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Review

A Systematic Review of Empirical Mobile-Assisted Pronunciation Studies through a Perception–Production Lens

by
Anne M. Stoughton
* and
Okim Kang
Department of English, Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, AZ 86011, USA
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Languages 2024, 9(7), 251; https://doi.org/10.3390/languages9070251
Submission received: 14 November 2023 / Revised: 14 June 2024 / Accepted: 3 July 2024 / Published: 16 July 2024
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in L2 Perception and Production)

Abstract

The communicative approach to language learning, a teaching method commonly used in second language (L2) classrooms, places little to no emphasis on pronunciation training. As a result, mobile-assisted pronunciation training (MAPT) platforms provide an alternative to classroom-based pronunciation training. To date, there have been several meta-analyses and systematic reviews of mobile-assisted language learning (MALL) studies, but only a few of these meta-analyses have concentrated on pronunciation. To better understand MAPT’s impact on L2 learners’ perceptions and production of targeted pronunciation features, this study conducted a systematic review of the MAPT literature following PRISMA 2020 guidelines. Potential mobile-assisted articles were identified through searches of the ERIC, Educational Full Text, Linguistics and Language Behavior Abstract, MLI International, and Scopus databases and specific journal searches. Criteria for article inclusion in this study included the following: the article must be a peer-reviewed empirical or quasi-empirical research study using both experimental and control groups to assess the impact of pronunciation training. Pronunciation training must have been conducted via MALL or MAPT technologies, and the studies must have been published between 2014 and 2024. A total of 232 papers were identified; however, only ten articles with a total of 524 participants met the established criteria. Data pertaining to the participants used in the study (nationality and education level), the MPAT applications and platforms used, the pronunciation features targeted, the concentration on perception and/or production of these features, and the methods used for training and assessments were collected and discussed. Effect sizes using Cohen’s d were also calculated for each study. The findings of this review reveal that only two of the articles assessed the impact of MAPT on L2 learners’ perceptions of targeted features, with results indicating that the use of MPAT did not significantly improve L2 learners’ abilities to perceive segmental features. In terms of production, all ten articles assessed MPAT’s impact on L2 learners’ production of the targeted features. The results of these assessments varied greatly, with some studies indicating a significant and large effect of MAPT and others citing non-significant gains and negligible effect sizes. The variation in these results, in addition to differences in the types of participants, the targeted pronunciation features, and MAPT apps and platforms used, makes it difficult to conclude that MAPT has a significant impact on L2 learners’ production. Furthermore, the selected studies’ concentration on mostly segmental features (i.e., phoneme and word pronunciation) is likely to have had only a limited impact on participants’ intelligibility. This paper provides suggestions for further MAPT research, including increased emphasis on suprasegmental features and perception assessments, to further our understanding of the effectiveness of MAPT for pronunciation training.
Keywords: mobile-assisted pronunciation training; mobile-assisted language learning; MALL; MAPT; perception; production mobile-assisted pronunciation training; mobile-assisted language learning; MALL; MAPT; perception; production

Share and Cite

MDPI and ACS Style

Stoughton, A.M.; Kang, O. A Systematic Review of Empirical Mobile-Assisted Pronunciation Studies through a Perception–Production Lens. Languages 2024, 9, 251. https://doi.org/10.3390/languages9070251

AMA Style

Stoughton AM, Kang O. A Systematic Review of Empirical Mobile-Assisted Pronunciation Studies through a Perception–Production Lens. Languages. 2024; 9(7):251. https://doi.org/10.3390/languages9070251

Chicago/Turabian Style

Stoughton, Anne M., and Okim Kang. 2024. "A Systematic Review of Empirical Mobile-Assisted Pronunciation Studies through a Perception–Production Lens" Languages 9, no. 7: 251. https://doi.org/10.3390/languages9070251

APA Style

Stoughton, A. M., & Kang, O. (2024). A Systematic Review of Empirical Mobile-Assisted Pronunciation Studies through a Perception–Production Lens. Languages, 9(7), 251. https://doi.org/10.3390/languages9070251

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