The Bilingual Switching Advantage: Sometimes Related to Bilingual Proficiency, Sometimes Not

2015 ◽  
Vol 21 (7) ◽  
pp. 531-544 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lily Tao ◽  
Marcus Taft ◽  
Tamar H. Gollan
Keyword(s):  
Language Proficiency ◽  
Task Switching ◽  
Verbal Fluency ◽  
Picture Naming ◽  
Objective Measure ◽  
Verbal Fluency Task ◽  
Advantages And Disadvantages ◽  
Interference Test ◽  
Standardized Measure ◽  
Naming Test

AbstractThis study investigated the relationship between bilingualism and task switching ability using a standardized measure of switching and an objective measure of bilingual language proficiency. Heritage Language (HL) speaking Spanish-English and Mandarin-English bilinguals and English speaking monolinguals completed all four subtests of the Color-Word Interference Test (CWIT), an English verbal fluency task, and a picture naming test (the Multilingual Naming Test) in English. Bilinguals also named pictures in their HL to assess HL proficiency. Spanish-English bilinguals were advantaged in task switching, exhibiting significantly smaller switching cost than monolinguals, but were disadvantaged in verbal fluency and picture naming. Additionally, performance on these cognitive and linguistic tasks was related to degree of HL proficiency, so that increased ability to name pictures in Spanish was associated with greater switching advantage, and greater disadvantage in both verbal fluency and picture naming. Mandarin-English bilinguals, who differed from the Spanish-English bilinguals on several demographic and language-use characteristics, exhibited a smaller but statistically significant switching advantage, but no linguistic disadvantage, and no clear relationship between HL proficiency and the switching advantage. Together these findings demonstrate an explicit link between objectively measured bilingual language proficiency and both bilingual advantages and disadvantages, while also showing that consequences of bilingualism for cognitive and linguistic task performance can vary across different language combinations. (JINS, 2015, 21, 531–544)

scholarly journals Language control abilities of late bilinguals

2011 ◽  
Vol 15 (3) ◽  
pp. 580-593 ◽  
Author(s):  
JULIA FESTMAN
Keyword(s):  
Language Proficiency ◽  
Verbal Fluency ◽  
Picture Naming ◽  
Language Use ◽  
Naming Task ◽  
The Other ◽  
Language Performance ◽  
Language Control ◽  
Cross Language ◽  
Late Bilinguals

Although all bilinguals encounter cross-language interference (CLI), some bilinguals are more susceptible to interference than others. Here, we report on language performance of late bilinguals (Russian/German) on two bilingual tasks (interview, verbal fluency), their language use and switching habits. The only between-group difference was CLI: one group consistently produced significantly more errors of CLI on both tasks than the other (thereby replicating our findings from a bilingual picture naming task). This striking group difference in language control ability can only be explained by differences in cognitive control, not in language proficiency or language mode.

scholarly journals Other Language Proficiency Predicts Unique Variance in Verbal Fluency Not Accounted for Directly by Target Language Proficiency: Cross-Language Interference?

2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (8) ◽  
pp. 175 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kenneth R. Paap ◽  
Lauren A. Mason ◽  
Brandon M. Zimiga ◽  
Yocelyne Ayala-Silva ◽  
Matthew M. Frost ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Language Proficiency ◽  
Verbal Fluency ◽  
Picture Naming ◽  
English Language ◽  
Naming Task ◽  
Target Language ◽  
Unique Variance ◽  
Semantic Concepts ◽  
Language Effects ◽  
Cross Language

The purpose of the study was to investigate cross-language effects in verbal fluency tasks where participants name in English as many exemplars of a target as they can in one minute. A series of multiple regression models were used that employed predictors such as self-rated proficiency in English, self-rated proficiency in a language other than English, a picture naming task used to measure productive vocabulary, the percentage of English use, and the frequency of language switching. The main findings showed that self-rated proficiency in the non-English language accounted for unique variance in verbal fluency that was not accounted for directly by self-rated proficiency in English. This outcome is consistent with cross-language interference, but is also consistent with an account that assumes bilingual disadvantages in verbal fluency and picture naming are due to bilinguals having weaker links between semantic concepts and their phonological form. The present study is also discussed in terms of a broader framework that questions whether domain-general inhibition exists and also whether it plays an important role in bilingual language control.

