How does the language acquisition period affect simultaneous interpreters’ language processing?

Babel ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 66 (4-5) ◽  
pp. 570-587
Author(s):  
Seunghee Han
Keyword(s):  
Language Processing ◽  
Critical Period ◽  
Mother Tongue ◽  
Subjective Perception ◽  
L2 Acquisition ◽  
Language Dominance ◽  
Acquisition Period ◽  
Parental Factor ◽  
Bilingual Group ◽  
Abstract Words

Abstract This study aims to identify the similarities and differences in cognitive-psychological semantic (Translation Equivalent) mapping employed by early, and late balanced bilinguals at the adult level. The subjects of lexical-semantic recognition tasks were limited to fourth-semester learners at graduate school of interpreting and translation to analyze the effect that the L2 acquisition period (or Age of Acquisition, AOA) and immersive education may have on cross-language processing among highly-proficient bilinguals. The experimental words were composed of non-cognate abstract words with two levels, and in four language directions (L1 > L1, L1 > L2, L2 > L1, L2 > L2) to compare monolingual, and bilingual priming effects. Early, and Late Balanced Bilingual groups (i.e., EBB and LBB) were comparable in many ways. However, mid balanced bilinguals who had exposure of more than six years after the critical period showed distinctive features. With a low lexical difficulty in the L1 to L2 direction, Mid Balanced Bilingual group (MBB) showed a similar tendency with EBB, while it was analogous to LBB when the lexical difficulty was high, and the language direction was from L2 to L1. Such results can be interpreted as evidence against the critical period hypothesis, indicating that language dominance may change due to the L2 acquisition period and immersive education. In contrast to their subjective perception, the mother tongue of all subject groups turned out to be Korean since all subjects, without exception, were faster in deciding words from English to Korean. The parental factor was limited to be all Koreans in order to control biological differences, from which the parental factor is reversely inferred most influential for early balanced bilinguals’ language dominance.

scholarly journals Relationship Between Language Dominance and Stimulus-Stimulus or Stimulus-Response Inhibition in Uyghur-Chinese Bilinguals with an Investigation of Speed-Accuracy Trade-Offs

2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (4) ◽  
pp. 41 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wu ◽  
Struys ◽  
Lochtman
Keyword(s):  
Cognitive Control ◽  
Language Processing ◽  
Flanker Task ◽  
Trade Off ◽  
Language Dominance ◽  
Stimulus Response ◽  
Trade Offs ◽  
Monitoring Process ◽  
Response Task ◽  
Speed Accuracy

The effect of bilingualism on inhibition control is increasingly under ongoing exploration. The present study primarily investigated the effect of within bilingual factors (i.e., dominance types of Uyghur-Chinese bilinguals) on a Stimulus-Stimulus task (Flanker) and a Stimulus-Response task (Simon). We also compared the bilinguals' performance on each type of cognitive control task in respect to a possible trade-off between speed and accuracy. The findings showed no explicit differences on performance in response time or accuracy among balanced, L1-dominant and L2-dominant bilinguals but balanced bilinguals demonstrated a significant speed-accuracy trade-off in the overall context switching between non-conflict and conflict trials in both cognitive control tasks where monitoring process is highly demanded. Additionally, all bilinguals across all language dominance types showed a trade-off strategy in inhibition during a Stimulus-Stimulus conflict (flanker task). This evidence indicates that the differences of within bilinguals in cognitive control could lie in the monitoring process, while for all bilinguals, inhibition during a Stimulus-Stimulus conflict could be a major component in the mechanism of bilingual language processing.

scholarly journals Arabic-Spanish Language Contact in Puerto Rico: A Case of Glottal Stop Epenthesis

Languages ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 4 (4) ◽  
pp. 93
Author(s):  
Sherez Mohamed ◽  
Carolina González ◽  
Antje Muntendam
Keyword(s):  
Puerto Rico ◽  
Language Contact ◽  
Syllable Structure ◽  
Spanish Language ◽  
Language Dominance ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Bilingual Group ◽  
Glottal Stop ◽  
Vowel Height ◽  
Spanish Bilinguals

