The role of within-language vocabulary size in children's semantic development: evidence from bilingual children

2012 ◽  
Vol 40 (4) ◽  
pp. 873-884 ◽  
Author(s):  
MARGAUX KEITH ◽  
ELENA NICOLADIS
Keyword(s):  
Picture Naming ◽  
Naming Task ◽  
Bilingual Children ◽  
Vocabulary Size ◽  
Formal Instruction ◽  
English Bilingual ◽  
Semantic Development ◽  
Vocabulary Score ◽  
English Monolingual

ABSTRACTThis study tested whether bilingual children show a lag in semantic development (the schematic–categorical shift) relative to monolingual children due to smaller vocabularies within a language. Twenty French–English bilingual and twenty English monolingual children (seven to ten years old) participated in a picture-naming task in English. Their errors were coded for schematic or categorical relations. The bilingual children made more schematic errors than monolinguals, a difference that was accounted for statistically by vocabulary score differences. This result suggests that within-language vocabulary size is one important factor in semantic development and may explain why bilingual children sometimes show a lag relative to monolingual children in one of their languages, perhaps the language in which they have received less formal instruction.

What factors influence phonological production in French-speaking bilingual children, aged three to six years?

2020 ◽  
Vol 47 (5) ◽  
pp. 945-981 ◽  
Author(s):  
Margaret KEHOE ◽  
Chloé GIRARDIER
Keyword(s):  
Picture Naming ◽  
Age Groups ◽  
Naming Task ◽  
Bilingual Children ◽  
Vocabulary Test ◽  
Phonological Features ◽  
First Languages ◽  
French Speaking ◽  
L2 Vocabulary ◽  
Vocabulary Score

AbstractThis study examines the influence of bilingual status, language-internal (complexity of L1 phonology), language-external (dominance), and lexical (L2 vocabulary score) factors on phonological production in French-speaking monolingual (n = 37) and bilingual children (n = 64) aged three to six years. Children participated in an object and picture naming task which tested different phonological features. The bilinguals’ first languages were coded in terms of the complexity of these phonological features. In addition, the parents completed a questionnaire on their child's language dominance and the children were administered a vocabulary test in their L2. Results indicated that vocabulary was the principal predictor of phonological accuracy across both age groups. Apparent monolingual–bilingual differences and dominance effects could largely be explained by vocabulary scores: children who scored better on a vocabulary test obtained superior phonological accuracy. Language-internal effects were minimal and marginally influenced vowel accuracy only.

scholarly journals Contributions of nonlinguistic task-shifting to language control in bilingual children

2016 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
pp. 181-194 ◽  
Author(s):  
MEGAN GROSS ◽  
MARGARITA KAUSHANSKAYA
Keyword(s):  
Cognitive Control ◽  
Picture Naming ◽  
Naming Task ◽  
Task Shifting ◽  
Naming Speed ◽  
Bilingual Children ◽  
English Bilingual ◽  
Language Selection ◽  
Language Control ◽  
Cross Language

Language control, bilinguals’ ability to regulate which language is used, has been posited to recruit domain-general cognitive control. However, studies relating language control and cognitive control have yielded mixed results in adults and have not been undertaken in children. The current study examined the contributions of nonlinguistic task-shifting to language control in Spanish–English bilingual children (ages 5–7) during a cued-switch picture-naming task. Language control was assessed at two levels: (1) cross-language errors, which indexed the success of language selection, and (2) naming speed, which indexed the efficiency of lexical selection. Nonlinguistic task-shifting was a robust predictor of children's cross-language errors, reflecting a role for domain-general cognitive control during language selection. However, task-shifting predicted naming speed only in children's non-dominant language, suggesting a more nuanced role for cognitive control in the efficiency of selecting a particular lexical target.

Taxonomic Development in Young Bilingual Children: Task Matters, and So Does Scoring Method

2020 ◽  
Vol 29 (3) ◽  
pp. 1162-1177
Author(s):  
Boji P. W. Lam ◽  
Li Sheng
Keyword(s):  
Naming Task ◽  
Bilingual Children ◽  
Vocabulary Size ◽  
Scoring Method ◽  
Bilingual Advantage ◽  
Language Groups ◽  
Association Task ◽  
English Bilingual ◽  
Faster Development ◽  
The Impact

Purpose Taxonomic awareness is central to vocabulary development and assessment. While taxonomic development appears largely unaffected by environmental factors, the impact of divided language input on distinct levels of the taxonomic hierarchy is unclear. The influence of scoring method on tasks that target distinct levels of the taxonomic hierarchy is unexamined. Method Twenty-seven English-speaking monolingual children, 46 Mandarin–English bilingual children, and 33 Spanish–English bilingual children, ages 4–7 years, participated. We measured superordinate awareness with a category association task, coordinate awareness with a contrast association task, and vocabulary size with a picture-naming task. All bilinguals completed the tasks in both languages to generate single-language (English) scores and conceptual scores. Results Single-language scoring indicated that bilingual children named fewer pictures and produced fewer superordinate-level responses in English than monolinguals. All language groups demonstrated comparable coordinate awareness. Importantly, conceptual scoring removed the bilingual disadvantage in both naming and category association tasks and revealed a bilingual advantage in coordinate awareness. Finally, the Mandarin–English and Spanish–English bilingual children performed comparably in all analyses despite differences in heritage language features and sociocultural support for bilingual development. Conclusion Depending on task demand and scoring method, bilingual children exhibited slower, comparable, and faster development in taxonomic knowledge in comparison to monolingual controls. This study highlights the nuanced effect of bilingualism on different levels of the taxonomic hierarchy and the impact of scoring methods on measuring vocabulary depth. Supplemental Material https://doi.org/10.23641/asha.12315683

