The revised Speech Learning Model (SLM-r) postulates that learners with more precisely defined categories in their native language (L1) exhibit greater proficiency in acquiring sounds in a second language (L2). Despite its recent emergence, empirical studies validating this hypothesis remain scarce. This study aims to investigate the predictive…

A growing body of evidence demonstrates that individual differences in declarative memory may be an important predictor of second language (L2) abilities. However, the evidence comes from studies using different declarative memory tasks that vary in their reliance on verbal abilities and task demands, which preclude estimating the size of the…

There is a considerable amount of research investigating the impact of variables such as age, gender, and cognitive ability on second language acquisition. In second language acquisition, besides such individual variables, equal importance should be given to the social demographic variables. Therefore, it is crucial to direct this focus towards…

Psychological variables remain a much under-investigated sub-category of individual differences (IDs) compared with cognitive ones. The present paper aims to gain a better understanding of the psychological effects of bilingualism by investigating national identity (NI), a socio-psychological construct, based on big data, that has rarely been…

Statistical learning (SL) approaches to reading maintain that proficient reading requires assimilation of rich statistical regularities in the writing system. Reading skills in developing first-language readers are predicted by individual differences in sensitivity to regularities in mappings from orthography to phonology (O-P) and semantics…

This cross-sectional study addresses for the first time the non/linear association between individual learner differences of social, proficiency-related, and socioaffective nature (length of residence [LoR], varietal proficiency, exposure, and socioaffect) and differential outcomes in L2 sociolinguistic repertoires against the backdrop of the…

Willingness to communicate (WTC), a recent affective construct of SLA research, has experienced a paradigm shift regarding its nature. Current WTC research tends to define it as a dynamic and context-bound structure rather being in a linear and static disposition. New conceptualization is based on Complex Dynamic System (CDS) theory. This theory…

Individual differences in episodic memory abilities have been linked to second language (L2) lexical development, both theoretically and empirically, but such empirical support has been limited to the earliest phases of word learning. However, the Episodic L2 Hypothesis predicts that L2 lexical representations in more advanced L2 speakers are…

This study examined the differential experience and educational outcomes among two English Language Learning (ELL) student cohorts, namely holders of a high school diploma and individuals who did not complete high school. Our analysis of 39 interviews with ELL respondents demonstrated that premigration experience; personal qualities; interactions…

The influence of individual difference variables on second language (L2) listening comprehension has been an area of research that has been gaining renewed attention in recent years. The current study investigated the effects of two cognitive variables, aptitude and metacognitive awareness, on 107 native-Korean, English as a foreign language…

Globally, collegiate students possess distinct drives, opportunities, and constraints that influence their choices regarding if, when, and where to study abroad. This research explored the study abroad motivations of US students who were studying in other countries as well as international students who were studying in the US. Data was collected…

This study investigated the extent to which second language (L2) learners benefited from proactive form-focused instruction (FFI) targeting French grammatical gender attribution and the degree to which L2 learners' attention control and working memory predicted their learning gains. A total of 102 L2 learners received either proactive FFI…

This longitudinal study investigated development of second language (L2) reading comprehension ability and predictive contributions of five L2 reading components (word recognition speed, listening comprehension, vocabulary breadth, grammar knowledge and first language [L1] reading comprehension) using latent growth curve modelling. The…

Event-related potentials (ERPs) have become widespread in second language acquisition (SLA) research and a growing body of literature has been produced in recent years. We surveyed 61 SLA papers that use ERPs to study L2 sentence processing in healthy late learners. Our main aim was to provide a critical summary of findings from the decade…

This study examines the predictive effects of motivational beliefs and self-efficacy on multiple dimensions of self-regulated learning (SRL) strategies in English as a foreign language (EFL) writing. Undergraduate students (n = 389) were recruited voluntarily from four universities in mainland China. They were invited to complete a set of…