Second Language Learning Theories

Written by a team of leading experts working in different SLA specialisms, this fifth edition is a clear and concise introduction to the main theories of second language acquisition (SLA) from multiple perspectives, comprehensively updated to reflect the latest developments in SLA research.

The book covers all the main theoretical perspectives currently active in SLA and sets each chapter within a broader framework. Each chapter examines the claims and scope of each theory and how each views language, the learner and the acquisition process, supplemented by summaries of key studies and data examples from a variety of languages. Chapters end with an evaluative summary of the theories discussed. Key features to this fifth edition include updated accounts of cognitive approaches to second language (L2) learning, the implications of advances in generative linguistics and the “social turn” in L2 research, with re-worked chapters on functional, sociocultural and sociolinguistic perspectives, and an entirely new chapter on individual differences, in addition to updated examples using new studies.

Second Language Learning Theories continues to be an essential resource for graduate students in second language acquisition.

Rosamond Mitchell FAcSS is Emeritus Professor of Applied Linguistics at the University of Southampton, UK, and a past Chair of the British Association for Applied Linguistics. She is lead author of Language, mobility and study abroad in the contemporary European context (2021, with Henry Tyne), and of Anglophone students abroad (2017, with Nicole Tracy-Ventura and Kevin McManus).

Florence Myles is Professor Emerita of Second Language Acquisition at the University of Essex, UK, a former president of EUROSLA, and founding Chair of the Research in Primary Languages network. She has published widely on morphosyntactic development in SLA, the role of formulaic language in the construction of an L2 grammar, and how children of different ages learn foreign languages in the classroom.

Emma Marsden is Professor of Second Language Education at the University of York, UK. She has published widely on second language learning, processing, teaching, and testing. Emma (co-)directs several international open scholarship initiatives for materials and data (IRIS), accessible summaries (OASIS), vocabulary profiling (MultilingProfiler), and teaching and professional development resources (Language-Driven Pedagogy).

Laura Domínguez is Professor of Linguistics at the University of Southampton, UK and is a member of the editorial board of Second Language Research. She co-authored Research Methods in Generative Second Language Acquisition (2024, with Roumyana Slabakova and Tania Leal).