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People differ with respect to how fluently they speak. Some speak faster than others, some use more filled pauses such as uhs and uhms than others, some use more silent pauses than others, and some use longer silent pauses than others (e.g., Clark & Fox Tree, 2002; Goldman-Eisler, 1968; Shriberg, 1994). These individual differences exist for nonnative speakers and they also exist for native speakers. This raises the question to what extent aspects of fluency in nonnative speech can be considered indicators of second language (L2) proficiency rather than indicators of nonlinguistic factors such as personality characteristics. In this study, we will explore which aspects of L2 fluency relate to L2 linguistic knowledge and processing skills, and to what extent.
The term fluency, usually restricted for describing L2 speech, can be used in at least two ways. Lennon (1990) distinguishes a broad definition and a narrow definition. In the broad definition, fluency can be seen as overall (speaking) proficiency, whereas fluency in the narrow definition pertains to smoothness and ease of oral linguistic delivery. In this paper, we will use the term fluency in its narrow sense.
COGNITIVE FLUENCY, UTTERANCE FLUENCY, AND PERCEIVED FLUENCY
Segalowitz (2010) proposes that a distinction be made between the following three notions of fluency: cognitive fluency, utterance fluency, and perceived fluency. Cognitive fluency can be defined as the fluency that characterizes a speaker and has to do with the speaker's abilities to efficiently plan and execute his speech.
Utterance fluency is the fluency that can be measured in a sample of speech. One can define utterance fluency objectively by measuring (temporal) aspects of the speech sample. Skehan (2003) and Tavakoli and Skehan (2005) noted that utterance fluency is a construct with several aspects. They distinguish between breakdown fluency, speed fluency, and repair fluency. Breakdown fluency has to do with the ongoing flow of speech and can be measured by counting the number and length of filled and unfilled pauses. Speed fluency has to do with the speed with which speech is delivered and can be measured by calculating speech rate such as number of syllables per second. Repair fluency has to do with how often speakers use false starts, make corrections,...