Monolingual English Speakers Research Articles

The Association of Cerebrospinal Fluid Biomarkers of Alzheimer’s Disease with Cognitive Intra-Individual Variability

Abstract Objective Cognitive intra-individual variability (IIV) is a sensitive predictor of cognitive decline and disease severity in Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Despite its sensitivity, whether IIV is merely a psychometric artifact or disease pathology biomarker remains unknown. The present study evaluated the association between IIV and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) biomarkers of AD. Method Participants included 422 individuals from the National Alzheimer’s Coordinating Center Unified Dataset 3.0 who completed baseline neuropsychological assessment and had CSF data. All participants were adult monolingual English speakers. Participants with vision or hearing impairments were excluded. Cases were stratified into cognitively normal (n = 267) and AD groups (n = 155; mild cognitive impairment = 50, dementia = 105). Cross-sectional IIV was calculated by obtaining the individual standard deviation (iSD) of ten cognitive tests. Finally, the coefficient of variation (CoV) was computed by dividing iSD by the participant’s overall test battery mean. Non-parametric Spearman-rank correlations were used to assess the relation between CoV and CSF biomarkers, including beta-amyloid 1–42, total tau (t-tau), and phosphorylated tau (p-tau181). Results In the AD group, CoV was positively correlated with p-tau181 (r = 0.285, p = 0.003) and t-tau (r = 0.241, p = 0.009), and negatively correlated with beta-amyloid 1–42 (r = −0.314, p < 0.001). Correlations between CoV and CSF biomarkers were not significant in the cognitively normal group for beta-amyloid 1–42 (r = 0.076, p = 0.215), p-tau181 (r = −0.014, p = 0.840), and t-tau (r = −0.046, p = 0.485). Conclusions In people with mild cognitive impairment and dementia of presumed AD etiology, cognitive IIV is associated with CSF biomarkers. These findings provide preliminary evidence that IIV is not merely a statistical artifact, but is associated with AD neuropathology.

Sprinting in two languages: Picture naming performance of older Spanish-English bilinguals on the Multilingual Naming Test Sprint 2.0.

The present study examined how years of immersion in a nondominant language affect (a) the degree of bilingualism as measured by picture naming scores and (b) the bilingual disadvantage relative to monolinguals. Forty-two older Spanish-English bilinguals named pictures in an expanded rapid administration version of the Multilingual Naming Test (MINT Sprint 2.0) in both languages and completed a language history questionnaire. English-speaking monolinguals (n = 138; from Gollan et al., 2024) named pictures in just one language. Spanish-dominant bilinguals named more pictures in the nondominant language but fewer pictures in the dominant language relative to English-dominant bilinguals. Increased years of immersion in the nondominant language increased naming scores in that language but decreased naming scores in the dominant language. When controlling for differences in age and education level, monolinguals named more pictures than bilinguals even in their dominant language, a difference that was numerically smaller for English-dominant bilinguals. However, two bilinguals who stated that they prefer to be tested in English scored much higher in Spanish. Older bilinguals name fewer pictures than demographically matched monolinguals even when bilinguals are tested in their dominant language and especially if they report many years of immersion in their nondominant language. The bilingual disadvantage can be magnified if self-reported language preference is used to determine the language of testing. Accurate interpretation of bilingual picture naming scores requires a thorough language history and objective assessment in both languages, which can be done in relatively little time using rapid administration procedures. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

LanguageScreen: The Development, Validation, and Standardization of an Automated Language Assessment App.

Oral language skills provide a critical foundation for formal education and especially for the development of children's literacy (reading and spelling) skills. It is therefore important for teachers to be able to assess children's language skills, especially if they are concerned about their learning. We report the development and standardization of a mobile app-LanguageScreen-that can be used by education professionals to assess children's language ability. The standardization sample included data from approximately 350,000 children aged 3;06 (years;months) to 8;11 who were screened for receptive and expressive language skills using LanguageScreen. Rasch scaling was used to select items of appropriate difficulty on a single unidimensional scale. LanguageScreen has excellent psychometric properties, including high reliability, good fit to the Rasch model, and minimal differential item functioning across key student groups. Girls outperformed boys, and children with English as an additional language scored less well compared to monolingual English speakers. LanguageScreen provides an easy-to-use, reliable, child-friendly means of identifying children with language difficulties. Its use in schools may serve to raise teachers' awareness of variations in language skills and their importance for educational practice.

