Affective factors Yet even during this proposed optimum age for L2 learning, there may exist an acquisition barrier of quite a different kind. Teenagers are typically much more self- conscious than younger children. If there is a strong element of unwillingness or embarrassment in attempting to produce the different sounds of another language, then it may override whatever physical and cognitive abilities there are. If this self consciousness is accompanied by a lack of empathy with the other culture(for example, feeling no identification with its speakers or their customs), then the subtle effects of not really wanting to sound like a Russian or a German or an American may strongly inhibit the learning process by dull textbooks This type of emotional reaction, or"affect," may also be caused work. unpleasant classroom surroundings or an exhausting schedule of study and/or