The perception of production of glide-vowel sequences in Japanese and Korean learners of English

Abstract

Learners of a second language (L2) frequently exhibit phonological behaviours that are not fully understood. These behaviours can have a negative impact on intelligibility, sometimes resulting in communicative difficulties. This research looks at one such behaviour, shedding some light on its root causes. Japanese and Korean learners of English as a second language often omit, or substitute the English glides [w] and [j] in particular vocalic contexts. It has been reported by Tsujimura (2013) and Kang (2014) that Japanese and Korean learners of English either omit the glide [w], or substitute it for [ɯ] or [ʔ], when it precedes a back vowel. Furthermore, Korean learners of English often omit the glide [j] when it is followed by a high front vowel. In this thesis, I discuss the issue of glide acquisition in Japanese and Korean learners of English in light of two hypotheses. The first hypothesis is based on the assumption that perception is a prerequisite for production, while the second focuses on transfer effects from the L1, which influence L2 productions independently of perceptual abilities. I argue that the root cause of the patterns reported above lies primarily in perception based on empirical data collected in a series of experimental tasks, namely a reading, picture naming and ABX task. However, I acknowledge that transfer effects, which are phonotactic in nature, as well as cross-linguistic markedness, are also relevant to the story.