Crosslinguistic Differences in Food Labels Do Not Yield Differences in Taste Perception

AbstractResearch has shown that speakers of different languages may differ in their cognitive and perceptual processing of reality. A common denominator of this line of investigation has been its reliance on the sensory domain of vision. The aim of our study was to extend the scope to a new sense—taste. Using as a starting point crosslinguistic differences in the category boundaries of edible bulbs, we examined whether monolingual speakers of English and bilingual speakers of Norwegian and English were influenced by language‐specific categories during tasting. The results showed no evidence of such effects, not even for the Norwegian participants in an entirely Norwegian context. This suggests that crosslinguistic differences in visual perception do not readily generalize to the domain of taste. We discuss the findings in terms of predictive processing, with particular reference to trigeminal stimulation (a central tasting component) and the interplay between chemosensory signals and top‐down linguistic modulation.

Universal and Language-Specific Connected Speech Characteristics of Bilingual Speakers With Alzheimer's Disease: Insights From Case Studies of Structurally Distinct Languages.

Connected speech analysis has been effectively utilized for the diagnosis and disease monitoring of individuals with Alzheimer's disease (AD). Existing research has been conducted mostly in monolingual English speakers with a noticeable lack of evidence from bilinguals and non-English speakers, particularly in non-European languages. Using a case study approach, we characterized connected speech profiles of two Bengali-English bilingual speakers with AD to determine the universal features of language impairments in both languages, identify language-specific differences between the languages, and explore language impairment characteristics of the participants with AD in relation to their bilingual language experience. Participants included two Bengali-English bilingual speakers with AD and a group of age-, gender-, education-, and language-matched neurologically healthy controls. Connected speech samples were collected in first language (L1; Bengali) and second language (L2; English) using a novel storytelling task (i.e., Frog, Where Are You?). These samples were analyzed using an augmented quantitative production analysis and correct information unit analyses for productivity, fluency, syntactic and morphosyntactic features, and lexical and semantic characteristics. Irrespective of the language, AD impacted speech productivity (speech rate and fluency) and semantic characteristics in both languages. Unique language-specific differences were noted on syntactic measures (reduced sentence length in Bengali), lexical distribution (fewer pronouns and absence of reduplication in Bengali), and inflectional properties (no difficulties with noun or verb inflections in Bengali). Among the two participants with AD, the individual who showed lower proficiency and usage in L2 (English) demonstrated reduced syntactic complexity and morphosyntactic richness in English. Evidence from these case studies suggests that language impairment features in AD are not universal across languages, particularly in comparison to impairments typically associated with language breakdowns in English. This study underscores the importance of establishing connected speech profiles in AD for non-English-speaking populations, especially for structurally different languages. This would in turn lead to the development of language-specific markers that can facilitate early detection of language deterioration and aid in improving diagnosis of AD in individuals belonging to underserved linguistically diverse populations. https://doi.org/10.23641/asha.25412458.

The influence of student language and student-teacher relationships on student-specific teacher self-efficacy in early childhood

ABSTRACT Teacher self-efficacy (TSE) changes according to context. Limited research has been conducted to understand how TSE can vary in relation to student characteristics or the student-teacher relationship (STR) in preschool. The aims of the current study were to 1) examine student-specific TSE variability among monolingual English-speaking and Spanish-speaking dual language learners (DLLs) and 2) examine the extent to which STR quality moderates the relationship between student language and student-specific TSE. Results demonstrated that when controlling for closeness in the STR, teachers felt higher levels of student-specific TSE in the domains of instructional support and student engagement for English-speaking students versus DLLs. However, teachers reported equal levels of student-specific TSE in the domains of behavior management and emotional support irrespective of student language. Secondly, STR quality did not significantly moderate relationships between language and student-specific TSE. Limitations and future research directions are discussed.

