The present study examined individual patterns of use of variable Spanish copula choice by advanced-level Korean learners. Participants were nine native speakers of Korean enrolled in fourth-year Spanish courses at a South Korean university. To examine variable copula use, learners participated in a sociolinguistic interview and picture book description task from which all pre-adjectival contexts were identified and the distribution (i.e., range and frequency) of copula forms was examined. To examine individual patterns of use, learners completed a background questionnaire and Spanish grammar task. Results revealed that advanced-level Korean learners produced primarily ser, estar, and developmental omission in pre-adjectival contexts, and there was a positive relationship between higher rates of estar and four of the five individual characteristics examined.
- Individual differences,
- L2 Spanish,
- Spanish copula,
- Variationist approach
Available at: http://works.bepress.com/avizia-long/82/