The current study examines the realization of adjacent vowels across word boundaries in Arabic-Spanish bilinguals and Spanish monolinguals in Puerto Rico, focusing specifically on the rate of glottal stop epenthesis in this context (e.g., hombre africano to [ˈom.bre.ʔa.fri.ˈka.no]). It was hypothesized that Arabic-Spanish bilinguals would show a higher rate of glottal stop epenthesis than Spanish monolinguals because of transfer from Arabic. In addition, we investigated the possible effects of stress, vowel height, language dominance and bilingual type on the rate of glottal stop epenthesis. Results from a reading task with 8 participants showed no significant difference in glottalization between bilinguals and monolinguals. For monolinguals, glottalization was significantly more likely when the first vowel was low or stressed; significant interactions between vowel height and stress were found for the bilingual group. Language dominance was a significant factor, with Arabic-dominant bilinguals glottalizing more than the Spanish-dominant bilinguals. In addition, early sequential bilinguals favored glottalization slightly more than simultaneous bilinguals, without reaching significance. Our data suggests some effects of syllable structure transfer from Arabic, particularly in Arabic-dominant participants. To our knowledge, our study is the first exploration of Arabic and Spanish in contact in Puerto Rico, and the first to acoustically examine the speech of Arabic-Spanish bilinguals.

scholarly journals Understanding individual variation in levels of second language attainment through the lens of critical period mechanisms

2018 ◽  
Vol 21 (5) ◽  
pp. 930-931 ◽  
Author(s):  
REBECCA REH ◽  
MARIA ARREDONDO ◽  
JANET F. WERKER
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Category Learning ◽  
Critical Period ◽  
First Language ◽  
Visual Language ◽  
Phonetic Category ◽  
Critical Periods ◽  
L2 Acquisition ◽  
Language Discrimination ◽  
L1 Acquisition

Mayberry and Kluender (2017) present an important and compelling argument that in order to understand critical periods (CPs) in language acquisition, it is essential to disentangle studies of late first language (L1) acquisition from those of second language (L2) acquisition. Their primary thesis is that timely exposure to an L1 is crucial for establishing language circuitry, thus providing a foundation on which an L2 can build. They note that while there is considerable evidence of interference from the L1 on acquisition of the L2 – especially in late L2 learners (as in our work on cascading influences on phonetic category learning and visual language discrimination, e.g., Werker & Hensch, 2015 and Weikum, Vouloumanos, Navarra, Soto-Faraco, Sebastián-Gallés & Werker, 2013, respectively) – there are other examples of ways in which the L1 can scaffold L2 acquisition. Mayberry and Kluender take this evidence of L1 scaffolding L2 as undermining the value of considering CPs as useful in understanding L2 acquisition.

USING EYE-TRACKING TO INVESTIGATE TOPICS IN L2 ACQUISITION AND L2 PROCESSING

2013 ◽  
Vol 35 (2) ◽  
pp. 213-235 ◽  
Author(s):  
Leah Roberts ◽  
Anna Siyanova-Chanturia
Keyword(s):  
Eye Tracking ◽  
Real Time ◽  
Language Processing ◽  
Target Language ◽  
Tracking Data ◽  
L2 Acquisition ◽  
Tracking Method ◽  
L2 Processing ◽  
Major Benefit ◽  
The Moment

Second language (L2) researchers are becoming more interested in both L2 learners’ knowledge of the target language and how that knowledge is put to use during real-time language processing. Researchers are therefore beginning to see the importance of combining traditional L2 research methods with those that capture the moment-by-moment interpretation of the target language, such as eye-tracking. The major benefit of the eye-tracking method is that it can tap into real-time (or online) comprehension processes during the uninterrupted processing of the input, and thus, the data can be compared to those elicited by other, more metalinguistic tasks to offer a broader picture of language acquisition and processing. In this article, we present an overview of the eye-tracking technique and illustrate the method with L2 studies that show how eye-tracking data can be used to (a) investigate language-related topics and (b) inform key debates in the fields of L2 acquisition and L2 processing.

scholarly journals English language students’ productive and receptive knowledge of collocations

ExELL ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 46-67 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mirna Begagić
Keyword(s):  
Language Learning ◽  
Second Language Learning ◽  
English Language ◽  
Native Speakers ◽  
Mother Tongue ◽  
Poor Performance ◽  
L2 Acquisition ◽  
Language Performance ◽  
Lexical Collocations ◽  
Language Students