Bilingual proficiency effects in paired-associate learning of vocabulary in an unfamiliar language

Abstract We investigated three aspects of paired associate learning of vocabulary in an unfamiliar language: monolingual-bilingual differences, effects of dominance and language proficiency, and the possible role of associative strategies. Spanish–English bilinguals (48 English-dominant and 48 Spanish-dominant) and English-speaking monolinguals (n = 48) learned Swahili–English and Swahili-Spanish word pairs. Learning was assessed using cued recall (Swahili cue or Swahili response) and associative recognition tests. English-dominant bilinguals did not outperform English monolinguals on any learning measure. Cued recall accuracy was higher when learning through the dominant language than through the non-dominant language, whether the Swahili words were cues or responses. Proficiency scores in the known language were positively correlated with cued recall accuracy, whether the cue or the response was in Swahili, indicating that proficiency effects occurred not in retrievability of known words but in learning of associations. Bilingual and monolingual participants did not differ in their reported use of associative strategies.

Disambiguating ambiguity: A comparative analysis of lexical decision-making in native and non-native English speakers

Making lexical decisions to disambiguate multiple-meaning words or senses provides clear evidence of word recognition, processing systems and representation in the mental lexicon. This comparative study explores non-native English speakers’ and native English speakers’ cognitive mechanisms employed in phonological and lexical ambiguity resolution embedded in auditory and visual utterances. English proficiency and vocabulary tests and two lexical decision tests were conducted with 35 EFL undergraduate students and four native English monolingual speakers. The effects of factors such as L2 proficiency and familiarity on ambiguity resolution in addition to the resolution techniques employed were also explored. Our findings suggest that the differences in disambiguating L2 words among native English speakers and non-native English speakers might indicate different comprehension, representation and processing patterns. The ambiguity type most likely has a major role in determining the diverse phenomenon of ambiguity resolution. More specifically, there was evidence of significant differences in homophone use, metaphorical polysemy and homonym ambiguity resolution between the two groups, excluding metonymous polysemy. Homophones and polysemy were the least problematic and challenging lexical ambiguity types unlike homonymy for the non-native group. Other results also revealed the positive effects of L2 proficiency and L2 word familiarity on ambiguity resolution. Thus, this study also has important implications considering the vital role of vocabulary in L2 competence and knowledge.

Fundamental frequency patterns across gender, task, and language in Spanish-English bilinguals

Speaking fundamental frequency (SFF) patterns are known to vary by language and speaker gender. Relatively little data exist for SFF patterns among cisgender and transgender speakers, especially those who speak languages other than English. Further, speaking task (e.g., read versus spontaneous speech) may impact SFF patterns. This study examined SFF patterns in Spanish-English bilinguals of varying gender identities. Twenty-four speakers (8 cisgender men, 8 cisgender women, and 8 transgender women) recorded a read passage and spontaneous speech in Spanish and English. SFF measures of minimum, maximum, range, and median were found to be stable across speech tasks and languages. A significant effect of gender was found. Cisgender women on average produced the highest values of minimum, maximum, and median SFF and largest SFF range. Cisgender men produced the lowest values and smallest range. Transgender women produced SFF measures within an intermediate range of cisgender men and women. Compared to monolingual English speakers, Spanish-English bilingual cisgender women had a larger SFF mean for both Spanish and English, cisgender men had similar SFF means for both Spanish and English, and transgender women had a slightly larger SFF mean for both Spanish and English.

The relation between perceived non-native features in the L1 speech of English migrants to Austria and their phonetic manifestation in L1 productions

Aims: The purpose of this research was to investigate to what extent the most commonly identified non-native features in the L1 speech of late consecutive bilinguals are reflected in differences in the bilinguals’ productions of these features compared with those of monolingual speakers of the L1. Design: We investigated the L1 accent of English migrants to Austria and monolingual English speakers in the United Kingdom in two inter-related studies. Data: In Study 1, an accent-perception experiment, native English listeners rated the nativeness of the monolinguals’ and bilinguals’ L1 English productions of read sentences, using a 6-point scale, and subsequently commented on the accentual features associated with perceived non-nativeness. In Study 2, the monolinguals’ and bilinguals’ productions of the most commonly identified non-native features from Study 1 were compared acoustically and auditorily. Findings: The accent-perception experiment revealed significantly higher non-nativeness ratings for the bilinguals than the monolinguals. These were associated with a wide range of segmental and prosodic features ( n = 836 feature tokens), with /iː/ and /ɪ/ the most commonly identified for segments, and articulation rate and intonation for prosody. The phonetic analysis of these features in Study 2, in turn, revealed that the bilinguals produced /ɪ/ closer to /iː/ than the monolinguals and had more final rises in questions, with the articulation rate differences between them just failing to reach significance. Originality: This is the first study to document a direct link between the features perceived as non-native in bilinguals’ L1 speech and their measurable manifestation in non-native L1 speech productions. Significance: This research contributes significantly to our understanding of the relationship between the perception and production of attrition in L1 speech, and shows that where listeners are able to provide consistent, detailed descriptions of the features associated with non-nativeness, they truthfully reflect measurable patterns in the speech signal.

