1
|
Valdés Kroff JR, Dussias PE. Production, processing, and prediction in bilingual codeswitching. PSYCHOLOGY OF LEARNING AND MOTIVATION 2023. [DOI: 10.1016/bs.plm.2023.02.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 04/05/2023]
|
2
|
Does bilingualism come with linguistic costs? A meta-analytic review of the bilingual lexical deficit. Psychon Bull Rev 2022:10.3758/s13423-022-02136-7. [DOI: 10.3758/s13423-022-02136-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 06/03/2022] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
Abstract
AbstractA series of recent studies have shown that the once-assumed cognitive advantage of bilingualism finds little support in the evidence available to date. Surprisingly, however, the view that bilingualism incurs linguistic costs (the so-called lexical deficit) has not yet been subjected to the same degree of scrutiny, despite its centrality for our understanding of the human capacity for language. The current study implemented a comprehensive meta-analysis to address this gap. By analyzing 478 effect sizes from 130 studies on expressive vocabulary, we found that observed lexical deficits could not be attributed to bilingualism: Simultaneous bilinguals (who acquired both languages from birth) did not exhibit any lexical deficit, nor did sequential bilinguals (who acquired one language from birth and a second language after that) when tested in their mother tongue. Instead, systematic evidence for a lexical deficit was found among sequential bilinguals when tested in their second language, and more so for late than for early second language learners. This result suggests that a lexical deficit may be a phenomenon of second language acquisition rather than bilingualism per se.
Collapse
|
3
|
Ware C, Dautricourt S, Gonneaud J, Chételat G. Does Second Language Learning Promote Neuroplasticity in Aging? A Systematic Review of Cognitive and Neuroimaging Studies. Front Aging Neurosci 2021; 13:706672. [PMID: 34867264 PMCID: PMC8633567 DOI: 10.3389/fnagi.2021.706672] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/07/2021] [Accepted: 10/19/2021] [Indexed: 01/15/2023] Open
Abstract
As the population ages, understanding how to maintain older adults' cognitive abilities is essential. Bilingualism has been linked to higher cognitive reserve, better performance in executive control, changes in brain structure and function relative to monolinguals, and delay in dementia onset. Learning a second language thus seems a promising avenue for cognitive enhancement in older adults. Our review aims to determine whether learning a foreign language in later life improves cognition and promotes neuroplasticity. We screened articles from the Pubmed, Scopus, and Science Direct databases to identify interventional studies using second language training in senior participants, including either cognition or neuroimaging as outcome measures. A total of nine articles were found, with only one neuroimaging study. Results from these studies are inconsistent, but tend to suggest that second language learning is associated with improvement in attentional switching, inhibition, working memory, and increased functional connectivity. We discuss the implications of these results, and suggest new directions and methodological recommendations for future research.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Caitlin Ware
- PhIND Physiopathology and Imaging of Neurological Disorders, Institut Blood and Brain @ Caen-Normandie, Normandie Univ, UNICAEN, INSERM, U1237, Caen, France
- CRPMS, Université de Paris, Paris, France
| | - Sophie Dautricourt
- PhIND Physiopathology and Imaging of Neurological Disorders, Institut Blood and Brain @ Caen-Normandie, Normandie Univ, UNICAEN, INSERM, U1237, Caen, France
- Neurology Department, University Hospital, Caen, France
| | - Julie Gonneaud
- PhIND Physiopathology and Imaging of Neurological Disorders, Institut Blood and Brain @ Caen-Normandie, Normandie Univ, UNICAEN, INSERM, U1237, Caen, France
| | - Gael Chételat
- PhIND Physiopathology and Imaging of Neurological Disorders, Institut Blood and Brain @ Caen-Normandie, Normandie Univ, UNICAEN, INSERM, U1237, Caen, France
- Neurology Department, University Hospital, Caen, France
| |
Collapse
|
4
|
Borodkin K, Livny A, Kushnir T, Tsarfaty G, Maliniak O, Faust M. Linking L2 proficiency and patterns of functional connectivity during L1 word retrieval. BRAIN AND LANGUAGE 2021; 216:104931. [PMID: 33677174 DOI: 10.1016/j.bandl.2021.104931] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/11/2020] [Revised: 12/29/2020] [Accepted: 02/08/2021] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
Second language (L2) learners differ greatly in language proficiency, which is partially explained by variability in native language (L1) skills. The present fMRI study explored the neural underpinnings of the L1-L2 link. Twenty L2 learners completed a tip-of-the-tongue (TOT) task that required retrieving words in L1. Low-proficiency L2 learners showed greater functional connectivity for correct and TOT responses between the left inferior frontal gyrus and right-sided homologues of the temporoparietal regions that support phonological processing (e.g., supramarginal gyrus), possibly reflecting difficulty with phonological retrieval. High-proficiency L2 learners showed greater connectivity for erroneous responses (TOT in particular) between the left inferior frontal gyrus and regions of left medial temporal lobe (e.g., hippocampus), associated with implicit learning processes. The difference between low- and high-proficiency L2 learners in functional connectivity, which is evident even during L1 processing, may affect L2 learning processes and outcomes.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Katy Borodkin
- Department of Communication Disorders, Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Israel.