scholarly journals Analysis of brief language tests in the detection of cognitive decline and dementia

2007 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 37-45 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marcia Radanovic ◽  
Maria Teresa Carthery-Goulart ◽  
Helenice Charchat-Fichman ◽  
Emílio Herrera Jr. ◽  
Edson Erasmo Pereira Lima ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Cognitive Decline ◽  
Verbal Fluency ◽  
Picture Naming ◽  
Executive Dysfunction ◽  
Stepwise Multiple Regression ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Clinical Dementia Rating ◽  
Semantic Categories ◽  
Language Tests ◽  
Naming Test

Abstract Lexical access difficulties are frequent in normal aging and initial stages of dementia. Verbal fluency tests are valuable to detect cognitive decline, evidencing lexico-semantic and executive dysfunction. Objectives: To establish which language tests can contribute in detecting dementia and to verify schooling influence on subject performance. Method: 74 subjects: 33 controls, 17 Clinical Dementia Rating (CDR) 0.5 and 24 (Brief Cognitive Battery - BCB e Boston Naming Test - BNT) 1 were compared in tests of semantic verbal fluency (animal and fruit), picture naming (BCB and BNT) and the language items of Mini Mental State Examination (MMSE). Results: There were significant differences between the control group and both CDR 0.5 and CDR 1 in all tests. Cut-off scores were: 11 and 10 for animal fluency, 8 for fruit fluency (in both), 8 and 9 for BCB naming. The CDR 0.5 group performed better than the CDR 1 group only in animal fluency. Stepwise multiple regression revealed fruit fluency, animal fluency and BCB naming as the best discriminators between patients and controls (specificity: 93.8%; sensitivity: 91.3%). In controls, comparison between illiterates and literates evidenced schooling influence in all tests, except for fruit fluency and BCB naming. In patients with dementia, only fruit fluency was uninfluenced by schooling. Conclusion: The combination of verbal fluency tests in two semantic categories along with a simple picture naming test is highly sensitive in detecting cognitive decline. Comparison between literate and illiterate subjects shows a lesser degree of influence of schooling on the selected tests, thus improving discrimination between low performance and incipient cognitive decline.

scholarly journals EXPRESS: Attention in Post-Lexical Processes of Utterance Production: Dual-Task Cost in Younger and Older Adults

2021 ◽  
pp. 174702182110341
Author(s):  
Maryll Fournet ◽  
Michaela Pernon ◽  
Sabina Catalano Chiuvé ◽  
Ursula Lopez ◽  
Marina Laganaro
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Dual Task ◽  
Verbal Fluency ◽  
Verbal Task ◽  
Lexical Selection ◽  
Speech Task ◽  
Verbal Fluency Task ◽  
Dual Task Cost ◽  
Lexical Processes ◽  
Fluency Task

There is a general agreement that speaking requires attention at least for conceptual and lexical processes of utterance production. However, conflicting results have been obtained with dual-task paradigms using either repetition tasks or more generally tasks involving limited loading of lexical selection. This study aimed to investigate whether post-lexical processes recruit attentional resources. We used a new dual-task paradigm in a set of experiments where a continuous verbal production task involved either high or low demand on lexical selection processes. Experiment 1 evaluates lexical and post-lexical processes with a semantic verbal fluency task, whereas experiments 2 and 3 focus on post-lexical processes with a non-propositional speech task. In each experiment, two types of non-verbal secondary tasks were used: processing speed (simple manual reaction times) or inhibition (Go/No-go). In Experiment 1, a dual-task cost was observed on the semantic verbal fluency task and each non-verbal task. In Experiment 2, a dual-task cost appeared on the non-verbal tasks but not on the speech task. The same paradigm was used with older adults (Experiment 3), as increased effort in post-lexical processes has been associated with ageing. For older adults, a dual-task cost was also observed on the non-propositional verbal task when speech was produced with the inhibition non-verbal task. The results suggest an attentional cost on post-lexical processes and strategic effects in the resolution of the dual-task.

