Speech perception and production as constructs of action: Implications for models of L2 development

Resumo

Speech production involves an intricate set of actions. Its underlying cognitive mechanisms are thus historically seen as distant from those of speech perception, usually assumed to be a passive process. However, dynamic perspectives on language congregate grammar and language use, approximate phonetics and phonology, and value the role of speech perception in language development. Recent studies argue that speech production and perception are overlaying or at least highly interacting. Some scholars claim that the link between these two processes surpasses the acoustics, as studies have revealed that action also has a role in language comprehension. Phonic gestures are not just mechanisms by means of which one experiences speech production, but are supporting to perception. In this perspective, models interested in L2 development face a twofold challenge: to amalgamate speech perception and production, and to consider that speech transcends the acoustics, since - in a dynamic frame of reference - phonetic-phonological representations are auditory, gestural and general. This paper aims at presenting evidence for a gesture-driven perspective to L2 speech development in which the gesture is a phonological primitive that pervades and connects speech perception and production. By emphasizing a gesture-driven point of view, this work presents congruent and incongruent tenets among some hegemonic models for L2 speech development and an ecological/dynamic account.