| | - Abigail Livny
- Department of Diagnostic Imaging, Sheba Medical Center, Tel-Hashomer, Israel; The Joseph Sagol Neuroscience Center, Sheba Medical Center, Tel Hashomer, Israel; Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Israel
| | - Tammar Kushnir
- Department of Diagnostic Imaging, Sheba Medical Center, Tel-Hashomer, Israel; Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Israel
| | - Galia Tsarfaty
- Department of Diagnostic Imaging, Sheba Medical Center, Tel-Hashomer, Israel; Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Israel
| | - Omer Maliniak
- Department of Psychology, Bar-Ilan University, Ramat Gan, Israel
| | - Miriam Faust
- Department of Psychology, Bar-Ilan University, Ramat Gan, Israel; Gonda Brain Research Center, Bar-Ilan University, Ramat Gan, Israel
| |
Collapse
|
5
|
Mendis SB, Raymont V, Tabet N. Bilingualism: A Global Public Health Strategy for Healthy Cognitive Aging. Front Neurol 2021; 12:628368. [PMID: 33935937 PMCID: PMC8081826 DOI: 10.3389/fneur.2021.628368] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/11/2020] [Accepted: 03/16/2021] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Dementia is a global public health priority which cost global societies $818 billion in 2015 and is disproportionately impacting low and middle-income countries (LMICs). With limited availability of disease modifying drugs to treat Alzheimer's disease (AD), researchers have increasingly focused on preventative strategies which may promote healthy cognitive aging and mitigate the risk of cognitive impairment in aging. Lifelong bilingualism has been presented as both a highly debated and promising cognitive reserve factor which has been associated with better cognitive outcomes in aging. A recent metanalysis has suggested that bilingual individuals present on average 4.05 years later with the clinical features of AD than monolinguals. Bilinguals are also diagnosed with AD ~2.0 years later than monolingual counterparts. In this perspective piece we critically evaluate the findings of this metanalysis and consider the specific implications of these findings to LMICs. Furthermore, we appraise the major epidemiological studies conducted globally on bilingualism and the onset of dementia. We consider how both impactful and robust studies of bilingualism and cognition in older age may be conducted in LMICs. Given the limited expenditure and resources available in LMICs and minimal successes of clinical trials of disease modifying drugs we propose that bilingualism should be positioned as an important and specific public health strategy for maintaining healthy cognitive aging in LMICs. Finally, we reflect upon the scope of implementing bilingualism within the education systems of LMICs and the promotion of bilingualism as a healthy cognitive aging initiative within government policy.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
| | - Vanessa Raymont
- Oxford Brain Health Clinical Trials Unit, Oxford, United Kingdom
| | - Naji Tabet
- Center for Dementia Studies, Brighton and Sussex Medical School, Brighton, United Kingdom
| |
Collapse
|
6
|
The Differences in the Whole-Brain Functional Network between Cantonese-Mandarin Bilinguals and Mandarin Monolinguals. Brain Sci 2021; 11:brainsci11030310. [PMID: 33801390 PMCID: PMC8000089 DOI: 10.3390/brainsci11030310] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/10/2020] [Revised: 02/06/2021] [Accepted: 02/25/2021] [Indexed: 01/21/2023] Open
Abstract
Cantonese-Mandarin bilinguals are logographic-logographic bilinguals that provide a unique population for bilingual studies. Whole brain functional connectivity analysis makes up for the deficiencies of previous bilingual studies on the seed-based approach and helps give a complete picture of the brain connectivity profiles of logographic-logographic bilinguals. The current study is to explore the effect of the long-term logographic-logographic bilingual experience on the functional connectivity of the whole-brain network. Thirty Cantonese-Mandarin bilingual and 30 Mandarin monolingual college students were recruited in the study. Resting state functional magnetic resonance imaging (rs-fMRI) was performed to investigate the whole-brain functional connectivity differences by network-based statistics (NBS), and the differences in network efficiency were investigated