Late Bilinguals Research Articles

Does Critical Period Affect Bilingual Advantage for Working Memory and Metacognition?

There have been many studies exploring the advantages that bilingualism confers to individuals’ working memory and metacognition (see Ransdell, 2006; Del Missier et al., 2010). The hypothesis of language critical period states that if no language learning and teaching happen during the critical period, an individual will never be able to fully grasp any language to a full extent (Fromkin et al., 1974). This study investigates whether late bilingualism (second language acquisition after the critical period) will positively affect a person’s working memory and metacognition just like early bilingualism (second language acquisition before the critical period) does. Sixty Chinese persons between the ages of 18 and 35 participated in my online experimental protocol, including a language experience questionnaire, a reading comprehension exam, and a reading span task. I found that late bilingualism poses a similar advantage to an individual’s working memory as early bilingualism, while it negatively affects an individual’s metacognitive awareness of their own language ability. 

Bilinguals benefit from semantic context while perceiving speech in noise in both of their languages: Electrophysiological evidence from the N400 ERP

AbstractAlthough bilinguals benefit from semantic context while perceiving speech-in-noise in their native language (L1), the extent to which bilinguals benefit from semantic context in their second language (L2) is unclear. Here, 57 highly proficient English–French/French–English bilinguals, who varied in L2 age of acquisition, performed a speech-perception-in-noise task in both languages while event-related brain potentials were recorded. Participants listened to and repeated the final word of sentences high or low in semantic constraint, in quiet and with a multi-talker babble mask. Overall, our findings indicate that bilinguals do benefit from semantic context while perceiving speech-in-noise in both their languages. Simultaneous bilinguals showed evidence of processing semantic context similarly to monolinguals. Early sequential bilinguals recruited additional neural resources, suggesting more effective use of semantic context in L2, compared to late bilinguals. Semantic context use was not associated with bilingual language experience or working memory.

Perceptual discrimination measure of non-native phoneme perception in early and late Spanish-English and Japanese-English bilinguals

This study examined speech discrimination of English vowels /ɑ/ (as in “hot”), /ʌ/ (as in “hut”), and /æ/ (as in “hat”) by non-native English speakers, using an AXB discrimination task. Previous research shows that a person’s first language (L1) changes how speech is perceived in a second learned language (L2). Spanish and Japanese were chosen for this study because both languages share the same five spectrally different vowels, but Japanese additionally distinguishes between short and long versions of those five vowels. L2 proficiency and/or amount of L2 input were used as additional predictor variables. The target populations were early and late Spanish-English bilinguals and early and late Japanese-English bilinguals, which were compared to a control group of monolingual American English speakers. We are currently collecting data and based on previous studies (Shafer et al., under review), we predict: (1) monolinguals and early-bilinguals will show better performance than late-bilinguals; (2) discrimination of /ʌ/ vs. /æ/ contrast will be easier than other contrasts, /ʌ/ vs. /ɑ/ and /ɑ/ vs. /æ/. Our findings will address how L1 spectral-temporal cues and L2 age of acquisition affect L2 speech perception.

An examination of articulatory skill in monolinguals and multilinguals: A tongue twister experiment

The main goal of this study is to determine whether articulatory differences exist between monolinguals (n = 19) and bilinguals (n = 21) through the analysis of tongue-twister production, following Goldrick & Blumstein (2006). The latter were divided into early bilinguals (consistent exposure to both of their languages before age 5, n = 8), mid bilinguals (exposure to L2 between 5 and 10 years, n = 5), late bilinguals (L2 exposure between 10 and 15 years, n = 3) and trilinguals (n = 5).The stimuli comprised 64 sequences that each contained four syllables (e.g., kif tif tif kif) and had to be repeated three times to a beat of a metronome (150 beats per minute). The recordings were rated by a trained listener, who gave a score of 1 for each accurately produced onset and coda consonant, and a score of 0 otherwise. In addition, a subset of the sounds produced were manually aligned in Praat to validate the raters' scoring and determine whether speakers also differed in less perceptible aspects of speech. The results show that while there are no overall differences in accuracy between the two groups (monolingual versus multilingual), bilinguals who were first exposed to their second language later in life (between 5 and 15) exhibit a statistically significant advantage in the articulation of tongue-twisters (Dugaillard & Spinu, 2019). Our findings underscore the importance of directly measuring bilingual language proficiency and incorporating this information to experimental design (DelMaschio & Abutalebi 2018, Sulpizio et al. 2019).

