scholarly journals Inhibitory and facilitatory effects of phonological and orthographic similarity on L2 word recognition across modalities in bilinguals

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Candice Frances ◽  
Eugenia Navarra-Barindelli ◽  
Clara D. Martin
Keyword(s):  
Lexical Decision ◽  
Language Processing ◽  
Theoretical Implication ◽  
Phonological Similarity ◽  
Target Language ◽  
Visual Modality ◽  
Decision Task ◽  
Auditory Modality ◽  
Orthographic Similarity ◽  
Special Category

AbstractLanguage perception studies on bilinguals often show that words that share form and meaning across languages (cognates) are easier to process than words that share only meaning. This facilitatory phenomenon is known as the cognate effect. Most previous studies have shown this effect visually, whereas the auditory modality as well as the interplay between type of similarity and modality remain largely unexplored. In this study, highly proficient late Spanish–English bilinguals carried out a lexical decision task in their second language, both visually and auditorily. Words had high or low phonological and orthographic similarity, fully crossed. We also included orthographically identical words (perfect cognates). Our results suggest that similarity in the same modality (i.e., orthographic similarity in the visual modality and phonological similarity in the auditory modality) leads to improved signal detection, whereas similarity across modalities hinders it. We provide support for the idea that perfect cognates are a special category within cognates. Results suggest a need for a conceptual and practical separation between types of similarity in cognate studies. The theoretical implication is that the representations of items are active in both modalities of the non-target language during language processing, which needs to be incorporated to our current processing models.

scholarly journals Inhibitory and Facilitatory Effects of Phonological and Orthographic Similarity on Bilingual Word Recognition

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Candice Frances ◽  
Eugenia Navarra-Barindelli ◽  
Clara Martin
Keyword(s):  
Lexical Decision ◽  
Language Processing ◽  
Theoretical Implication ◽  
Phonological Similarity ◽  
Target Language ◽  
Visual Modality ◽  
Decision Task ◽  
Auditory Modality ◽  
Orthographic Similarity ◽  
Special Category

Abstract Language perception studies on bilinguals often show that words that share form and meaning across languages (cognates) are easier to process than words that share only meaning. This facilitatory phenomenon is known as the cognate effect. Most previous studies have shown this effect visually, whereas the auditory modality as well as the interplay between type of similarity and modality remain largely unexplored. In this study, highly proficient late Spanish-English bilinguals carried out a lexical decision task in their second language, both visually and auditorily. Words had high or low phonological and orthographic similarity, fully crossed. We also included orthographically identical words (perfect cognates). Our results suggest that similarity in the same modality (i.e., orthographic similarity in the visual modality and phonological similarity in the auditory modality) leads to improved signal detection, whereas similarity across modalities hinders it. We provide support for the idea that perfect cognates are a special category within cognates. Results suggest a need for a conceptual and practical separation between types of similarity in cognate studies. The theoretical implication is that the representations of items are active in both modalities of the non-target language during language processing, which needs to be incorporated to our current processing models.

The modality switching costs of Chinese–English bilinguals in the processing of L1 and L2

2019 ◽  
Vol 73 (3) ◽  
pp. 396-412
Author(s):  
Tianyang Zhao ◽  
Yanli Huang ◽  
Donggui Chen ◽  
Lu Jiao ◽  
Fernando Marmolejo-Ramos ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Language Comprehension ◽  
Language Production ◽  
Switching Costs ◽  
Naming Task ◽  
Visual Modality ◽  
Decision Task ◽  
Auditory Modality ◽  
Sequential Information ◽  
Modality Switching ◽  
L1 And L2

Modality switching cost indicates that people’s performance becomes worse when they judge sequential information that is related to different sensory modalities than judging information that is related to the same modality. In this study, we conducted three experiments on proficient and non-proficient bilingual individuals to investigate the modality switching costs in L1 and L2 processing separately. In Experiment 1, materials were L1 and L2 words that were either conceptually related to a visual modality (e.g., light) or related to an auditory modality (e.g., song). The modality switching costs were investigated in a lexical decision task in both L1 and L2. Experiment 2 further explored the modality switching costs while weakening the activation level of the perceptual modality by adding a set of fillers. Experiment 3 used a word-naming task to explore the modality switching effect in language production in L1 and L2. Results of these experiments showed that the modality switching costs appeared in both language comprehension and production in L1 and L2 conditions. The magnitude of the modality switching costs was conditionally modulated by the L2 proficiency level, such as in the L2 condition in Experiment 1 and in both L1 and L2 conditions in Experiment 3. These results suggest that sensorimotor simulation is involved in not only language comprehension but also language production. The sensorimotor simulation that is acquired in L1 can be transferred to L2.

scholarly journals The traces that novel morphologically complex words leave in memory are abstract in nature

