Acquiring intensifier variation abroad: Exploring muy and bien in Spain and Mexico

Research on nativelike variation in second language (L2) systems indicates that learners studying abroad may adapt to regional norms as they build sociolinguistic competence (e.g., Kanwit & Solon, [Kanwit, M., 2013]; Salgado‐Robles, [Salgado‐Robles, F., 2014]). Spanish exhibits variation between the intensifiers muy [very] and bien [very] across numerous dialects. Recent research has shown greater preference for bien in Latin America than in Spain (Brown & Cortés‐Torres, [Brown, E. L., 2013]; Kanwit, Terán, & Pisabarro Sarrió, [Kanwit, M., 2017]). Nevertheless, variable intensification in L2 Spanish remains uninvestigated. Data showed that learners studying in Mérida, Mexico, selected bien significantly more than did learners in Oviedo, Spain, at the conclusion of a 6‐week stay abroad. This parallels the significantly higher selection on the same task by local Spaniards compared to local Mexican native speakers. Nonetheless, independent linguistic variables played a less straightforward role.