R2.20 - recommendation: L2 model ref again

[jvcasillas]

p. 32, line 7 - again, the LiLT model needs to be mentioned, since this reads as if no theory of L2 intonation has been proposed.

Action: check ref, incorporate (see also https://github.com/RAP-group/empathy_intonation_perc/issues/48, https://github.com/RAP-group/empathy_intonation_perc/issues/52)

[juanjgarridop]

Old paragraph

In sum, the present work contributes to our knowledge of an understudied construct, empathy, as it pertains to speech. Additionally, this is the first time, to our knowledge, that drift diffusion models have been used to analyze behavioral data relating to empathy in SLA. We also underscore the general need for models of L2 phonology, such as the SLM-r (Flege & Bohn, 2021), PAM-L2 (Best & Tyler, 2007), L2LP (Van Leussen & Escudero, 2015), etc., to address the acquisition process beyond the level of the segment. There is still a paucity of research with regard to how perception of intonation develops in L2 learning, particularly with regard to how individual pragmatic differences account for learner outcomes. A complete model of speech learning should account for both causal prediction and imputation at the segmental and suprasegmental levels. The present study aimed to address this gap in the literature by examining the perception and processing of intonation during adult L2 phonological acquisition.

Revised paragraph

In sum, the present work contributes to our knowledge of an understudied construct, empathy, as it pertains to speech perception. Additionally, this is the first time, to our knowledge, that drift diffusion models have been used to analyze behavioral data relating to empathy in SLA. We also underscore the need for studies and models of L2 phonology to address the acquisition process beyond the segmental level. The LILt (Mennen, 2015) serves as a starting point in the analysis of intonation across languages and L2 acquisition of intonation, framing the process of L2 acquisition of intonation along different developmental and structural dimensions. The findings of the present study are in line with the LILt (Mennen, 2015) since they show that L2 acquisition of intonation progresses with higher proficiency. However, these findings also emphasize the need for models like the LILt (Mennen, 2015) to account for how individual pragmatic differences influence learner outcomes, due to the effect of the construct empathy that was observed in the current study. Nevertheless, there is still a general need for a complete model of speech learning that accounts for both causal prediction and imputation at the segmental and suprasegmental levels.

[jvcasillas]

Great. I like it.

[jvcasillas]

Added via https://github.com/RAP-group/empathy_intonation_perc/pull/76.

In the revised manuscript we have mentioned the LILt where suggested by the reviewer. The relevant text is included below.

In sum, the present work contributes to our knowledge of an understudied construct, empathy, as it pertains to speech. Additionally, this is the first time, to our knowledge, that drift diffusion models have been used to analyze behavioral data relating to empathy in SLA. We also underscore the general need for models of L2 phonology, such as the SLM-r [@flege2021revised], PAM-L2 [@Best2007], L2LP [@VanLeussen2015], etc., to address the acquisition process beyond the level of the segment. The LILt model [@mennen2015beyond] has served as a starting point in the analysis of intonation across languages and L2 acquisition of intonation, framing the process of L2 acquisition of intonation along different developmental and structural dimensions. The findings of the present study are in line with LILt since they show that perception of intonation in an L2 progresses with higher proficiency. In addition, these findings also emphasize the need for models like LILt to account for how individual differences pragmatic skills, such as empathy, can influence learner outcomes. A complete model of speech learning should account for both causal prediction and imputation at the segmental and suprasegmental levels. The present study aimed to address this gap in the literature by examining the role of proficiency and empathy on the perception of intonation during sentence processing in adult L2 phonological acquisition.

[juanjgarridop]

@jvcasillas

The paragraph in the comments above is part of the discussion. I think this is the only paragraph in the discussion that mentions theoretical models, and it now references the LILt. I don't know if that is just enough, but here is another paragraph that I came up with to complement the discussion of LILt in the discussion section. We could add this paragraph right before the one referenced above.

The overall findings of the present study bring support to the L2 Intonation Learning Theory (LILt) (Mennen, 2015), which is the first model that specifically accounts for L2 acquisition of intonation. LILt predicts that difficulties in L2 acquisition of intonation can arise due to cross-language differences in the 'semantic dimension' (i.e., how intonation is used to convey meaning and function across languages). L1 transfer occurs at early stages of acquisition, but L2 learners improve in some dimensions of intonation over time with higher proficiency and more frequent use. LILt also assumes that L2 learners acquire aspects of L2 intonation that are perceptually different and that L2 acquisition of intonation is influenced by extralinguistic factors. The results of the present study show that accuracy in mapping intonation to meaning is low at lower levels of proficiency but improves as proficiency increases, and that the empathy quotient is one of the extralinguistic factors that influence L2 acquisition of intonation. Although the predictions of LILt focus mostly on speech production, the present study provides evidence in speech perception in favor of LILt and contributes to our understanding of L2 acquisition of intonation by highlighting the role of an understudied extralinguistic factor such as empathy in L2 acquisition and L2 speech perception.