Bilingualism Flashcards
Traditional Story
-special group of language users
-learning 2 languages would be confusing
-late bilinguilism
-even highly successful late L2 learners speak with an accent and appear to fail to acquire subtle aspects of the L2 grammar
New Attitude About Bilingualism
-there is greater plasticity than previously understood
-bilingualism provides a lens for examining neurocognitive processes
-bilingualism alters the structure and function of the mind
Three Discoveries About Bilingualism
- Language Coactivation
- Beyond Language Processing
- Individual Differences
Language Coactivation
Joint activation of 2 language systems
-Interactional
-lexical information is activated in target and non-target languages
Lexical Decision Task
Task: Is this a real word?
- yes or no
Picture Naming Task
Task: Name each picture out loud… in a specific language
Word Characteristics
- unique words vs. shared words
-coactivation increase = word similarity increase
-E.g. if you’re talking in french and english doesn’t impair = no coactivation
-First fixation duration: length of the 1st time eye fixates on the target - lexical access
-Total fixation duration: length of all eye fixations on target - semantic integration and conflict resolution
-Longer fixation durations linked to greater comprehension difficulty
Do bilinguals show effects of parallel activation during reading?
L1 vs L2
Speakers can control language coactivation when speaking their L1, but not when speaking their (weaker) L2
L2
Weaker conceptual links
-Processing is mediated by L1
L1
Stronger conceptual links
-stronger connection
-Processing is more independent
The native language is affected by the learning of a second language
Will brain activity show an effect of L2 on L1?
Beyond Language Processing
Inhibition
-is triggered in the presence of competition
-is proportional to the level of coactivation
-prevents intrusions from the non-used languages
Inhibition
Are they semantically?
-Participants were slower to respond to homographs presented along with words related to the Spanish meaning of the homograph
-Bilinguals inhibited the irrelevent homograph meaning requiring now more time to reactivate
Asymmetrical Switching Cost
-You need a lot of inhibition of english -> therefor you need more time to reactivate this language
Domain Specific vs Domain General
Lifelong management of 2 languages -> enhancements in language control -> enhancements in cognitive control -> changes in the brain
Bilingual Advantage?
-Flanker Task: the conflict effect was significantly reduced only for bilinguals during the second session
-Spanish-English speaking bilinguals exhibited greater bilateral frontal gray matter volume GMV compared with English speaking monolinguals
Monolingual
Aging is asociated with an increased reliance on the frontal regions
Bilingual
The aging brain shows preservation of the posterior regions, and the connectivity
Individual Differences
-Meta-analyses and systematic reviews found a bilingual/multilingual advantage
-Studies and meta-analyses have emerged questioning the differences
Language Experience
Your reality
-E.g. I am english, but I am always speaking french at school everyday
-What age
-How much you use it
-Where do you use it
Entropy
Reflects the linguistic composition, or overall balance of language use, across multiple communicative contexts
High Entropy
Indicative of high diversity
-Integrated: use multiple languages in a balanced fashion within a context
-Exhibit greater functional connectivity in the brain network associated with language and executive control, and showed higher scores on cognitive control
Low Entropy
Indicative of low diversity
-Compartmentalized: use a single language in a context
-Predictible
-age- and menopause- related declines in cognitive control, suggesting that females may compensate for decline by virtue of adapting to the externally imposed demands of the language environment
Summary on Bilingualism
- The 2 languages are not seperate
- Bilingualism has consequences for both languages
- Brain and cognition are plastic -> bilingualism is tool to explore this
- Bilinguals differ by virtue of the demands of the context and the experience