Phonetic interaction between late Japanese-English bilinguals' L1 and L2 vowels—A longitudinal study

We investigated late bilinguals' (N = 31) change in their production and perception of the L1 Japanese vowel /i/ and its phonetically associated L2 vowel /i/ and /I/ over one year. The perceptual boundaries between both English /i/-/I/ and Japanese /i/-/e/ were examined through identification tasks. Participants' production of the high front vowels was also analyzed. More than half of the participants exhibited evidence of separating English and Japanese high front vowels from each other in production. Participants who seemed to use similar F1-F2 values for these vowels still tended to separate them. The perception task results showed a perceptual boundary shift in bilinguals' L1 Japanese after one year. That is, they identified more tokens as /i/ than /e/ in /i/-/e/ continuum. This phenomenon was also observed when comparing bilinguals to Japanese monolingual controls. We argue that this change in L1 perception stems from learning a new L2 phonetic category /I/ and associating it with a similar L1 /i/. Individual differences in bilinguals' relative language use and exposure were also examined as potential factors driving changes in perception and production of Japanese/English high front vowels.

Simulating Code-switching Using a Neural Network Model of Bilingual Sentence Production

Code-switching is the alternation from one language to the other during bilingual speech. We present a novel method of researching this phenomenon using computational cognitive modeling. We trained a neural network of bilingual sentence production to simulate early balanced Spanish–English bilinguals, late speakers of English who have Spanish as a dominant native language, and late speakers of Spanish who have English as a dominant native language. The model produced code-switches even though it was not exposed to code-switched input. The simulations predicted how code-switching patterns differ between early balanced and late non-balanced bilinguals; the balanced bilingual simulation code-switches considerably more frequently, which is in line with what has been observed in human speech production. Additionally, we compared the patterns produced by the simulations with two corpora of spontaneous bilingual speech and identified noticeable commonalities and differences. To our knowledge, this is the first computational cognitive model simulating the code-switched production of non-balanced bilinguals and comparing the simulated production of balanced and non-balanced bilinguals with that of human bilinguals.

An empirical study of the classifier effect in advanced L2 users of Chinese

Aims and objectives/purpose/research questions:This article examines the classifier effect on categorization among advanced Chinese as a second language (CSL) learners. More specifically, it aims to answer this question: Is non-classifier language speakers’ categorization of objects influenced by the acquisition of the Chinese classifier system?Design/methodology/approach, data and analysis:Native Chinese speakers, advanced CSL learners and non-CSL participants were asked to rate the relatedness of drawing pairs based on either classifier or taxonomy/theme; advanced CSL learners and non-CSL participants were then asked to immediately recall two lists of nouns, one associated with three taxonomic categories and the other with three classifiers. Repeated-measures ANOVA was conducted to examine the major effect between drawing relations (classifier related, taxonomically/thematically related and unrelated) and participant groups. Two measures of NCR (number of correct recall) and RR (ratio of repetition) were calculated and analysed to examine effective memory retrieval as well as subjective clustering.Findings/conclusions:Results showed that preferences for classifier-based and taxonomy/theme -based categorizations differed between advanced CSL learners and non-CSL participants. CSL learners’ knowledge of the classifier system also facilitated their performance in recalling and clustering objects. The findings revealed that concepts in bilingual minds may be language-specific and an alternative interpretation of the real world is internalized by learning a new language.Originality:Unlike previous studies, this article extended the examination of the cognitive consequences of classifiers to late bilinguals whose second language (L2) proficiency was formally assessed.Significance/implications:This study contributes empirical data supporting the importance of nonverbal behavioural evidence in the study of bilingual cognition. The degree and nature of the restructuring of real-world referents as a consequence of acquiring Chinese classifiers is of pedagogical value to second-language acquisition (SLA).

Dynamic Language Network in Early and Late Cantonese-Mandarin Bilinguals.