The Acquisition of Black Language by Spanish-Speaking Preschoolers: A Community-Based Sociolinguistic Approach to Language Assessment.

The purpose of this case series was to demonstrate a community-based sociolinguistic approach to language sample analysis (LSA) for the evaluation of Spanish-English bilingual preschoolers acquiring Black language (BL). As part of a comprehensive bilingual speech-language evaluation, we examined sociolinguistic variables in the context of the children's English language samples. Specific emphasis is placed on sociolinguistic information to account for all language(s) and dialect(s) in each child's environment, BL feature patterns, and appropriate scoring procedures for characterizing language use. This case series includes four monolingual English-speaking and four bilingual Spanish-English-speaking 4-year-olds in a linguistically diverse preschool program. Play samples were collected from each child and coded for morphosyntactic features across three categories: BL, Spanish-Influenced English, and shared. Measures derived from the language samples include percent grammatical utterances, mean length of utterance in words, and number of different words. The children's language is characterized within a community-based sociolinguistic approach that combines three culturally responsive methods for assessment found in the speech-language pathology literature in addition to a novel sociolinguistic questionnaire. We explain how conducting LSA using a community-based sociolinguistic approach yields diagnostically relevant information that is pertinent to conducting a comprehensive and accurate evaluation of preschoolers in linguistically diverse settings without the use of standardized assessments. A community-based sociolinguistic approach to LSA is a useful procedure for mitigating misdiagnosis in preschoolers reared in linguistically diverse environments.

The Impact of Treating Bilingual Clients on Speech-Language Pathology Students' Cultural Responsiveness.

Graduate programs often use practicum experience with clients from nonmajority cultures to improve students' cultural responsiveness. Yet, it is not clear whether simply working with a client from a nonmajority culture actually confers this benefit or whether students are thinking about how to include culturally responsive behaviors when they are considering how to address a clinical case. Twenty first-year speech-language pathology graduate students (10 Spanish-English bilinguals, 10 monolingual English speakers) were split into three groups: monolingual experimental (n = 4), bilingual experimental (n = 4), and control (n = 12). The experimental groups completed a structured practicum with bilingual Hispanic/Latino clients. They received a 1-hr training in cultural responsiveness and then implemented a systematic language intervention in English or Spanish. Changes to cultural responsiveness were measured via think-aloud cases, and changes to confidence were measured with published, self-report scales. Reflective journal entries revealed what aspects of the clinical practicum students found most salient. Experience working with bilingual clients did not have a substantial effect on students' confidence in their cultural competence. No substantial change was found in cultural responsiveness on the think-aloud for any group. Cultural responsiveness did not appear to be top-of-mind for the students. Simply working with clients from nonmajority cultures does not create a scenario where cultural responsiveness is likely to improve. Additional targeted, purposeful training in cultural responsiveness is necessary.

Sound-meaning associations allow listeners to infer the meaning of foreign language words

An attribute of human language is the seemingly arbitrary association between a word’s form and meaning. We provide evidence that the meaning of foreign words can be partially deduced from phonological form. Monolingual English speakers listened to 45 antonym word pairs in nine foreign languages and judged which English words corresponded to these words’ respective meanings. Despite no proficiency in the foreign language tested, participants’ accuracy was higher than chance in each language. Words that shared meaning across languages were more likely to share phonological form. Accuracy in judging meaning from form was associated with participants’ verbal working memory and with how consistently phonological and semantic features of words covaried across unrelated languages. A follow-up study with native Spanish speakers replicated the results. We conclude that sound maps to meaning in natural languages with some regularity, and sensitivity to form-meaning mappings indexes broader cognitive functions.