by graph theory between the two groups (false discovery rate corrected for multiple comparisons, q = 0.05). Compared with the Mandarin monolingual group, Cantonese-Mandarin bilinguals increased functional connectivity between the bilateral frontoparietal and temporal regions and decreased functional connectivity in the bilateral occipital cortex and between the right sensorimotor region and bilateral prefrontal cortex. No significant differences in network efficiency were found between the two groups. Compared with the Mandarin monolinguals, Cantonese-Mandarin bilinguals had no significant discrepancies in network efficiency. However, the Cantonese-Mandarin bilinguals developed a more strongly connected subnetwork related to language control, inhibition, phonological and semantic processing, and memory retrieval, whereas a weaker connected subnetwork related to visual and phonology processing, and speech production also developed.
Collapse
|
7
|
Capturing multiple interaction effects in L1 and L2 object-naming reaction times in healthy bilinguals: a mixed-effects multiple regression analysis. BMC Neurosci 2020; 21:3. [PMID: 31952475 PMCID: PMC6969469 DOI: 10.1186/s12868-020-0549-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/25/2018] [Accepted: 01/07/2020] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
Background It is difficult to set up a balanced higher-order full-factorial experiment that can capture multiple intricate interactions between cognitive and psycholinguistic factors underlying bilingual speech production. To capture interactions more fully in one study, we analyzed object-naming reaction times (RTs) by using mixed-effects multiple regression. Methods Ten healthy bilinguals (median age: 23 years, seven females) were asked to name 131 colored pictures of common objects in each of their languages. RTs were analyzed based on language status, proficiency, word choice, word frequency, word duration, initial phoneme, time series, and participant’s gender. Results Among five significant interactions, new findings include a facilitating effect of a cross-language shared initial phoneme (mean RT for shared phoneme: 974 ms vs. mean RT for different phoneme: 1020 ms), which profited males less (mean profit: 10 ms) than females (mean profit: 47 ms). Conclusions Our data support language-independent phonological activation and a gender difference in inhibitory cognitive language control. Single word production process in healthy adult bilinguals is affected by interactions among cognitive, phonological, and semantic factors.
Collapse
|
8
|
Tip of the tongue after any language: Reintroducing the notion of blocked retrieval. Cognition 2019; 193:104027. [PMID: 31369922 DOI: 10.1016/j.cognition.2019.104027] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/27/2018] [Revised: 07/04/2019] [Accepted: 07/10/2019] [Indexed: 11/23/2022]
Abstract
Tip-of-the-tongue (TOT) states often entail a phenomenological sense that retrieval is blocked, but incomplete activation is more commonly assumed as the underlying mechanism. Bilinguals have more TOTs than monolinguals, and commonly report that one language feels less accessible after immersion in another although evidence for this is minimal. Kreiner and Degani (2015) reported Russian-Hebrew bilinguals had more TOTs for Hebrew words after watching a movie in Russian, and surprisingly, native Hebrew speakers who did not know Russian also had more TOTs. Aiming to replicate this work, 72 Spanish-English bilinguals and 72 monolinguals completed a similar protocol in Experiment 1. Bilinguals and monolinguals exhibited significant and similarly sized interference effects after watching a Spanish movie. In Experiment 2, monolinguals completed five conditions: (a) Russian movie, (b) Spanish with English subtitles movie, (c) American Sign Language movie, (d) Spanish movie without audio and instructions to copy movements, and (e) a non-linguistic control (playing Tetris). All but the last two conditions elicited interference (increased TOTs and reduced correct retrievals). We suggest that even a brief pseudo-immersion experience can interfere with lexical-retrieval in the dominant language possibly via whole-language inhibition, supporting notions of blocked retrieval, albeit not at the level of individual lexical representations as previously proposed.
