The learner's first language influences target-language pronunciation and is a significant factor in foreign accents, causing errors in aspiration, intonation, and rhythm¶

Claim · All claims
Evidence · 1 study · review r2 · q2
Currency · newest study 1998 · not yet checked against its sources · not reviewed by a person
Evidence quality · No study behind this claim is a peer-reviewed article with a DOI: it rests on an ERIC document (a report, conference paper or thesis). It is kept because 2 design pages cite it; treat it as a lead to check, not an established finding.

Subclaims¶

q2 i? Interference or negative transfer from the first language is likely to cause errors in aspiration, intonation, and rhythm in the target language. → Florez 1998

Evidence¶

Florez 1998¶

Florez, MaryAnn Cunningham. (1998). Improving Adult ESL Learners' Pronunciation Skills. ERIC Digest. National Clearinghouse for ESL Literacy Education. https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED427553

q2 · i? · review · r2

Narrative review section on factors influencing pronunciation mastery. The digest reports, as a research consensus, that "the learner's first language influences the pronunciation of the target language"; no empirical study details or effect sizes are printed.

"Most researchers agree that the learner's first language influences the pronunciation of the target language and is a significant factor in accounting for foreign accents. So-called interference or negative transfer from the first language is likely to cause errors in aspiration, intonation, and rhythm in the target language."

Discussion¶

Related Claims¶

• Learner errors arise from interlingual transfer, intralingual overgeneralization, cultural interference, and communicative strategies — a broader claim this one bears on
• Adult learners generally find pronunciation more difficult than children and are unlikely to achieve native-like pronunciation, though experience and self-monitoring offset this somewhat — related
• L1-induced errors persist in advanced learners and risk fossilization if learners rely on compensatory communication strategies — a narrower finding that bears on this claim