The brain representation of language in bilinguals is sculptured by several factors, such as age of acquisition (AoA) and proficiency level (PL) in second language. Although the effect of AoA-L2 on brain function and structure has been studied, little attention is devoted to dynamic properties of the language network and their differences between early and late bilinguals. In this study, we acquired resting-state fMRI data from early and late Cantonese (L1)–Mandarin (L2) bilinguals with high PLs of verbal fluency in both languages. We then analyzed dynamic functional connectivity (dFC) by using the sliding-windows approach, estimated the dFC states by using the k-means clustering algorithm, and calculated the dynamic topological properties of the language network for the early and late bilinguals. We detected four dFC states, State 1, State 2, State 3, and State 4, which may be related to phonetic processing, semantic processing, language control, and syntactic processing, respectively. Compared to the late bilinguals, the early bilinguals showed higher dFC between the inferior frontal area and the temporal area in State 1 and State 2, while higher dFC between the cerebellum and other regions in State 3. The early bilinguals showed a higher clustering coefficient and local and global efficiency in State 1 and State 3, but lower characteristic path length in State 1, than the late bilinguals. Together, these results suggested that AoA-L2 affects temporal neural activation and dynamic topological properties of the language network. These findings provide new information to understand the effect of experience of L2 acquisition on language network in bilinguals.

Translation of Ambiguous Words by Translation Trainees

Ambiguity has attracted the attention of researchers from many disciplines. With the aim of providing a perspective from translation, this psycholinguistic study investigated ambiguity in the translation performance of late bilinguals from English (L2) into Turkish (L1). We employed an oral translation task in which the participants (N= 51) translated 30 ambiguous words, (polysemes and homonyms) in contextualized sentences. First, we investigated whether word frequency affects the participants’ translation accuracy. We found no significant difference between high and low frequency words, which is attributable to the proficiency of the participants, and the facilitating role of sentential context. Secondly, we aimed to explore whether the nature of the ambiguous words made any difference to the participants’ translation performance. The results showed that polysemous words were translated with greater accuracy than homonymous words, in line with the data in the literature regarding the differences in the representation and processing of polysemy and homonymy.

Effects of Continuous Theta Burst Stimulation Over the Left Dlpfc on Mother Tongue and Second Language Production In Late Bilinguals: A Behavioral and ERP Study.

Clinical, neuroimaging, and non-invasive brain stimulation studies have associated the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) with the multilingual language control system. Here, we investigated if this role is increased during the processing of the non-dominant language due to the higher cognitive/attentional demands. We used an inhibitory repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) protocol over the left DLPFC and investigated the behavioral and electrophysiological effects on (i) picture naming in the mother tongue and second language, (ii) forward and backward translation and (iii) non-verbal inhibition. To this end, we compared the effects of inhibitory rTMS (cTBS) vs sham-rTMS using a single-blind within-subject design including 22 late bilinguals. Behaviorally, response times were longer after cTBS compared to sham-rTMS in the picture naming task independent of language, while response times were not affected for the word translation task. These results were mirrored on the electrophysiological level showing an effect of stimulation in the picture naming task starting at 547ms post-stimulus onset, but not in the translation task. This late time range is likely associated with processes of conflict resolution and initiation of the articulation of the word rather than processes related to lexical selection or language switching. For the non-verbal inhibition task, behavioral outcome was not affected despite electrophysiological stimulation-induced changes. Overall, the results suggest that the DLPFC plays a role in top-down cognitive control in language production, but that this role is not increased with higher cognitive demand such as naming in a second language or in language switching during word translation.

Geminate Attrition in the Speech of Arabic–English Bilinguals Living in Canada

This study has three goals. First, it examines phonological attrition of the Arabic geminate (i.e., long sound)-singleton contrast in the speech of native speakers of Arabic who acquired English after puberty. Second, it compares geminate production in late bilinguals to early bilinguals. Third, it investigates whether universal phonetic/acoustic factors have an effect on the degree of attrition across generations. Participants performed a delayed word repetition task, where mean consonant duration was measured and compared across the two bilingual groups and compared with native speakers of Arabic. Results show that a geminate-singleton duration ratio continuum across groups was formed, where monolingual speakers of Arabic had the highest values, followed by late bilinguals, and then early bilinguals. These results are interpreted as evidence that language remains malleable across the lifespan. Moreover, whereas there was no effect of manner of articulation, voiced geminates showed a significantly higher degree of attrition across both bilingual groups. In addition, inherently longer geminates attrited at a significantly higher rate. Implications for models of phonological attrition are discussed.