Collapse
|
9
|
Abstract
Though bilinguals know many more words than monolinguals, within each language bilinguals exhibit some processing disadvantages, extending to sublexical processes specifying the sound structure of words (Gollan & Goldrick, Cognition, 125(3), 491-497, 2012). This study investigated the source of this bilingual disadvantage. Spanish-English bilinguals, Mandarin-English bilinguals, and English monolinguals repeated tongue twisters composed of English nonwords. Twister materials were made up of sound sequences that are unique to the English language (nonoverlapping) or sound sequences that are highly similar-yet phonetically distinct-in the two languages for the bilingual groups (overlapping). If bilingual disadvantages in tongue-twister production result from competition between phonetic representations in their two languages, bilinguals should have more difficulty selecting an intended target when similar sounds are activated in the overlapping sound sequences. Alternatively, if bilingual disadvantages reflect the relatively reduced frequency of use of sound sequences, bilinguals should have greater difficulty in the nonoverlapping condition (as the elements of such sound sequences are limited to a single language). Consistent with the frequency-lag account, but not the competition account, both Spanish-English and Mandarin-English bilinguals were disadvantaged in tongue-twister production only when producing twisters with nonoverlapping sound sequences. Thus, the bilingual disadvantage in tongue-twister production likely reflects reduced frequency of use of sound sequences specific to each language.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Chuchu Li
- Department of Psychiatry, University of California, San Diego, 9500 Gilman Drive, La Jolla, CA, 92093-0948, USA.
| | | | - Tamar H Gollan
- Department of Psychiatry, University of California, San Diego, 9500 Gilman Drive, La Jolla, CA, 92093-0948, USA
| |
Collapse
|
10
|
Giezen MR, Emmorey K. Evidence for a bimodal bilingual disadvantage in letter fluency. BILINGUALISM (CAMBRIDGE, ENGLAND) 2017; 20:42-48. [PMID: 28785168 PMCID: PMC5544419 DOI: 10.1017/s1366728916000596] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/02/2023]
Abstract
Many bimodal bilinguals are immersed in a spoken language-dominant environment from an early age and, unlike unimodal bilinguals, do not necessarily divide their language use between languages. Nonetheless, early ASL-English bilinguals retrieved fewer words in a letter fluency task in their dominant language compared to monolingual English speakers with equal vocabulary level. This finding demonstrates that reduced vocabulary size and/or frequency of use cannot completely account for bilingual disadvantages in verbal fluency. Instead, retrieval difficulties likely reflect between-language interference. Furthermore, it suggests that the two languages of bilinguals compete for selection even when they are expressed with distinct articulators.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Marcel R Giezen
- BCBL. Basque Center on Cognition, Brain and Language, San Sebastian, Spain
| | - Karen Emmorey
- School of Speech, Language and Hearing Sciences, San Diego State University
| |
Collapse
|
11
|
Emmorey K, Giezen MR, Gollan TH. Psycholinguistic, cognitive, and neural implications of bimodal bilingualism. BILINGUALISM (CAMBRIDGE, ENGLAND) 2016; 19:223-242. [PMID: 28804269 PMCID: PMC5553278 DOI: 10.1017/s1366728915000085] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/18/2023]
Abstract
Bimodal bilinguals, fluent in a signed and a spoken language, exhibit a unique form of bilingualism because their two languages access distinct sensory-motor systems for comprehension and production. Differences between unimodal and bimodal bilinguals have implications for how the brain is organized to control, process, and represent two languages. Evidence from code-blending (simultaneous production of a word and a sign) indicates that the production system can access two lexical representations without cost, and the comprehension system must be able to simultaneously integrate lexical information from two languages. Further, evidence of cross-language activation in bimodal bilinguals indicates the necessity of links between languages at the lexical or semantic level. Finally, the bimodal bilingual brain differs from the unimodal bilingual brain with respect to the degree and extent of neural overlap for the two languages, with less overlap for bimodal bilinguals.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Karen Emmorey
