Stereotypical dimensions and Second Language development in a migrant community

A pilot study

Abstract

Complex forms of reciprocal influences link social, psychological, and linguistic dynamics in social integration processes. Despite the growing number of studies directly assessing the relationships between socio-psychology and language, such a matter keeps resisting a comprehensive systematization, especially for what concerns the phonetic investigation. Founding its premises on a widely adopted socio-psychological model (the Stereotype Content Model), the study here proposed intends to develop a preliminary analysis of the role exerted by stereotypical constructs in specific phonetic aspects of the L2 development. The research – involving a sample of Italo-French participants in a spontaneous setting – highlights the role of a particular stereotypical dimension (the warmth) in orienting the L2 acquisitional outputs: the result is discussed from a broader affective and behavioural perspective.