Effects of theta burst stimulation over the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex on language switching – A behavioral and ERP study

This study investigated the role of the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) in language switching using theta burst stimulation (TBS) and electroencephalography in late bilinguals. After a sham-controlled baseline, participants received either excitatory or inhibitory TBS over the left DLPFC before conducting picture naming tasks in pure language blocks and a language switching block, as well as a nonverbal switching task. On the behavioral level, we found no effect of TBS. However, the ERP-analysis revealed an effect of Stimulation for the picture naming tasks, characterized by alterations in the left DLPFC at 20–72 ms, and in networks associated with conflict resolution and self-monitoring at 533–600 ms. As we did not find an interaction between Stimulation and Block (switching vs non-switching), prefrontal stimulation did not specifically modulate interlanguage control. The left DLPFC might rather be involved in enhancingmaintenance of task demands and self-monitoring during language production in both mono- and bilingual contexts.

Ultimate attainment in heritage language speakers: Syntactic and morphological knowledge of Italian accusative clitics

AbstractThe acquisition of a heritage language, normally the weaker language of early bilinguals, has been oftentimes defined as incomplete, especially for morphosyntax. As a result, these early bilinguals resemble late bilinguals more than native language speakers, calling into question the role of age of exposure. The effects of syntactic complexity on knowledge of morphosyntactic structures, however, have not been sufficiently considered hitherto. This study investigates age of exposure and syntactic complexity by comparing heritage, second language, and native language speakers on knowledge of Italian accusative clitics in three structures. An oral structural priming task and a speeded grammaticality judgment task find a discrepancy in the level of ultimate attainment heritage speakers reach for syntax and morphology. While their abstract representation of clitic structures approximates that of native language speakers more closely, their morphological knowledge of clitics aligns with second language speakers, suggesting early exposure has tangible effects only on syntactic knowledge. In turn, syntactic complexity affects the representation of clitic structures in a predictable manner, but is inconsequential to explicit knowledge of morphological forms in monolingual and bilingual speakers. Lack of age of exposure effects in the morphological domain are attributed to interface vulnerability.

Switching codes and shifting morals: how code-switching and emotion affect moral judgment

ABSTRACT The present study expands the literature on the Foreign Language Effect by investigating differences in moral judgment for 280 English-Spanish late bilinguals when processing the button and bridge moral scenarios of the canonical trolley dilemma (Thomson, 1985) in an online questionnaire in either a native (NL), foreign (FL), or code-switched (CS) language environment. The study furthermore examines the effects of emotion on moral standards across these three language contexts, analysing self-reports of individuals’ emotions following their moral decisions. Overall, moral judgments in the CS and NL conditions patterned similarly for both dilemmas, while, in line with previous studies, the FL condition elicited an increased percentage of utilitarian decisions in the high-conflict bridge scenario. Unique emotions did not vary significantly across language contexts in either scenario, and no reduction in emotion was seen in participants’ FL. However, an interaction between language condition and emotion in the high-conflict dilemma suggests that the ratio and relative ranking of various emotions, and not just the degree of emotionality, may have an influence on moral evaluations. The present study elucidates the previously neglected variable of moral decision processing in the context of code-switching and discusses cognitive and emotional explanations for the Foreign Language Effect.

