The effect of some listener background factors and task type that contribute to degree of perceived accent ratings in L2 Finnish

Authors

• Melike Uzal University of Helsinki
• Erkki Komulainen University of Helsinki
• Olli Aaltonen University of Helsinki

DOI: https://doi.org/10.30660/afinla.73142

Keywords:

perceived accent, L2 phonology, listener background factors, task type effect

Abstract

This study evaluated the effect of some listener background factors—the listeners’ gender, age, experience of teaching Finnish as a second language, frequency of contact with immigrants, and being a native of the Helsinki Metropolitan Area in Finland— and task type on their degree of perceived accent (DPA) ratings in L2 Finnish. The participants were 31 native-Finnish speakers and 40 nonnative speakers of Turkish origin who ranged in age from 7 to 66 as well as 61 Finnish listeners who evaluated the speech samples for a foreign accent using a 9-point scale. Three speech samples were administered (word pairs, the reading-aloud of sentences, and a spontaneous speech task). The results showed that no marked differences were observed, despite differences in the listeners’ gender, age, Finnish as a L2 teaching experience, frequency of contact with immigrants speaking Finnish as an L2 , and being a native of the Helsinki Metropolitan Area. The results also showed that ratings of native decreased with sample duration and extemporaneity.