AFinLA’s research network for Speech and Spoken Language Research was
established in 2014. This is the first thematic publication from the
network. This introductory article introduces and classifies the other
articles in this collection. In addition, we examine earlier AFinLA
publications from the preceding four decades and evaluate the extent of
pronunciation or spoken language research in AFinLA’s publication
series. In our analysis, we noticed that studies related to
pronunciation or spoken language research formed ca. 12 % of the total
volume of published articles. There has been a slight proportional
decrease in number during the decades. Spoken language studies have been
more common than studies focusing on pronunciation. The target
languages have been most commonly either Finnish or English. The main
focus has often been on learning or assessing foreign language skills,
but studies focusing on the teaching of pronunciation or spoken language
have so far been very rare in Finland.