Functional MRI and Structural Connectome Analysis of Language Networks in Japanese-English Bilinguals

We aimed to clarify the mechanisms of neural plasticity involved in language. We hypothesized that alterations which occur in bilinguals could reflect the mechanisms of acquisition of a second language and simulate neural plasticity related to language. We compared spatial characteristics of story listening-related hemodynamic modulations and subcortical fiber networks between monolinguals and bilinguals. Participants were Japanese monolinguals and Japanese–English bilinguals whose first language was Japanese. We divided bilinguals into early and late bilinguals depending on whether the age of acquisition was before after 7 years of age. We applied intergroup analysis to investigate the following: (1) blood oxygen level-dependent response (BOLD) responses during story listening by block-based fMRI; (2) number of fibers (NOFs) between specific edges by DTI. Both bilingual samples showed larger BOLD responses (BRs) in the right putamen and bilateral superior temporal gyri compared to the Japanese monolinguals in fMRI. Late bilinguals demonstrated bigger BRs in the right anterior temporal lobe and left medial parietal lobe than early bilinguals. Early bilinguals showed a higher NOFs between the right putamen and precentral gyrus than monolinguals and late bilinguals in DTI. Late bilinguals showed a lower NOFs between the left superior temporal gyrus and supramarginal gyrus than monolinguals and early bilinguals. Early bilinguals reinforce the subcortical fiber network between the right putamen and precentral gyrus, and activate the right putamen to gain alternative language function. We conclude that these key cerebral regions and subcortical fiber networks could contribute to the neural plasticity of language.

Cross-linguistic f0 differences in bilingual speakers of English and Korean

Languages may differ in fundamental frequency of voicing (f0), even when they are spoken by a bilingual individual. However, little is known in bilingual/L2 acquisition research about simultaneous bilinguals. With the expectation that speakers who acquired two languages early use f0 differently for each language, this study measured f0 in English-Korean early bilinguals' natural speech. The f0 level was higher for Korean than English, regardless of gender, age, or generational status (early and late bilinguals did not differ). The f0 span showed a language-gender interaction: males' span was larger in Korean, while females' span was larger in English. This study demonstrates that languages differ in f0 independent of speaker anatomy and suggests that children may acquire these differences in early childhood.

Language Dominance Modulates the Perception of Spanish Approximants in Late Bilinguals

The ability to discriminate phonetically similar first language (L1) and second language (L2) sounds has significant consequences for achieving target-like proficiency in second-language learners. This study examines the L2 perception of Spanish approximants [β, δ, ɣ] in comparison with their voiced stop counterparts [b, d, g] by adult English-Spanish bilinguals. Of interest is how perceptual effects are modulated by factors related to language dominance, including proficiency, language history, attitudes, and L1/L2 use, as measured by the Bilingual Language Profile questionnaire. Perception of target phones was assessed in adult native Spanish speakers (n = 10) and Spanish learners (n = 23) of varying proficiency levels, via (vowel-consonant-vowel) VCV sequences featuring both Spanish approximants and voiced stops during an AX discrimination task. Results indicate a significant positive correlation between perceptual accuracy and a language dominance score. Findings further demonstrate a significant hierarchy of increasing perceptual difficulty: β < δ < ɣ. Through an examination of bilingual language dominance, composed of the combined effects of language history, use, proficiency, and attitudes, the present study contributes a more nuanced and complete examination of individual variables that affect L2 perception, reaching beyond proficiency and experience alone.

