The Etiology of Individual Differences in Second Language Acquisition in Australian School Students: A Behavior-Genetic Study

Title
The Etiology of Individual Differences in Second Language Acquisition in Australian School Students: A Behavior-Genetic Study
Publication Date
2012
Author(s)
Coventry, William L
( author )
OrcID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0864-5463
Email: wcovent2@une.edu.au
UNE Id une-id:wcovent2
Anton-Mendez, Ines
( author )
OrcID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1237-8126
Email: iantonm2@une.edu.au
UNE Id une-id:iantonm2
Ellis, Elizabeth M
Levisen, Christina
Byrne, Brian J
( author )
OrcID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5532-9407
Email: bbyrne@une.edu.au
UNE Id une-id:bbyrne
van Daal, Victor H P
Ellis, Nick C
Type of document
Journal Article
Language
en
Entity Type
Publication
Publisher
John Wiley & Sons, Inc
Place of publication
United States of America
DOI
10.1111/j.1467-9922.2012.00718.x
UNE publication id
une:11397
Abstract
We present one of the first behavior-genetic studies of individual differences in school students' levels of achievement in instructed second language acquisition (ISLA). We assessed these language abilities in Australian twin pairs (maximum N pairs = 251) by means of teacher ratings, class rankings, and self-ratings of proficiency, and used the classic twin design to estimate the relative influences of genes, shared (family/school) environment, and unique environment. Achievement in ISLA was more influenced by additive genetic effects (72%, 68%, and 38% for teacher ratings, class rankings, and twin self-ratings, respectively) than by shared environment effects, which were generally not substantial (20%, 07%, and 13%). Genetic effects distinct to speaking and listening, on the one hand, and reading and writing, on the other, were evident for the twin self-ratings. We discuss the limitations and implications of these findings and point to research questions that could profitably be addressed in future studies.
Link
Citation
Language Learning, 62(3), p. 880-901
ISSN
1467-9922
0023-8333
Start page
880
End page
901

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