Abstract
The fluency of second language (L2) speech can be influenced by L2 proficiency, but also by differences in the efficiency of cognitive operations and personal speaking styles. The nature of cognitive fluency is still, however, little understood. Therefore, we studied the cognitive fluency of Finnish advanced students of English (N = 64) to understand how the efficiency of cognitive processing influences speech rate. Cognitive fluency was operationalised as automaticity of lexical access (measured by rapid word recognition) and attention control (measured by the Stroop task). The tasks were conducted in both L1 (Finnish) and L2 (English) to examine the (dis)similarity of processing in the two languages. Speech rate in a monologue task was used as the dependent measure of speaking performance. The results showed that after controlling for the L1 speech rate and L1 cognitive fluency, the L2 attention control measures explained a small amount of additional variance in L2 speech rate. These results are discussed in relation to the cognitive fluency framework and general speaking proficiency research.
Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
