Keywords
SLA
language attitudes
language shock
culture shock
expert learners
Polish immigrants to the UK
How to Cite
Number of views: 708
Number of downloads: 511
Abstract
Acculturation and language proficiency have been found to be inter-related both from the perspective of second language acquisition (Schumann, 1978, 1986) and socio-psychological adaptation in cross-cultural contacts (Ward, Bochner, & Furnham, 2001). However, the predictions as to the effect of a particular strategy on success differ, with assimilation believed to create most favourable conditions for SLA and integration for general well-being. The present study explores acculturation patterns in three expert users of English as a second language, recent Polish immigrants to the UK, in relation to their language experience. The qualitative data were collected with the use of a questionnaire and analysed with respect to language experience and socio-affective factors. The analysis aimed at better understanding of the relationship between language learning in a formal context and language use in a natural setting on the one hand and the relationship between language expertise and acculturation strategy choice on the other. The results show that in spite of individual differences, expert language users tend to adopt an assimilation rather than integration acculturation strategy. This may suggest that attitudes are related to expertise in English as a second language in a more conservative way than advocated by cross-cultural approaches.
References
Anderson, N. J. (1991). Individual differences in strategy use in second language reading and testing. The Modern Language Journal, 75, 460-472.
Berry, J. W. (1997). Immigration, acculturation, and adaptation. Applied Psychology: An International Review, 46, 5-68.
Biedroń, A. (2011). Near-nativeness as a function of cognitive and personality factors: Three case studies of highly able foreign language learners. In M. Pawlak, E. Waniek-Klimczak, & J. Majer (Eds.), Speaking and instructed foreign language acquisition (pp. 99-116). Clevedon: Multilingual Matters.
Binghadeer, N. A. (2010). The effects of age and input enhancement on L2 vowel production: A longitudinal study. TESOL Journal, 3, 64-80.
Bongaerts, T., Planken, B., & Schills, E. (1995). Can late starters attain a native accent in a foreign language? A test of the critical period hypothesis. In D. Singleton & Z. Lengyel (Eds.), The age factor in second language acquisition (pp. 30-50). Clevedon: Multilingual Matters.
Bongaerts, T., van Summeren, C., Planken, B., & Schils, E. (1997). Age and ultimate attainment in the pronunciation of a foreign language. Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 19, 447-465.
Dowd, J., Zuengler, J., & Berkowitz, D. (1990). L2 social marking: Research issues. Applied Linguistics, 11, 16-29.
Flege, J. E. (1988). Factors affecting degree of perceived foreign accent in English sentences. Journal of the Acoustical Society of America, 84, 70-79.
Flege, J. E., Bohn, O-S., & Jang, S. (1997). Effects of experience on non-native speakers’ production and perception of English vowels. Journal of Phonetics, 25, 437-470.
Flege, J. E., & Liu, S. (2001). The effect of experience on adults’ acquisition of a second language. Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 26, 1-34.
Flege, J. E., Schiru, C., & MacKay, I. (2003). Interaction between the native and second language phonetic subsystems. Speech Communication, 40, 467-491.
Gatbonton, E., & Trofimovich, P. (2008). The ethnic group affiliation and L2 proficiency link: Empirical evidence. Language Awareness, 17, 229-248.
Gatbonton, E., Trofimovich, P., & Segalovitz, N. (2011). Ethnic group affiliation and patterns of development of a phonological variable. The Modern Language Journal, 95, 188-204.
Ioup, G. (1995). Evaluating the need for input enhancement in post-critical period language acquisition. In D. Singleton & Z. Lengyel (Eds.), The age factor in second language acquisition (pp. 95-123). Clevedon: Multilingual Matters.
Ioup, G., Boustagi, E., El Tigi, M., & Moselle, M. (1994). Reexamining the critical period hypothesis: A case study of successful adult SLA in naturalistic environment. Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 16, 73-98.
Jenkins, J. (2000). The phonology of English as an international language. Ox-ford: Oxford University Press.
Jenkins, J. (2003). World Englishes. London: Routledge.
Mercer, S. (2011). The beliefs of two expert EFL learners. Language Learning Journal, 39(1), 57-74.
Phinney, J. S., Horenczyk, G., Liebkind, K., & Vedder, P. (2001). Ethnic identity, immigration and well-being: An interactional perspective. Journal of Social Issues, 57(3), 493-510.
Redfield, R., Linton, R., & Herskovits, M. J. (1936). Memorandum for the study of acculturation. American Anthropologist, 38, 149-152.
Rubin, J. (1975). What ‘the good learner’ can teach us. TESOL Quarterly, 9, 41-51.
Sachdev, I., & Giles, H. (2004). Bilingual accommodation. In T. K. Bhatia & W. C. Ritchie (Eds.), The handbook of bilingualism (pp. 353-378). Oxford: Blackwell.
