No abstract

This paper reviews several bodies of literature concerned with the relationship of affective factors such as language shock, culture shock, attitude, motivation and ego permeability to second language acquisition. These issues are then related to the problem of age in second language learning. It is suggested that affective variables may play a more important role than does biological maturation in problems associated with adult second language acquisition.

This paper examines a series of societal factors that promote either social distance or proximity between two groups and thus affect the degree to which a second language learning group (2LL group) acquires the language of a particular target language group (TL group). It is argued that social distance and hence a bad language learning situation will exist where the 2LL group is either dominant or subordinate, where both groups desire preservation and high enclosure for the 2LL group, where the 2LL group is both cohesive and large, where the two cultures are not congruent, where the two groups hold negative attitudes toward each other and where the 2LL group intends to remain in the target language area only for a short time. It is also argued that social solidarity and hence a good language learning situation will exist where the 2LL group is non‐dominant in relation to the TL group, where both groups desire assimilation for the 2LL group, where low enclosure is the goal of both groups, where the two cultures are congruent, where the 2LL group is small and non‐cohesive, where both groups have positive attitudes toward each other, and where the 2LL group intends to remain in the target language area for a long time. Examples of both good and bad language learning situations are drawn from actual contact situations: Americans living in Saudi Arabia, American Indians in the US. and American Jewish immigrants in Israel.

This paper is a case study of the untutored acquisition of English by a 33 year old Costa Rican named Alberto. His language learning was examined longitudinally for a ten month period. During that time he evidenced very little linguistic growth. Three causes for Alberto's lack of development are considered: ability, age, and social and psychological distance. Performance on a test of adaptive intelligence indicated that lack of ability is not adequate to explain his acquisition pattern. Also, due to the inadequacy of the arguments for a biological critical period in language acquisition, age is also rejected as a cause. However, Alberto's English speech showed evidence of pidginization. Pidginization is seen as the result of the learner's social and psychological distance from speakers of the target language. Hence, it is argued that Alberto's lack of development in English is the result of his social and psychological distance from native speakers of English.

In this paper we specify language acquisition processes in terns of brain mechanisms in order to explain the variable success achieved by early and late language learners. On the basis of the literature in language acquisition, neurobiology, and linguistics, we propose a brain-based model €or language acquisition. The model assumes two conditions must be met in order to acquire full knowledge of a particular language: first, that the learner is motivated to acquire the language;and second, that the learner is equipped with the ability to acquire grammatical knowledge. We explain the neural underpinnings for both motivation and grammatical ability and show how they interact to produce variable success in language acquisition. We thank Joe Bogen, Valentin Braitenberg, Joaquin Fuster, Arnold Scheibel, and Almut Schiiz for valuable comments on earlier versions of this manuscript. We are also grateful to three anonymous referees for their constructive comments.