Vowel development in an emergent Mandarin-English bilingual child: a longitudinal study

2014 ◽  
Vol 42 (5) ◽  
pp. 1125-1145 ◽  
Author(s):  
JING YANG ◽  
ROBERT A. FOX ◽  
EWA JACEWICZ
Keyword(s):  
Picture Naming ◽  
Acoustic Analysis ◽  
Naming Task ◽  
Bilingual Children ◽  
Developmental Profile ◽  
Longitudinal Case Study ◽  
English Bilingual ◽  
Vowel Space ◽  
New System

AbstractThis longitudinal case study documents the emergence of bilingualism in a young monolingual Mandarin boy on the basis of an acoustic analysis of his vowel productions recorded via a picture-naming task over 20 months following his enrollment in an all-English (L2) preschool at the age of 3;7. The study examined (1) his initial L2 vowel space, (2) the process of L1-L2 separation, and (3) his L1 vowel system in relation to L2. The child initially utilized his L1 base in building the L2 vowel system. The L1-L2 separation started from a drastic restructuring of his working vowel space to create maximal contrast between the two languages. Meanwhile, L1 developmental processes and influence of L2 on L1 were also in effect. The developmental profile of this child uncovered strategies sequential bilingual children may use to restructure their phonetic space and construct a new system of contrasts in L2.

Using whole-word production measures to determine the influence of phonotactic probability and neighborhood density on bilingual speech production

2011 ◽  
Vol 16 (4) ◽  
pp. 369-387 ◽  
Author(s):  
Skott E. Freedman ◽  
Jessica A. Barlow
Keyword(s):  
Speech Production ◽  
Picture Naming ◽  
Naming Task ◽  
Word Production ◽  
Neighborhood Density ◽  
Bilingual Children ◽  
Typically Developing ◽  
Phonotactic Probability ◽  
Whole Word ◽  
Phonological Complexity

Numerous lexical and sublexical factors have been reported to influence speech production in monolinguals (Storkel, 2001; Vitevitch, 2002); however, whole-word production analyses have rarely been used to measure such influences. The present study investigated the effects of phonotactic probability and neighborhood density on bilingual speech production using whole-word production measures (Ingram, 2002). Five typically developing English–Spanish bilingual children were administered a picture-naming task in English and Spanish in which stimuli varied in sublexical and lexical parameters. Their English and Spanish productions were compared with those of five age-matched monolingual English- and Spanish-speaking children, respectively. No differences were found between bilinguals and monolinguals in the respective languages; however, bilinguals evidenced greater phonological complexity in Spanish than English on words with low phonotactic probability and low neighborhood density. Whole-word approximation remained similar between languages. Findings are interpreted in the context of crosslinguistic influences of sublexical and lexical factors on speech production.

scholarly journals Semantic Development in Spanish-English Bilingual Children: Effects of Age and Language Experience

2012 ◽  
Vol 84 (3) ◽  
pp. 1034-1045 ◽  
Author(s):  
Li Sheng ◽  
Lisa M. Bedore ◽  
Elizabeth D. Peña ◽  
Christine Fiestas
Keyword(s):  
Bilingual Children ◽  
Language Experience ◽  
English Bilingual ◽  
Semantic Development

The role of person in subject auxiliary inversion in English wh-questions: Evidence from Korean-English bilingual children

2017 ◽  
Vol 23 (1) ◽  
pp. 313-328
Author(s):  
Sunny K Park-Johnson
Keyword(s):  
Experimental Study ◽  
Bilingual Children ◽  
English Bilingual ◽  
Elicitation Study ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Main Effect ◽  
Wh Questions ◽  
Third Person ◽  
New Evidence

Aims: The present study investigates whether Korean-English (K-E) bilingual children develop subject auxiliary inversion (SAI) in English wh-questions differently from monolingual English (M-E) speaking children. Specifically, an experimental study was designed to determine whether there is an effect of subject person in their acquisition of SAI in English wh-questions, a factor that had been suggested but not tested as a contributing factor in SAI in a previous study. Design: Twenty-six K-E bilingual and 20 M-E preschool-aged children were recruited for an elicitation study testing the effect of person on the use of SAI in wh-questions in English. The experiment consisted of having children interact with puppets in a guessing game that elicited first, second, and third person object- what questions in English. Data and analysis: Data from the experiment were analyzed through a binomial logistic regression, which accounts for the binary nature of the data (auxiliary inversion: present or absent) and identified which variables contribute significantly to the presence and absence of SAI. Findings/conclusions: Results indicated a significant difference between K-E and M-E groups and a significant main effect for person on SAI for the K-E group. The paper proposes that the [prs] feature is part of the bundle of features that drives the movement of the features in T to C. Originality: The paper contributes evidence for a link between the person feature and SAI, a link that has not been seen before for wh-question research. Significance/implications: The new evidence of a possible link between subject person and auxiliary inversion may open a window to new avenues for wh-question acquisition research.

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