Language Dysfunction in Schizophrenia

1981 ◽  
Vol 139 (6) ◽  
pp. 519-522 ◽  
Author(s):  
Raymond Faber ◽  
Michele Bierenbaum Reichstein
Keyword(s):  
Language Comprehension ◽  
Picture Naming ◽  
Language Disorders ◽  
Thought Disorder ◽  
Formal Thought Disorder ◽  
Token Test ◽  
Naming Test ◽  
Normal Controls

SummarySimilarities between language disorders in aphasia and formal thought disorder in schizophrenia are explored in 24 schizophrenic, 5 manic and 5 depressed psychiatric in-patients, and 28 normal controls. Eight sub-tests from the Boston Diagnostic Aphasia Examination, a picture naming test and the Token Test were administered. Schizophrenics with formal thought disorder showed significant abnormalities compared to all other groups, particularly on the Token Test and the repetition of phrases test. These deficits are suggestive of language comprehension and repetition dysfunctions in a substantial minority of rigorously defined schizophrenics.

scholarly journals Normative data for healthy elderly on the phonemic verbal fluency task - FAS

2009 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
pp. 55-60 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thais Helena Machado ◽  
Helenice Charchat Fichman ◽  
Etelvina Lucas Santos ◽  
Viviane Amaral Carvalho ◽  
Patrícia Paes Fialho ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Test Performance ◽  
Educational Level ◽  
Verbal Fluency ◽  
Normative Data ◽  
Age Groups ◽  
The Elderly ◽  
Verbal Fluency Task ◽  
Healthy Elderly ◽  
Phonemic Verbal Fluency ◽  
Student’S T

Abstract Phonemic verbal fluency tests assess the production of words beginning with specific letters. Of these letters, the most frequently used are F, A and S. It is a sensitive test for assessing frontal lobe functions. Objective: To provide normative data for the elderly Brazilian population on the FAS test and to investigate the effects of age and schooling on test performance. Methods: The individuals were divided into three age groups (60-69, 70-79 and ³80 years), and into four groups according to education (1-3, 4-7, 8-11 and ³12 years). All subjects were assessed by the Mini Mental State Examination and the FAS. Data were analyzed with Student's t test, ANOVA, simple linear regression and Spearman's correlation. Results: We evaluated 345 cognitively healthy volunteers, 66.66% being female, aged 60 to 93 years, with an educational level ranging from one to 24 years. The average (number of items) ±SD for the whole sample was 28.28±11.53. No significant effect of gender was observed (p=0.5). Performance on the MMSE and education exerted a direct influence on FAS scores (p<0.001), with education being the most significant factor. A positive correlation was found between FAS and the MMSE (r=0.404; p<0.001). Conclusion: The performance of Brazilian elderly on the phonemic verbal fluency tests-FAS is significantly influenced by education, where individuals with higher educational level present better performance than those with fewer years of schooling. Age and gender did not prove significant with the FAS.

scholarly journals Knowledge of semantic categories in normal aged: Influence of education

2007 ◽  
Vol 1 (2) ◽  
pp. 166-172 ◽  
Author(s):  
Karla Shimura Barea ◽  
Leticia Lessa Mansur
Keyword(s):  
Semantic Memory ◽  
Cognitive Processing ◽  
Verbal Fluency ◽  
Semantic Knowledge ◽  
Future Studies ◽  
Semantic Categories ◽  
The Subject ◽  
Naming Test ◽  
Semantic Attributes ◽  
Fluency Test

Abstract Semantic memory seems to resist the effects of time, remaining stable even in more advanced ages. Objective: To verify the effect of schooling level on semantic knowledge (non-living items) in normal aged. Method: 48 aged individuals were divided into three groups (based on schooling) and evaluated. Three tests were applied: verbal fluency, naming and figure classification. Results: We verified that the group with greater schooling (>8 years) differed to the illiterate and low schooling groups in most of the tasks, evoking more items in verbal fluency, correctly naming more items and presenting a greater number of "formal categories". Discussion: In the verbal fluency test, this difference could be explained by the types of strategies used by the individuals to recall words. In relation to the naming test, the effect could be attributed to limitation in the vocabulary and cognitive processing skills needed to search for semantic attributes of the figures. In categorization, this type of classification is dependent on scholastic learning. Conclusion: We concluded that both illiterate elderly and those having a low schooling level, presented poorer performance in semantic memory tests compared to the aged with a higher level of schooling. The similar behavior evidenced between illiterate and low schooling groups is intriguing. It remains unclear whether the low schooling group behaved like the illiterates or vice-a-versa. This unanswered question remains the subject of future studies.

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