Sprechgeschwindigkeit als Indikator der perzipierten Sprechflüssigkeit in Deutsch als Fremdsprache
Speech rate as an indicator of perceived fluency in German as foreign language

Summary/Abstract: The aim of this article is to evaluate perceived fluency, which according to research results refers to the impression of the listener that the psycholinguistic processes of language planning and language production work smoothly and efficiently, i.e. that these two processes can be performed by speakers almost simultaneously. The speech rate, as a predictor of perceived fluency, relates to measurable speed of spoken language and is identified as the number of syllables per unit time. A group of 14 students of German (L2) at the Faculty of Philosophy in Split took part in this study. The results of the analysis show that the speech rate in the prepared speech is approximately nine percent higher than in the unprepared speech. Based on the data, there is a significant difference between the assessments of perceived fluency, i.e. the notes for the prepared speech are significantly higher compared to the unprepared speech. The results obtained could be explained by the priming effect and, consequently, the reduced cognitive load. The conclusions of this study are comparable to previous studies, in which the speech rate is mentioned as one of the most important predictors of perceived fluency.

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