Schumann, J. (1978). The acculturation model for second-language acquisition. In R. C. Gingras (Ed.), Second language acquisition and foreign language acquisition (pp. 27-50). Washington, DC: Centre for Applied Linguistics.
Schumann, J. (1986). Research on the acculturation model for second language acquisition. Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development, 7, 379-392.
Seidlhofer, B. (2005). Language variation and change: The case of ELF. In K. Dziubalska-Kołaczyk & J. Przedlacka (Eds.), English pronunciation models: A changing scene (pp. 59-76). Bern: Peter Lang.
Waniek-Klimczak, E. (2005). Temporal parameters in second language speech. Łódź: Wydwnictwo Uniwersytetu Łódzkiego.
Waniek-Klimczak, E. (2009). Sociolinguistic conditioning of phonetic category realization in non-native speech. Research in Language, 7, 149-166.
Ward, C. (1996). Acculturation. In D. Landis & R. S. Bhagat (Eds.), Handbook of intercultural training (2nd ed.; pp. 124-147). Thousads Oaks, CA: Sage.
Ward, C., Bochner, S., & Furnham, A. (2001). The psychology of culture shock. Hove: Routledge.
Ward, C., & Kennedy, A. (1999). The measurement of sociocultural adaptation. International Journal of Intercultural Relations, 23, 659-677.
License
1.1 The Author hereby warrants that he/she is the owner of all the copyright and other intellectual property rights in the Work and that, within the scope of the present Agreement, the paper does not infringe the legal rights of another person. The owner of the copyright work also warrants that he/she is the sole and original creator thereof and that is not bound by any legal constraints in regard to the use or sale of the work.
1.2. The Publisher warrants that is the owner of the PRESSto platform for open access journals, hereinafter referred to as the PRESSto Platform.
2. The Author grants the Publisher non-exclusive and free of charge license to unlimited use worldwide over an unspecified period of time in the following areas of exploitation:
2.1. production of multiple copies of the Work produced according to the specific application of a given technology, including printing, reproduction of graphics through mechanical or electrical means (reprography) and digital technology;
2.2. marketing authorisation, loan or lease of the original or copies thereof;
2.3. public performance, public performance in the broadcast, video screening, media enhancements as well as broadcasting and rebroadcasting, made available to the public in such a way that members of the public may access the Work from a place and at a time individually chosen by them;
2.4. inclusion of the Work into a collective work (i.e. with a number of contributions);
2.5. inclusion of the Work in the electronic version to be offered on an electronic platform, or any other conceivable introduction of the Work in its electronic version to the Internet;
2.6. dissemination of electronic versions of the Work in its electronic version online, in a collective work or independently;
2.7. making the Work in the electronic version available to the public in such a way that members of the public may access the Work from a place and at a time individually chosen by them, in particular by making it accessible via the Internet, Intranet, Extranet;
2.8. making the Work available according to appropriate license pattern Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) as well as another language version of this license or any later version published by Creative Commons.
3. The Author grants the Publisher permission to reproduce a single copy (print or download) and royalty-free use and disposal of rights to compilations of the Work and these compilations.
4. The Author grants the Publisher permission to send metadata files related to the Work, including to commercial and non-commercial journal-indexing databases.
5. The Author represents that, on the basis of the license granted in the present Agreement, the Publisher is entitled and obliged to:
5.1. allow third parties to obtain further licenses (sublicenses) to the Work and to other materials, including derivatives thereof or compilations made, based on or including the Work, whereas the provisions of such sub-licenses will be the same as with the Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) Creative Commons sub-license or another language version of this license, or any later version of this license published by Creative Commons;
5.2. make the Work available to the public in such a way that members of the public may access the Work from a place and at a time individually chosen by them, without any technological constraints;
5.3. appropriately inform members of the public to whom the Work is to be made available about sublicenses in such a way as to ensure that all parties are properly informed (appropriate informing messages).
6. Because of the royalty-free provision of services of the Author (resulting from the scope of obligations stipulated in the present Agreement), the Author shall not be entitled to any author’s fee due and payable on the part of the Publisher (no fee or royalty is payable by the Publisher to the Author).
7.1. In the case of third party claims or actions for indemnity against the Publisher owing to any infractions related to any form of infringement of intellectual property rights protection, including copyright infringements, the Author is obliged to take all possible measures necessary to protect against these claims and, when as a result of legal action, the Publisher, or any third party licensed by the Publisher to use the Work, will have to abandon using the Work in its entirety or in part or, following a court ruling in a legal challenge, to pay damages to a third party, whatever the legal basis
7.2. The Author will immediately inform the Publisher about any damage claims related to intellectual property infringements, including the author’s proprietary rights pertaining to a copyrighted work, filed against the Author. of liability, the Author is obliged to redress the damage resulting from claims made by third party, including costs and expenditures incurred in the process.
7.3. To all matters not settled herein provisions of the Polish Civil Code and the Polish Copyright and Related Rights Act shall apply.