2017 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
pp. 181-218
Author(s):  
Laura de Vaan ◽  
Kobie Van Krieken ◽  
Winie Van den Bosch ◽  
Robert Schreuder ◽  
Mirjam Ernestus
Keyword(s):  
Lexical Decision ◽  
Listening Comprehension ◽  
Visual Modality ◽  
Auditory Modality ◽  
Priming Effects ◽  
Familiarization Phase ◽  
Reading Task ◽  
Experimental Part ◽  
Complex Words ◽  
Identity Priming

Abstract Previous work has shown that novel morphologically complex words (henceforth neologisms) leave traces in memory after just one encounter. This study addressed the question whether these traces are abstract in nature or exemplars. In three experiments, neologisms were either primed by themselves or by their stems. The primes occurred in the visual modality whereas the targets were presented in the auditory modality (Experiment 1) or vice versa (Experiments 2 and 3). The primes were presented in sentences in a selfpaced reading task (Experiment 1) or in stories in a listening comprehension task (Experiments 2 and 3). The targets were incorporated in lexical decision tasks, auditory or visual (Experiment 1 and Experiment 2, respectively), or in stories in a self-paced reading task (Experiment 3). The experimental part containing the targets immediately followed the familiarization phase with the primes (Experiment 1), or after a one week delay (Experiments 2 and 3). In all experiments, participants recognized neologisms faster if they had encountered them before (identity priming) than if the familiarization phase only contained the neologisms’ stems (stem priming). These results show that the priming effects are robust despite substantial differences between the primes and the targets. This suggests that the traces novel morphologically complex words leave in memory after just one encounter are abstract in nature.

Priming and the Effects of Sentence and Lexical Contexts on Naming Time: Evidence for Autonomous Lexical Processing

1981 ◽  
Vol 33 (4) ◽  
pp. 465-495 ◽  
Author(s):  
K. I. Forster
Keyword(s):  
Lexical Decision ◽  
Language Processing ◽  
Lexical Processing ◽  
Naming Task ◽  
Decision Time ◽  
Semantic Integration ◽  
Access Time ◽  
Decision Task ◽  
Naming Time ◽  
Inhibitory Effects

Models of language processing which stress the autonomy of processing at each level predict that the semantic properties of an incomplete sentence context should have no influence on lexical processing, either facilitatory or inhibitory. An experiment similar to those reported by Fischler and Bloom (1979) and Stanovich and West (1979, 1981) was conducted using naming time as an index of lexical access time. No facilitatory effects of context were observed for either highly predictable or semantically appropriate (but unpredictable) completions, whereas strong inhibitory effects were obtained for inappropriate completions. When lexical decision time was the dependent measure, the same results were obtained, except that predictable completions now produced strong facilitation. In a further experiment the inhibitory effects of context on lexical decision times for inappropriate targets were maintained, even though unfocussed contexts were used, in which no clear expectancy for a particular completion was involved. These results were interpreted in terms of a two-factor theory which attributes the facilitation observed with the lexical decision task to postaccess decision processes which are not involved in the naming task. The inhibitory effects were attributed to interference resulting from semantic integration. In contrast to the results for sentence contexts, lexical contexts of the doctor-nurse variety produced clear facilitation effects on naming time (but no inhibitory effects). It was also shown that relatively minor variations in the type of neutral context could completely alter the relative importance of facilitation and inhibition.

Comparing length and frequency effects in children across modalities

2018 ◽  
Vol 72 (7) ◽  
pp. 1682-1691
Author(s):  
Jana Hasenäcker ◽  
Luianta Verra ◽  
Sascha Schroeder
Keyword(s):  
Word Recognition ◽  
Lexical Decision ◽  
Reading Ability ◽  
Word Processing ◽  
Beginning Readers ◽  
Visual Modality ◽  
Auditory Modality ◽  
Phonological Decoding ◽  
Relative Contribution ◽  
Length Effects

Although it is well established that beginning readers rely heavily on phonological decoding, the overlap of the phonological pathways used in visual and auditory word recognition is not clear. Especially in transparent languages, phonological reading could use the same pathways as spoken word processing. In the present study, we report a direct comparison of lexical decision performance in the visual and auditory modality in beginning readers of a transparent language. Using lexical decision, we examine how marker effects of length and frequency differ in the two modalities and how these differences are modulated by reading ability. The results show that both frequency and length effects are stronger in the visual modality, and the differences in length effects between modalities are more pronounced for poorer readers than for better readers. This suggests that visual word recognition in beginning readers of a transparent language initially is based on phonological decoding and subsequent matching in the phonological lexicon, especially for poor readers. However, some orthographic processing seems to be involved already. We claim that the relative contribution of the phonological and orthographic route in beginning readers can be measured by the differences in marker effects between auditory and visual lexical decision.