18 Measurement Invariance of ImPACT in Bilingual and Monolingual High School Athletes

Objective:Previous studies have found differences between monolingual and bilingual athletes on ImPACT, the most widely used sport-related concussion (SRC) assessment measure. Most recently, results suggest that monolingual English-Speaking athletes outperformed bilingual English- and Spanish-speaking athletes on Visual Motor Speed and Reaction Time composites. Before further investigation of these differences can occur, measurement invariance of ImPACT must be established to ensure that differences are not attributable to measurement error. The current study aimed to 1) replicate a recently identified four-factor model using cognitive subtest scores of ImPACT on baseline assessments in monolingual English-Speaking athletes and bilingual English- and Spanish-speaking athletes and 2) to establish measurement invariance across groups.Participants and Methods:Participants included high school athletes who were administered the ImPACT as part of their standard pre-season athletic training protocol in English. Participants were excluded if they had a self-reported history of concussion, Autism, ADHD, learning disability or treatment history of epilepsy/seizures, brain surgery, meningitis, psychiatric disorders, or substance/alcohol use. The final sample included 7,948 monolingual English-speaking athletes and 7,938 bilingual English- and Spanish-speaking athletes with valid baseline assessments. Language variables were based on self-report. As the number of monolingual athletes was substantially larger than the number of bilingual athletes, monolingual athletes were randomly selected from a larger sample to match the bilingual athletes on age, sex, and sport. Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was used to test competing models, including one-factor, two-factor, and three-factor models to determine if a recently identified four-factor model (Visual Memory, Visual Reaction Time, Verbal Memory, Working Memory) provided the best fit of the data. Eighteen subtest scores from ImPACT were used in the CFAs. Through increasingly restrictive multigroup CFAs (MGCFA), configural, metric, scalar, and residual levels of invariance were assessed by language group.Results:CFA indicated that the four-factor model provided the best fit in the monolingual and bilingual samples compared to competing models. However, some goodness-of-fit-statistics were below recommended cutoffs, and thus, post-hoc model modifications were made on a theoretical basis and by examination of modification indices. The modified four-factor model had adequate to superior fit and met criteria for all goodness-of-fit indices and was retained as the configural model to test measurement invariance across language groups. MGCFA revealed that residual invariance, the strictest level of invariance, was achieved across groups.Conclusions:This study provides support for a modified four-factor model as estimating the latent structure of ImPACT cognitive scores in monolingual English-speaking and bilingual English- and Spanish-speaking high school athletes at baseline assessment. Results further suggest that differences between monolingual English-speaking and bilingual English- and Spanish-speaking athletes reported in prior ImPACT studies are not caused by measurement error. The reason for these differences remains unclear but are consistent with other studies suggesting monolingual advantages. Given the increase in bilingual individuals in the United States, and among high school athletics, future research should investigate other sources of error such as item bias and predictive validity to further understand if group differences reflect real differences between these athletes.

5 Cross-cultural Diagnostic Validity of the Multilingual Naming Test (MINT) in a Sample of Older Adults.

Objective:The current study aimed to evaluate the psychometric properties and diagnostic accuracy of the 32-item version of the Multilingual Naming Test (MINT) in a sample of English and Spanish monolinguals and bilingual older adults from two ethnic groups (EA; European Americans and HA; Hispanic American) with typical and atypical aging. An IRT model was used to identify 24 MINT Items assessed across ethnicity and language testing groups (Spanish and English). We analyzed the discriminant and predictive validity of the 32-item and 24-item scales across diagnostic groups (cognitively normal [CN], mild cognitive impairment [MCI], and dementia [AD]). Diagnostic accuracy was then assessed with both versions applying ROC (Receiver Operating Characteristics) curve reporting using AUC (Area Under the Curve). We expected the MINT to distinguish between the CN and AD groups but not between CN and MCI and the MCI and AD. We conducted IRT analyses to evaluate the cross-language validity of the items from the 32-item MINT in English and Spanish through Rasch Analysis across our two ethnic groups. Finally, we tested the association between MINT scores and MRI volumetric measures of language-related areas in both cerebral hemispheres’ temporal and frontal lobes.Participants and Methods:The sample comprised 281 participants (178 females) enrolled in the 1Florida Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center (ADRC), with 175 participants self-identified as HA (51 tested in English and 124 in Spanish) and 106 EA, all of them monolingual English speakers. The participants were classified into three diagnostic groups: 1. CN (n = 94); 2. MCI (n = 148); and 3. AD (n = 39). Participants are evaluated yearly through a comprehensive neuropsychological battery, including the MINT is a standard CN task that requires patients to retrieve words upon presentation of a line drawing.Results:We obtained a ceiling effect in four items (Butterfly, Glove, Watch, and Candle). Four items were easier in English (Blind, Gauge, Porthole, and Pestle) and four in Spanish (Dustpan, Funnel, Anvil, and Mortar). In the 32-item version of the MINT, EA scored significantly higher than HA, but when removing those eight items, the ethnic difference was attenuated and no longer statistically significant (controlling for education). The ROC curves showed that both versions of the MINT had poor accuracy when identifying CN participants and were acceptable in identifying dementia participants but unacceptable for classifying MCI participants. The 32-item MINT in English and Spanish and the 24-item MINT in Spanish were significantly correlated with the bilateral MTG. However, the 24-item MINT in English was only correlated with this area’s volume in the right hemisphere. The left FG correlated with MINT scores regardless of language and MINT version. We also found some differential correlations depending on the language of administration. The bilateral hippocampi, STG, MTG and FG, and right ITG were significantly correlated only with MINT Spanish scores, while the left ITG was significant only when either version of the MINT was administered in English.Conclusions:Our results highlight the importance of analyzing cross-cultural samples when implementing neuropsychological tests.

