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Abstract :
[en] A great amount of research has addressed the etiology of the difficulties encountered by second-language learners when acquiring a foreign phonological system. Observational studies as well as experimental ones have pointed out various factors potentially involved in the ability to cope with nonnative contrasts. These factors have been listed in various reviews (Piske et al., 2001; Strange & Shafer, 2008).
Among the factors contributing to the perception-production of nonnative sounds, some are linked to independent variables purposely manipulated in experiments (e.g., the task demands, the training procedures). Others may depend upon decisions about the experimental setting that were not expected to show specific contrasts (e.g., inter-stimulus interval, instructions,); mostly, their influence has been accounted for in terms of cognitive load imposed by these experimental manipulations, but without explicit hypotheses concerning the specific cognitive processes involved. On the other hand, intrinsic characteristics of the subjects (e.g., linguistic experience or background) have also shown to be involved in their ability in overcoming the difficulties encountered.
The reviews in the field generally aim at building up inventories as exhaustive as possible: in those studies, the list itself is the goal per se. As a matter of fact, such inventories are precious. We nevertheless argue that their main interest is proactive, since the factors pointed out can be viewed as variables that may potentially be used when carrying out experiments on the processing of nonnative sounds.
Our paper is therefore meant as an epistemological account aiming to shed light on the role that such factors may play if used as experimental variables - either with provoked or invoked variations - in paradigms focused on the involvement of cognitive processes (executive functions, attention, memory, etc.) in the development of adapted processing of L2 speech sounds in the speaker.