Using Network Science Measures to Predict the Lexical Decision Performance of Adults Who Stutter

2017 ◽  
Vol 60 (7) ◽  
pp. 1911-1918 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nichol Castro ◽  
Kristin M. Pelczarski ◽  
Michael S. Vitevitch
Keyword(s):  
Lexical Decision ◽  
Language Processing ◽  
Phonological Processing ◽  
Network Science ◽  
Response Times ◽  
Neighborhood Density ◽  
Decision Task ◽  
Contributing Factors ◽  
Network Analyses ◽  
Adults Who Stutter

Purpose Methods from network science have examined various aspects of language processing. Clinical populations may also benefit from these novel analyses. Phonological and lexical factors have been examined in adults who stutter (AWS) as potential contributing factors to stuttering, although differences reported are often subtle. We reexamined the performance of AWS and adults who do not stutter (AWNS) from a previously conducted lexical decision task in an attempt to determine if network science measures would provide additional insight into the phonological network of AWS beyond traditional psycholinguistic measures. Method Multiple regression was used to examine the influence of several traditional psycholinguistic measures as well as several new measures from network science on response times. Results AWS responded to low-frequency words more slowly than AWNS; responses for both groups were equivalent for high-frequency words. AWS responded to shorter words more slowly than AWNS, producing a reverse word-length effect. For the network measures, degree/neighborhood density and closeness centrality, but not whether a word was inside or outside the giant component, influenced response times similarly between groups. Conclusions Network analyses suggest that multiple levels of the phonological network might influence phonological processing, not just the micro-level traditionally considered by mainstream psycholinguistics.

scholarly journals Altered Inhibitory Mechanisms in Parkinson’s Disease: Evidence From Lexical Decision and Simple Reaction Time Tasks

2021 ◽  
Vol 15 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alban Letanneux ◽  
Jean-Luc Velay ◽  
François Viallet ◽  
Serge Pinto
Keyword(s):  
Parkinson’S Disease ◽  
Parkinson's Disease ◽  
Reaction Time ◽  
Lexical Decision ◽  
Simple Reaction Time ◽  
Mental Lexicon ◽  
Visual Modality ◽  
Auditory Modality ◽  
Control Task ◽  
Simple Reaction

IntroductionAlthough the motor signs of Parkinson’s disease (PD) are well defined, nonmotor symptoms, including higher-level language deficits, have also been shown to be frequent in patients with PD. In the present study, we used a lexical decision task (LDT) to find out whether access to the mental lexicon is impaired in patients with PD, and whether task performance is affected by bradykinesia.Materials and MethodsParticipants were 34 nondemented patients with PD, either without (off) medication (n = 16) or under optimum (on) medication (n = 18). A total of 19 age-matched control volunteers were also recruited. We recorded reaction times (RTs) to the LDT and a simple RT (control) task. In each task, stimuli were either visual or auditory. Statistical analyses consisted of repeated-measures analyses of variance and Tukey’s HSD post hoc tests.ResultsIn the LDT, participants with PD both off and on medication exhibited intact access to the mental lexicon in both modalities. In the visual modality, patients off medication were just as fast as controls when identifying real words, but slower when identifying pseudowords. In the visual modality of the control task, RTs for pseudowords were significantly longer for PD patients off medication than for controls, revealing an unexpected but significant lexicality effect in patients that was not observed in the auditory modality. Performances of patients on medication did not differ from those of age-matched controls.DiscussionMotor execution was not slowed in patients with PD either off or on medication, in comparison with controls. Regarding lexical access, patients off medication seemed to (1) have difficulty inhibiting a cognitive-linguistic process (i.e., reading) when it was not required (simple reaction time task), and (2) exhibit a specific pseudoword processing deficit in the LDT, which may have been related to impaired lateral word inhibition within the mental lexicon. These deficits seemed to be compensated by medication.

The multilingual lexicon

2007 ◽  
pp. 250-266 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ton Dijkstra
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Language ◽  
Language Processing ◽  
Cognitive Neuroscience ◽  
Word Processing ◽  
Processing System ◽  
Educational Systems ◽  
Visual Modality ◽  
Auditory Modality ◽  
The World ◽  
Listening And Speaking

Although precise numbers are lacking, in the world at large there may be more multilinguals than monolinguals when we define “multilingualism” as the regular use of two or more languages. This prominence of multilingualism in the world has its consequences, of course, for educational systems (for example, with respect to foreign language teaching), but also for psycholinguistic research, because the language processing system might be differently organised in monolinguals and bilinguals. This article discusses structural, process, and context/control issues with respect to the multilingual lexicon, addressing the following questions: How are words stored in the mental lexicon of multilinguals? How does a multilingual retrieve words in reading, listening, and speaking? What is the effect of context and cognitive control on multilingual processing? What models have been proposed to account for the available data? What can cognitive neuroscience contribute to bilingualism? The article also looks at the process of multilingual word recognition, focusing on visual modality, auditory modality, models of bilingual word processing, multilingual word production, and contributions of cognitive neuroscience.

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