41 Analyzing Perceived Workloads in Bilinguals and Monolinguals’ Digit Span Performance

Objective:A common neuropsychological task used is the Digit Span, known as a test of attention and working memory. The Digit Span Forward (DS-F) task evaluates attention; meanwhile, the Digit Span Backward (DS-B) and Sequencing (DS-S) evaluate working memory. Research shows that persons that speak multiple languages demonstrate better attention and working memory abilities compared to monolingual speakers. The NASA Task Load Index (NASA-TLX) was conditionally validated by Hardy and Wright (2018) to measure perceived mental workload. Research also shows that bilinguals report higher perceived workloads on cognitive tasks compared to monolinguals. With that said, it was hypothesized that bilinguals would demonstrate better performances on Digit Span tasks compared to monolinguals. Additionally, it was hypothesized that bilinguals would report higher perceived workloads on all digit span tasks compared to monolinguals.Participants and Methods:The sample consisted of 29 psychologically and neurologically healthy participants with a mean age of 29.66 (SD = 7.14). Participants were divided into two groups: English monolingual speakers (n = 10) and English and other language bilingual speakers (n = 19).Participants completed all the subtests of the Digit Span (i.e., DS-F, DS-B, DS-S) in English. The NASA-TLX was used to measured DS-F, DS-B, and DS-S perceived workloads. The NASA-TLX was completed after each Digit Span subtest in English. We used ANOVAs to evaluate DS-F, DS-B, and DS-S performance and their perceived workload between our language groups.Results:We found no significant differences between language groups on the DS-F. However, the bilingual group reported the DS-F to be more temporally demanding and frustrating compared to the monolingual group, p’s < .05, nps2 =.14-.15. Next, we found that the monolingual group outperformed the bilingual group on the DS-B task, p = .027, np2 = .17. On the other hand, the bilingual group reported the DS-B task to be more temporally demanding and frustrating compared to the monolingual group, p’s < .05, nps2=.18-.20. Finally, on the DS-S task the monolingual group outperformed the bilingual group, p = .043, np2 = .14. Meanwhile, the bilingual group reported the DS-S task to be more mentally and temporally demanding compared to the monolingual group, p’s < .05, nps2=.18-.34.Conclusions:Contrary to our hypothesis, results show that monolinguals outperformed bilinguals on DS-B and DS-S, but not DS-F. However, as expected, bilinguals did report higher perceived workloads (e.g., frustration) on Digit Span tasks compared to monolinguals. A possible explanation could be that bilinguals’ efforts to remember the numbers were more taxing compared to monolinguals’ because they had to inhibit from verbally responding in their other language. Rushing bilinguals to provide responses, ultimately developing higher perceived workloads on Digit Span tasks. Future work should investigate if time perspective may be influencing bilingual speakers Digit Span performances and perceived workloads.

