“I WENT TO VENICE AND WAS VERY WORRIED.” – DIFFERENTIAL SUBSTITUTION OF THE /V/-/W/ CONTRAST IN SERBIAN-ENGLISH INTERPHONOLOGY

Abstract

Previous findings of SLA research underlined the significance of differential substitution as one of the most common strategies for overcoming difficulties in pronouncing English consonants. The acquisition of /v/-/w/ contrast seems particularly demanding for Serbian EFL learners, due to diverse factors, the dominant one being mother tongue interference and the resulting perceptual assimilation. Having the previously stated in mind, as well as the scarcity of research in the Serbian scientific context, the present study aimed at investigating instances of differential substitution of the English labiodental fricative and the labial-velar approximant in relation to the phonetic context and the formality of task type. Both the perception and production of a total of 72 English-major students were tested using different instruments, including phonemic discrimination task, wordlist as well as paragraph reading, and the interview. The obtained data were quantitatively analyzed and supported by spectrogram illustrations of both native and non-native speakers of English. The results indicate a greater frequency of /v/-substitution ([w] being the main substitute) with phonetic context and task type playing a statistically significant role in differential substitution. Instances of substitution of the labial-velar approximant were not as frequent and are said to be characteristic of a specific group of learners (Serbian labiodental sonorant [ʋ] being the main substitute). The results underscore the variability and complexity of the interlangauge system and the importance of valuing the process, and not merely the outcomes of L2 sound acquisition.