ABSTRACT
The major purpose of this chapter is to present an integrated account of salience and then to explain how this theoretical construct may inform our understanding of the L2 acquisition of structured variation. Here, I discuss three sociolinguistic variables, while arguing that different learning outcomes is attributable to the varying degrees of salience that each variable feature possesses. I also argue that our account of L2 acquisition of structured variation is incomplete without a discussion of at least two other variables, i.e., frequency and constraint complexity. I conclude with a major plea for more research examining the dynamic interplay of all three variables.