Heritage languages and their speakers by Maria Polinsky

Reviewed by: Heritage languages and their speakers by Maria Polinsky Michael T. Putnam Heritage languages and their speakers. By Maria Polinsky. (Cambridge studies in linguistics 159.) Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2018. Pp. 410. ISBN 978110704648. $130 (Hb). In spite of the fact that bilinguals and multilinguals make up the majority of Earth's population, it is only a relatively recent phenomenon that being bilingual has been viewed as a positive trait, both from a societal standpoint (Pavlenko 2013) and with regard to potential cognitive advantages (Bialystok et al. 2012). This reevaluation of bilingualism has led to an upsurge in research from multiple perspectives. This growing body of research has advanced our understanding of bilingualism a priori, presenting overwhelming evidence for the integrated nature of bilingual grammar [End Page 210] and cognition (see e.g. Putnam et al. 2018 for a review of this literature). Still, even within linguistics and language sciences, a common assumption in this research is that the grammar of bilinguals—and, in particular, late bilinguals—is, as Ortega (2014) terms it, deficit-oriented when compared with monolingual or baseline standards. Under such a view, naturally produced language or responses to experimental stimuli are collected, analyzed, and compared with target outputs, focusing on differences that are often labeled as competence or production deficits of one of the source grammars. A more realistic picture of the development of bilingual grammars over the course of the lifespan is one that is dynamic, with certain elements becoming more stable at different time scales (Ortega 2014, 2016, de Bot 2016). In her monograph Heritage languages and their speakers, Maria Polinsky homes in on a particular subclass of bilinguals and their linguistic knowledge, namely unbalanced bilinguals (a.k.a. 'heritage language speakers'). This volume represents an exhaustive overview of the current state of the field of research on heritage languages, set forth by one of the world's leading researchers on said topic. If (bilingual) grammars are indeed dynamic, the degree to which they exhibit divergence from purported norms has also been shown to be highly restrictive. In other words, much like initial research on L2 grammars from a generative perspective (see e.g. White 2003 for a review), the changes underway—as well as those that have already taken hold—are highly restrictive, targeting some domains of grammar more than others and adhering to a finite set of observable patterns. Not only are bilingual grammars dynamic entities, but the very classification of bilinguals is also dynamic, since individuals with diverse and variable proficiencies in two (or more) grammars are defined as bilinguals. Heritage languages represent an important missing piece to this complex puzzle. P adopts a generalist, ecumenical tone throughout this book, discussing a range of topics, from more-established positions to those that are more controversial and speculative at this current time. She successfully addresses a somewhat controversial topic, that is, the study of grammars that, on occasion, significantly diverge from monolingual and baseline standards; she shows throughout the book that rather than viewing these grammars and the individuals who speak them through a deficit-oriented lens, one should understand these grammars to display a remarkable degree of complexity and high-functionality throughout the lives of the individuals who speak them.1 As I elaborate upon further in this review, perhaps the most impressive and equally important contribution of this volume is found in its forward-thinking nature, illuminating a path toward productive research that not only contributes to advancing our knowledge of heritage language grammars, but also has the lofty goal of achieving a more nuanced understanding of the general cognitive architecture underlying the faculty of language in both monolingual and bilingual populations. This monograph consists of eight chapters, each dedicated to a particular area of research germane to the study of heritage languages. The first chapter exposes the immediate challenge of arriving at a core set of characteristics that define who is and who is not a heritage speaker. The book begins with Bloomfield's (1927) assessment of various speakers' abilities in the Algonquian language Menominee. In his remarks, Bloomfield makes the distinction between 'good' and 'bad' speakers of Menominee, with those deemed to be 'bad' speakers...

Conflict Resolution Ability in Late Bilinguals Improves With Increased Second-Language Proficiency: ANT Evidence.

Experimental data supporting the claim that bilingual speakers have superior cognitive control abilities are often questioned with respect to certain methodological limitations. One such limitation is the use of between-group design, potentially confounding bilingual status with other factors (e.g., socioeconomic status). Here, we used a homogeneous sample of 57 young adult Russian–English late unbalanced bilinguals who were administrated Attention Network Task (ANT) together with an L2 proficiency task. We tested the correlation of L2 vocabulary performance with conflict and alertness measures and overall reaction times in ANT performance. Overall, participants demonstrated better conflict resolution with the increase in their second language competence, with 8% of variance in conflict resolution explained by L2 proficiency. Our results support the notion of regular correspondence between bilingualism and cognitive control.

Too late to be grounded? Motor resonance for action words acquired after middle childhood

Though well established for languages acquired in infancy, the role of embodied mechanisms remains poorly understood for languages learned in middle childhood and adulthood. To bridge this gap, we examined 34 experiments that assessed sensorimotor resonance during processing of action-related words in real and artificial languages acquired since age 7 and into adulthood. Evidence from late bilinguals indicates that foreign-language action words modulate neural activity in motor circuits and predictably facilitate or delay physical movements (even in an effector-specific fashion), with outcomes that prove partly sensitive to language proficiency. Also, data from newly learned vocabularies suggest that embodied effects emerge after brief periods of adult language exposure, remain stable through time, and hinge on the performance of bodily movements (and, seemingly, on action observation, too). In sum, our work shows that infant language exposure is not indispensable for the recruitment of embodied mechanisms during language processing, a finding that carries non-trivial theoretical, pedagogical, and clinical implications for neurolinguistics, in general, and bilingualism research, in particular.