and stylistic differences between CLEC and its Swedish counterpart, SLEC, highlighting linguistic priorities related to distinct learning contexts. The second investigates lexical bundles associated with gaming, demonstrating how EE engagement might influence learners’ use of multiword units. Freely available online, CLEC facilitates contrastive interlanguage analysis and supports further research into L2 learning and use, particularly regarding the role of language exposure. The corpus is also a valuable resource for teacher trainees aiming to deepen their understanding of SLA processes.

This study presents a conceptual replication of Jacob et al.’s (2018) comparison of L2 early-stage processing of derived vs. inflected words. Previous studies on this issue focused predominantly on L2 learners from morphologically complex, alphabetic L1s, and generally showed L2 decompositional processing of derived but not inflected words. This replication study examined whether the previous claim for a qualitative difference in L2 early-stage processing of derived and inflected words could generalize to L2 English learners from a morphologically isolating, logographic L1, i.e., Chinese learners of L2 English. Results from a masked priming lexical decision task showed qualitatively the same magnitude of priming in the derivational, inflectional, and form control conditions for Chinese learners of English, suggesting reliance on surface form information in the early-stage processing of both derived and inflected words. Results of the current study add to the literature on L2 early-stage processing of derived vs. inflected words.