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Acculturation - The Causative Variables in Second Language Acquisition

The document discusses acculturation and its relationship to second language acquisition. It defines two types of acculturation and examines several case studies exploring how factors like social and psychological contact relate to learners' development in the target language.

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82 views15 pages

Acculturation - The Causative Variables in Second Language Acquisition

The document discusses acculturation and its relationship to second language acquisition. It defines two types of acculturation and examines several case studies exploring how factors like social and psychological contact relate to learners' development in the target language.

Uploaded by

mapa.mjjd
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© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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CAUSATIVE VARIABLE:

SLIDESMANIA.COM

Prof. Merica D. Mapa


CAUSATIVE VARIABLE:

ACCULTURATION
SLIDESMANIA.COM

Prof. Merica D. Mapa


SLIDESMANIA.COM

Nicki Lisa Cole, Ph.D.


Ponder on this:

In your perspective, do you


think acculturation is
necessary to acquire a target
language?
SLIDESMANIA.COM
"Second language acquisition is just one
aspect of acculturation, and the degree
to which the learner acculturates to the
target language group will control the
degree to which he acquires the target
language"
SLIDESMANIA.COM

Schumann's Acculturation Hypothesis


Acculturation can be viewed
as a means of gaining
comprehensible input and
lowering the filter.
SLIDESMANIA.COM
Two types of acculturation defined by Schumann :

Type 1 Type 2
The learner is socially
Type two acculturation has
integrated with the TL group
all the characteristics of
and, as a result, develops
type one, but in this case
sufficient contact with TL
the learner regards the TL
speakers to enable him to
speakers as a reference
acquire the TL. In addition, he is
group whose life styles and
psychologically open to the TL
values he consciously or
such that input to which he is
SLIDESMANIA.COM

unconsciously desires to
exposed becomes intake.
adopt
Two types of acculturation defined by Schumann :

Type 1 & Type 2


● Both types of acculturation are sufficient to cause acquisition
of the TL
● However, the distinction is made to stress that social and
psychological contact with the TL group is the essential
component in acculturation (as it relates to SLA) that that
adoption of the life style and values of the TL group
(characteristics traditionally associated with the notion of
SLIDESMANIA.COM

acculturation) is not necessary for successful acquisition of the


TL" (p.29)
The Heidelberg Project

● Variable correlation with successful acquisition of


German by foreign workers (variables: leisure contact
with speakers of German, Work contact, and syntactic
performance).
● Either form of interaction was effective in encouraging
second language acquisition.
● This confirms that it is interaction, and the resulting
comprehensible input, that "causes" second language
SLIDESMANIA.COM

acquisition.
The Heidelberg Project as Reported by Schumann

● Schumann notes that "among the best speakers, those who


had little leisure contact with Germans all had considerable
work contact“
● "learners whose work required communication with co-
workers did better in German than workers who provided
services (hairdressers, kitchen help, etc.)“
● "learners who worked in an environment that was noisy or
which constrained movement were at a disadvantage"
SLIDESMANIA.COM
Alberto’s Case

● a Spanish-speaking adult living in the United


States
● appeared to be at a considerable psychological
and social distance from English speakers
● speech showed marked signs of pidginization
(i.e. lack of several grammatical morphemes, little
use of inversion in questions, and use of more
primitive transitional forms in negation)
SLIDESMANIA.COM
Alberto’s Case in Relation with
Acculturation Hypothesis
✓ showed little second language acquisition and little
acculturation, defined as the degree of social and
psychological distance
✓ comprehensible input and filter level are primary
determinants of second language acquisition
✓ received little comprehensible input in English (he worked nights,
did not own a TV set, did not attend ESL classes, and made little
SLIDESMANIA.COM

effort to get to know English speakers., according to Schumann,


1978a), and probably had a strong affective filter as well
Stauble’s Subjects

● All three were Spanish speakers (Xavier, Paz, and Maria)


who had been in the United States for many years, and
who had apparently "fossilized" at different levels in
their development of negation.
● Stauble attempted to relate their progress in second
language acquisition, as reflected by the transitional
forms they used for negation, and acculturation,
measured by an informal questionnaire probing social
SLIDESMANIA.COM

and psychological distance from speakers of English.


Stauble’s Subjects: Xavier, Paz, and Maria
● Xavier showed the least progress in English
negation, but also showed the least social distance.
● Stauble's questionnaire revealed that his
psychological distance, however, was greater than
that of the others, which is consistent with the
Acculturation Hypothesis.
● Paz, the most advanced speaker, had the greatest
social distance, but, along with Maria, the other
SLIDESMANIA.COM

subject, had relatively low psychological distance.


Acculturation, pidginization-decreolization, and second langauge acquisition.
SLIDESMANIA.COM

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