- School of Speech, Language and Hearing Sciences, San Diego State University
| | | | - Tamar H Gollan
- University of California San Diego, Department of Psychiatry
| |
Collapse
|
12
|
First learned words are not forgotten: Age-of-acquisition effects in the tip-of-the-tongue experience. Mem Cognit 2015; 43:1085-103. [DOI: 10.3758/s13421-015-0525-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
|
13
|
Kreiner H, Degani T. Tip-of-the-tongue in a second language: The effects of brief first-language exposure and long-term use. Cognition 2015; 137:106-114. [DOI: 10.1016/j.cognition.2014.12.011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 49] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/26/2013] [Revised: 12/21/2014] [Accepted: 12/27/2014] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
|
14
|
Borodkin K, Faust M. Naming abilities in low-proficiency second language learners. JOURNAL OF LEARNING DISABILITIES 2014; 47:237-253. [PMID: 22930155 DOI: 10.1177/0022219412453769] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/01/2023]
Abstract
Difficulties in second language (L2) learning are often associated with recognizable learning difficulties in native language (L1), such as in dyslexia. However, some individuals have low L2 proficiency but intact L1 reading skills. These L2 learners experience frequent tip-of-the-tongue states while naming in L1, which indicates that they have a weakness in retrieval of phonological codes of words. The authors hypothesized that if naming ability is shared across languages, this difficulty would reemerge in L2 naming, which was tested using the tip-of-the-tongue experimental paradigm. Consistent with this hypothesis, low-proficiency L2 learners (n = 15) reported more tip-of-the-tongue states, more frequently mispronounced correctly retrieved words, and benefited less from phonological cuing compared to high-proficiency L2 learners (n = 23). It is notable that low-proficiency L2 learners performed worse than individuals with dyslexia (n = 16) on some of these measures, despite the same level of L2 proficiency. These results indicate that L2 naming difficulties of low-proficiency L2 learners are a manifestation not merely of their low L2 proficiency but rather of a general weakness in phonological word form retrieval, which is shared across languages. More broadly, the study provides further evidence for the existence of a distinct profile of cognitive weaknesses characteristic of the behavioral phenotype of low-proficiency L2 learners.
Collapse
|
15
|
Gollan TH, Ferreira VS, Cera C, Flett S. Translation-priming effects on tip-of-the-tongue states. LANGUAGE AND COGNITIVE PROCESSES 2014; 29:278-288. [PMID: 24644375 PMCID: PMC3955393 DOI: 10.1080/01690965.2012.762457] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/29/2023]
Abstract
Bilinguals experience more tip-of-the-tongue (TOT) states than monolinguals, but it is not known if this is caused in part by access of representations from both of bilinguals' languages, or dual-language activation. In two translation priming experiments, bilinguals were given three Spanish primes and produced either semantically (Experiment 1) or phonologically related Spanish words (Experiment 2) to each. They then named a picture in English. On critical trials, one of the primes was the Spanish translation of the English picture name. Translation primes significantly increased TOTs regardless of task, and also speeded correct retrievals but only with the semantic task. In both experiments translation-primed TOTs were significantly more likely to resolve spontaneously. These results illustrate an effect of non-dominant language activation on dominant-language retrieval, as well as imply that TOTs can arise during (not after) lexical retrieval, at a level of processing where translation equivalent lexical representations normally interact (possibly competing for selection, or mutually activating each other, or both depending on the locus of retrieval failure).
