Language Attrition
Language attrition is the decline in proficiency in a language due to reduced use or contact. It can affect the L1 (in immigrants immersed in an L2 environment) or the L2 (when instruction or immersion ends). Crucially, attrition is not simply forgetting — it involves active restructuring of the linguistic system under the influence of the dominant language (Schmid, 2011).
L1 Attrition
L1 attrition occurs when speakers live in an L2-dominant environment and reduce L1 use. Manifestations include:
- Lexical retrieval difficulties — slower access to L1 words, tip-of-the-tongue states
- Reduced fluency — more hesitations, pauses, self-corrections, and slower speech rate
- Morphosyntactic simplification — loss of subtle distinctions (e.g., case marking, grammatical gender)
- L2 influence on L1 — code-mixing, loan translations, restructured semantic categories
Schmid (2011) showed that L1 attrition is mediated by several factors:
| Factor | Effect |
|---|---|
| Age of emigration | Speakers who emigrated before approximately age 12 show more L1 attrition |
| L1 use frequency | Higher formal L1 use correlates with less attrition |
| Length of residence | Longer L2 immersion increases attrition, though the relationship is not linear |
| Attitude and identity | Strong L1 identity and positive attitudes toward L1 culture are protective |
L2 Attrition
L2 attrition occurs when learners lose contact with the L2 after a period of instruction or immersion. Research shows:
- Receptive skills (reading, listening) are more resistant to attrition than productive skills (speaking, writing)
- Higher proficiency at the time of disuse provides a stronger buffer against attrition
- Skills acquired through deeper engagement and meaning-focused use are more resistant than those from shallow, form-focused drilling
Attrition and Multi-competence
Cook's multi-competence framework reframes attrition not as loss but as reorganisation. The multilingual mind is a dynamic system — changes in one language inevitably affect others. What looks like L1 "decline" may be the system adapting to new communicative demands, allocating resources to the language most needed.
The Regression Hypothesis
Jakobson (1941) proposed that attrition reverses the order of acquisition — the last-acquired features are lost first. Evidence is mixed: while some L2 attrition studies support this pattern, L1 attrition does not follow a neat reversal.
The Activation Threshold Hypothesis
Paradis (2004) proposed that attrition reflects rising activation thresholds. Items that are not regularly activated require increasingly more stimulation to be retrieved. This explains why attrited language knowledge often remains latent — rapid relearning (savings effects) demonstrates that knowledge is not erased but has become less accessible.
Teaching Implications
- Maintenance programmes for heritage and immigrant learners should prioritise continued meaningful L1 use
- L2 learners who will not have post-course exposure should be given strategies for self-maintenance (extensive reading, media consumption, online communities)
- The "use it or lose it" principle applies — but attrition is partially reversible with renewed exposure
- Deeper processing during learning creates more attrition-resistant knowledge
References
- Schmid, M.S. (2011). Language attrition. Cambridge University Press.
- Paradis, M. (2004). A neurolinguistic theory of bilingualism. John Benjamins.
- Schmid, M.S. & Mehotcheva, T. (2012). Foreign language attrition. Dutch Journal of Applied Linguistics, 1(1), 102–124.