doi: 10.18178/ijlll.2026.12.3.664
Research on Spanish Beginners Correctly Acquire p/b and r/l? A Case Study of First-Year University Students in a Spanish Department
Linrui Wang
- Sichuan International Studies University, Chongqing, China, 400031
- Manuscript received July 4, 2026
- accepted August 1, 2026
- published September 23, 2026
Abstract
This study investigates how 60 Chinese beginners acquire Spanish /p, b/ and /r, l/ phonemes. Drawing on acoustic analysis via Praat and subjective questionnaires, this study identifies two distinct mechanisms of phoneme acquisition. /p, b/ Contrast: Difficulty stems from perceptual category assimilation. Learners often mistake the Spanish voiced [b] for the Mandarin unaspirated voiceless [p]. A significant correlation (r = 0.52) exists between their perception and production accuracy. /r, l/ Contrast: Mastery is primarily a motor skill challenge. Perception and production are decoupled (r = 0.18), as many students identify the sound but fail at articulatory execution. Furthermore, dialects with “n/l” confusion significantly increase /r/ lateralization error rates (42.7%). Phonetic anxiety further impairs perceptual and production accuracy, especially for voiced consonants that demand precise articulatory control. The study advocates for tiered interventions: utilizing acoustic visualization for /p, b/ to restructure perceptual categories and focused muscle memory training for the /r/ trill.
Keywords
- Spanish pronunciation acquisition
- voiceless voiced plosives
- Alveolar Trill
- perceptual assimilation
- motor learning
- dialectal transfer
How to Cite
Linrui Wang, "Research on Spanish Beginners Correctly Acquire p/b and r/l? A Case Study of First-Year University Students in a Spanish Department," International Journal of Languages, Literature and Linguistics, vol. 12, no. 3, pp. 226-232, 2026. https://doi.org/10.18178/ijlll.2026.12.3.664
Copyright & License
Copyright © 2026 by the authors. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited (CC BY 4.0).