Collapse
|
16
|
Thom EE, Sandhofer CM. How Symbolic Experience Shapes Children's Symbolic Flexibility. Child Dev 2013; 85:738-54. [DOI: 10.1111/cdev.12147] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
|
17
|
CODERRE EMILYL, VAN HEUVEN WALTERJB, CONKLIN KATHY. The timing and magnitude of Stroop interference and facilitation in monolinguals and bilinguals. BILINGUALISM (CAMBRIDGE, ENGLAND) 2013; 16:420-441. [PMID: 23483406 PMCID: PMC3590568 DOI: 10.1017/s1366728912000405] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/28/2011] [Revised: 06/15/2012] [Accepted: 06/26/2012] [Indexed: 06/01/2023]
Abstract
Executive control abilities and lexical access speed in Stroop performance were investigated in English monolinguals and two groups of bilinguals (English-Chinese and Chinese-English) in their first (L1) and second (L2) languages. Predictions were based on a bilingual cognitive advantage hypothesis, implicating cognitive control ability as the critical factor determining Stroop interference; and two bilingual lexical disadvantage hypotheses, focusing on lexical access speed. Importantly, each hypothesis predicts different response patterns in a Stroop task manipulating stimulus onset asynchrony (SOA). There was evidence for a bilingual cognitive advantage, although this effect was sensitive to a number of variables including proficiency, language immersion, and script. In lexical access speed, no differences occurred between monolinguals and bilinguals in their native languages, but there was evidence for a delay in L2 processing speed relative to the L1. Overall, the data highlight the multitude of factors affecting executive control and lexical access speed in bilinguals.
Collapse
|
18
|
Emmorey K, Petrich JAF, Gollan TH. Bimodal bilingualism and the frequency-lag hypothesis. JOURNAL OF DEAF STUDIES AND DEAF EDUCATION 2013; 18:1-11. [PMID: 23073709 PMCID: PMC3598412 DOI: 10.1093/deafed/ens034] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/13/2012] [Revised: 08/28/2012] [Accepted: 09/05/2012] [Indexed: 05/29/2023]
Abstract
The frequency-lag hypothesis proposes that bilinguals have slowed lexical retrieval relative to monolinguals and in their nondominant language relative to their dominant language, particularly for low-frequency words. These effects arise because bilinguals divide their language use between 2 languages and use their nondominant language less frequently. We conducted a picture-naming study with hearing American Sign Language (ASL)-English bilinguals (bimodal bilinguals), deaf signers, and English-speaking monolinguals. As predicted by the frequency-lag hypothesis, bimodal bilinguals were slower, less accurate, and exhibited a larger frequency effect when naming pictures in ASL as compared with English (their dominant language) and as compared with deaf signers. For English there was no difference in naming latencies, error rates, or frequency effects for bimodal bilinguals as compared with monolinguals. Neither age of ASL acquisition nor interpreting experience affected the results; picture-naming accuracy and frequency effects were equivalent for deaf signers and English monolinguals. Larger frequency effects in ASL relative to English for bimodal bilinguals suggests that they are affected by a frequency lag in ASL. The absence of a lag for English could reflect the use of mouthing and/or code-blending, which may shield bimodal bilinguals from the lexical slowing observed for spoken language bilinguals in the dominant language.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Karen Emmorey
- Laboratory for Language and Cognitive Neuroscience, 6495 Alvarado Road, San Diego, CA 92120, USA.
