Second language pragmatics aptitude

The present study aimed at investigating whether language pragmatics aptitude is a separate component of the construct of language aptitude distinct from the already conceived components. To do so, the Second Language Pragmatics Aptitude Test and the LLAMA test were administered to 200 native English-speaking adults, within the age range of 18 to 38, who entered the study through availability sampling. An exploratory factor analysis was run and the results showed loadings on two components indicating that pragmatics aptitude is distinct from the other components of language aptitude measured through the currently used language aptitude batteries. In order to confirm this finding, a subset of the data from 40 randomly-selected participants (out of the original 200) was subjected to paired-samples t-test. The results demonstrated a significant difference between test scores implying that the two tests neither overlap with each other nor yield redundant results. This proves the SLPAT and the LLAMA measure two distinct constructs suggesting that there is an aptitude for second language pragmatics learning, which could be measured to predict future success in learning the pragmatics of a second language.