Phonological Awareness and Alphabetic Knowledge in Typically Developing English Language Learners Between the 3.6 to 6.6 Years

The role of phonological awareness and alphabet knowledge in learning to read is well established in mono-lingual English speakers. However, it is under explored in the context of English Language Learners (ELL), especially in regions like India where the native language differs phonologically and orthographically from the target literate language, which is English. The present research explored phonological awareness and alphabet knowledge in typically developing ELL between 3.6 to 6.6 years. A total of 60 typically developing children, 20 each from Lower Kindergarten (LKG), Upper Kindergarten (UKG), and Grade I were selected from schools with English medium of instructions. The phonological awareness and alphabetic knowledge was assessed and compared between the groups. The results indicate that English Language Learners (ELL) demonstrate substantial advancements in both phonological awareness and alphabet knowledge during the initial three years of formal education, highlighting the existence of considerable potential for further development.

Pausing behavior of late bilingual and monolingual English speakers

This study examined the differences in the pausing behavior between native and non-native English speakers. Specifically, it examined the location and duration of pauses in relation to the syntactic and lexical complexity of the clauses in which these pauses occur and the nature of the prosodic phrasing of the utterances containing pauses. Speech samples from 10 native (L1) English and 10 Mandarin non-native English speakers from the Archive of L1 and L2 Scripted and Spontaneous Transcripts and Recordings (ALLSSTAR) were included in the analysis. The results showed that lower-level prosodic boundaries and syntactically complex phrases were associated with significantly longer pause duration in the L2 speech. Additionally, phrases with less frequent words tended to induce longer pauses. These findings suggest that insufficient knowledge of the L2 syntax, lexicon, and prosody might determine the location and duration of pauses and ultimately affect the speech fluency of L2 speakers.

Exploring the role of singing, semantics, and amusia screening in speech-in-noise perception in musicians and non-musicians

Sentence repetition has been the focus of extensive psycholinguistic research. The notion that music training can bolster speech perception in adverse auditory conditions has been met with mixed results. In this work, we sought to gauge the effect of babble noise on immediate repetition of spoken and sung phrases of varying semantic content (expository, narrative, and anomalous), initially in 100 English-speaking monolinguals with and without music training. The two cohorts also completed some non-musical cognitive tests and the Montreal Battery of Evaluation of Amusia (MBEA). When disregarding MBEA results, musicians were found to significantly outperform non-musicians in terms of overall repetition accuracy. Sung targets were recalled significantly better than spoken ones across groups in the presence of babble noise. Sung expository targets were recalled better than spoken expository ones, and semantically anomalous content was recalled more poorly in noise. Rerunning the analysis after eliminating thirteen participants who were diagnosed with amusia showed no significant group differences. This suggests that the notion of enhanced speech perception—in noise or otherwise—in musicians needs to be evaluated with caution. Musicianship aside, this study showed for the first time that sung targets presented in babble noise seem to be recalled better than spoken ones. We discuss the present design and the methodological approach of screening for amusia as factors which may partially account for some of the mixed results in the field.

H - 47 Bilingual Auditory Naming Test Performance in an Epilepsy Sample.

The growing multilingual population in the United States calls for culturally adapted norms for neuropsychological tools. Language testing, for example, is paramount in pre-surgical assessment in patients with dominant temporal lobe epilepsy. The Boston Naming Test (BNT) and the Auditory Naming Test (ANT) are frequently used in pre-surgical epilepsy evaluations; yet, while bilingual norms exist for the BNT, these are lacking for the ANT. To parse out how much of a bilingual patient's language performance is accounted for by bilingualism versus language deficits, we studied whether there is a significant difference in ANT performance between bilingual and monolingual English-speaking epilepsy patients. Our sample of patients with localized epilepsy from the UCSF Epilepsy Center included 22 bilingual (English-dominant; non-dominant languages included Spanish, Arabic, Dutch, Taiwanese, and Japanese) and 61 monolingual English-speakers (39% female, M age = 36.3). All patients took anti-seizure medication and completed the ANT and BNT as part of a pre-surgical neuropsychological assessment. Compared to monolingual English-speaking patients, bilingual patients had significantly lower scores on the ANT (Bilingual M = -4.03 [SD = 5.6], Monolingual M = -0.7 [SD = 1.9]; t(81) = 3.89, p < 0.001) and BNT (t(77) = 2.76, p = 0.007). This performance difference was significantly greater for the ANT than BNT (F(1,77) = 7.71, p = 0.007). These results highlight the importance of considering multilingualism in neuropsychological assessments. This is especially needed for pre-surgical language mapping in epilepsy surgical candidates. Future research should establish bilingual normative standards for neuropsychological language-based tests such as the ANT.