In the last two decades numerous studies have been conducted to document the linguistic advantages of study abroad (SA) experiences on the acquisition of a second language (L2). After an extensive research on the L2 outcomes of Spanish immersion programs, some questions pertaining to the acquisition of patterns of language variation common to a particular community in a study abroad context remain unanswered. This article explores the degree to which a group of learners of Spanish acquire the dialectal variation of leísmo after participating in a four-month SA immersion program in Valladolid (Spain). A quantitative analysis examines
this linguistic phenomenon in two types of discourse: oral and written. The results suggest that SA learners do develop an awareness of non-standard forms of the target
language, which are incorporated primarily into their oral language repertoire. In sum, this study contributes to add further knowledge about the development
of sociolinguistic competence after a sojourn abroad, and to fill a gap in the new strand of studies on the acquisition of dialectal variation.
Salgado-Robles, F. (2015). Dialectal variation by learners of Spanish in an immersion setting abroad: A quantitative analysis of leísta use in spoken and written discourses. Lenguas Modernas, (43), Pág. 97 – 112. Retrieved from https://actascoloquiogiannini.uchile.cl/index.php/LM/article/view/36114