| | | | | |
Collapse
|
19
|
Emmorey K, Petrich J, Gollan TH. Bilingual processing of ASL-English code-blends: The consequences of accessing two lexical representations simultaneously. JOURNAL OF MEMORY AND LANGUAGE 2012; 67:199-210. [PMID: 22773886 PMCID: PMC3389804 DOI: 10.1016/j.jml.2012.04.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/29/2023]
Abstract
Bilinguals who are fluent in American Sign Language (ASL) and English often produce code-blends - simultaneously articulating a sign and a word while conversing with other ASL-English bilinguals. To investigate the cognitive mechanisms underlying code-blend processing, we compared picture-naming times (Experiment 1) and semantic categorization times (Experiment 2) for code-blends versus ASL signs and English words produced alone. In production, code-blending did not slow lexical retrieval for ASL and actually facilitated access to low-frequency signs. However, code-blending delayed speech production because bimodal bilinguals synchronized English and ASL lexical onsets. In comprehension, code-blending speeded access to both languages. Bimodal bilinguals' ability to produce code-blends without any cost to ASL implies that the language system either has (or can develop) a mechanism for switching off competition to allow simultaneous production of close competitors. Code-blend facilitation effects during comprehension likely reflect cross-linguistic (and cross-modal) integration at the phonological and/or semantic levels. The absence of any consistent processing costs for code-blending illustrates a surprising limitation on dual-task costs and may explain why bimodal bilinguals code-blend more often than they code-switch.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Karen Emmorey
- San Diego State University, Lab for Language and Cognitive Neuroscience, 6495 Alvarado Road, Suite 200, San Diego, CA 92120, USA, Phone: (619) 594-8080, Fax: (619) 549-8056
| | - Jennifer Petrich
- San Diego State University Research Foundation, Lab for Language and Cognitive Neuroscience, 6495 Alvarado Road, Suite 200, San Diego, CA 92120, USA
| | - Tamar H. Gollan
- University of California, San Diego, Department of Psychiatry, 9500 Gilman Drive, La Jolla, CA 92093-0949, USA
| |
Collapse
|
20
|
Runnqvist E, Strijkers K, Sadat J, Costa A. On the temporal and functional origin of l2 disadvantages in speech production: a critical review. Front Psychol 2011; 2:379. [PMID: 22203812 PMCID: PMC3241344 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2011.00379] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/04/2011] [Accepted: 11/29/2011] [Indexed: 11/26/2022] Open
Abstract
Despite a large amount of psycholinguistic research devoted to the issue of processing differences between a first and a second language, there is no consensus regarding the locus where these emerge or the mechanism behind them. The aim of this article is to briefly examine both the behavioral and neuroscientific evidence in order to critically assess three hypotheses that have been put forward in the literature to explain such differences: the weaker links, executive control, and post-lexical accounts. We conclude that (a) while all stages of processing are likely to be slowed down when speaking in an L2 compared to an L1, the differences seem to originate at a lexical stage; and (b) frequency of use seems to be the variable mainly responsible for these bilingual processing disadvantages.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Elin Runnqvist
- Departamento de Psicología Básica, Universitat de Barcelona Barcelona, Spain
| | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
21
|
Parker Jones O, Green DW, Grogan A, Pliatsikas C, Filippopolitis K, Ali N, Lee HL, Ramsden S, Gazarian K, Prejawa S, Seghier ML, Price CJ. Where, when and why brain activation differs for bilinguals and monolinguals during picture naming and reading aloud. Cereb Cortex 2011; 22:892-902. [PMID: 21705392 PMCID: PMC3306575 DOI: 10.1093/cercor/bhr161] [Citation(s) in RCA: 103] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Using functional magnetic resonance imaging, we found that when bilinguals named pictures or read words aloud, in their native or nonnative language, activation was higher relative to monolinguals in 5 left hemisphere regions: dorsal precentral gyrus, pars triangularis, pars opercularis, superior temporal gyrus, and planum temporale. We further demonstrate that these areas are sensitive to increasing demands on speech production in monolinguals. This suggests that the advantage of being bilingual comes at the expense of increased work in brain areas that support monolingual word processing. By comparing the effect of bilingualism across a range of tasks, we argue that activation is higher in bilinguals compared with monolinguals because word retrieval is more demanding; articulation of each word is less rehearsed; and speech output needs careful monitoring to avoid errors when competition for word selection occurs between, as well as within, language.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Oiwi Parker Jones
- Wellcome Trust Centre for Neuroimaging, Institute of Neurology, University College London, London WC1N 3BG, UK.
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
Collapse
|