The acquisition of orthographic-phonological correspondence rules in L2 and L3 Portuguese: Error resolution, interference, and generalizability.

摘要

The current study investigates the acquisition of orthographic-phonological correspondence rules by learners of Portuguese as an L2 or L3, with English and Spanish as the previous language(s). Acquisition is examined from the perspectives of error resolution, interference, and generalizability. Target L2/L3 production is shown to increase throughout the course of the semester of data collection, as interference from the L1/L2 decreases. The results support previous research, finding transfer from both the L1 and L2, and interference based on language typology as well as language status. Word type (cognates, non-cognates and nonce words) is not found to play as great a role in acquisition as grapheme and participants' linguistic background. It is proposed that examination of the acquisition of orthographic-phonological correspondence rules may have the potential for highlighting more specifically the source(s) of interference in an L3.