Abstract The importance of collocations in second language learning has been recognized in the past few decades. There have been numerous studies in L2 acquisition research that investigated how the knowledge and use of collocations at different levels of proficiency affect learners’ communicative competence and language performance. Moreover, it seems important to mention that most of the studies investigating the collocational knowledge of students learning English as their L2, indicated students’ poor performance (Fayez-Hussein 1990; Aghbar 1990; Bahns and Eldaw 1993; Stubbs 2002; Wray 2002; Nasselhauf 2005; Ozaki 2011). The aim of this paper is to explain the notion of collocation as well as its most common classification, and to point out the importance of its proper use for English language students who are native speakers of the Bosnian/Croatian/Serbian (BCS) language. Furthermore, this study examines the productive and receptive knowledge of lexical collocations in order to access students’ collocational competence. The results indicate students’ poor collocational knowledge. This can be due to the fact that collocations of the language students are learning are interfering with the collocations of their mother tongue, but also due to the way students are taught English (vocabulary negligence in comparison with grammar and unawareness of the importance of collocations in language learning).

An ERP Study of Second Language Learning after Childhood: Effects of Proficiency

2005 ◽  
Vol 17 (8) ◽  
pp. 1212-1228 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shiro Ojima ◽  
Hiroki Nakata ◽  
Ryusuke Kakigi
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Language Learning ◽  
Language Processing ◽  
Critical Period ◽  
Semantic Processing ◽  
Time Course ◽  
Syntactic Processing ◽  
Early Maturation ◽  
Period Effects ◽  
L2 Learning

Whether there is an absolute critical period for acquiring language is a matter of continuous debate. One approach to address this issue is to compare the processes of second language (L2) learning after childhood and those of first language (L1) learning during childhood. To study the cortical process of postchildhood L2 learning, we compared event-related brain potentials recorded from two groups of adult Japanese speakers who attained either high or intermediate proficiency in English after childhood (J-High and J-Low), and adult native English speakers (ENG). Semantic anomalies embedded in English sentences evoked a clear N400 component in all three groups, with only the time course of the brain activation varying among the groups. Syntactic violations elicited a left-lateralized negativity similar to the left anterior negativity in ENG and J-High, but not in J-Low. In ENG, a P600 component was additionally found. These results suggest that semantic processing is robust from early on in L2 learning, whereas the development of syntactic processing is more dependent on proficiency as evidenced by the lack of the left-lateralized negativity in J-Low. Because early maturation and stability of semantic processing as opposed to syntactic processing are also a feature of L1 processing, postchildhood L2 learning may be governed by the same brain properties as those which govern childhood L1 learning. We argue that these processes are qualitatively similar in many respects, with only restricted domains of language processing being subject to absolute critical period effects.

A critical period for right hemisphere recruitment in American Sign Language processing

10.1038/nn775 ◽  
2001 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 76-80 ◽  
Author(s):  
Aaron J. Newman ◽  
Daphne Bavelier ◽  
David Corina ◽  
Peter Jezzard ◽  
Helen J. Neville
Keyword(s):  
American Sign Language ◽  
Sign Language ◽  
Language Processing ◽  
Critical Period ◽  
Right Hemisphere ◽  
American Sign

Between the input and the acquisition lies the shadow

2004 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 29-31
Author(s):  
MICHAEL HARRINGTON
Keyword(s):  
Language Acquisition ◽  
Language Processing ◽  
L2 Acquisition ◽  
Learning Mechanisms ◽  
Processing Theory ◽  
Theory Of Language ◽  
L1 And L2

Acquisition by Processing Theory (APT) is a unified account of language processing and learning that encompasses both L1 and L2 acquisition. Bold in aim and broad in scope, the proposal offers parsimony and comprehensiveness, both highly desirable in a theory of language acquisition. However, the sweep of the proposal is accompanied by an economy of description that makes it difficult to evaluate the validity of key learning claims, or even how literally they are to be interpreted. Two in particular deserve comment; the first concerns the learning mechanisms responsible for adding new L2 grammatical information, and the second the theoretical and empirical status of the activation concept used in the model.

scholarly journals A meta-analysis of task-based differences in bilingual L1 and L2 language networks

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lindy B Comstock ◽  
Bruce Oliver
Keyword(s):  
Language Proficiency ◽  
Language Processing ◽  
Functional Organization ◽  
Meta Analysis ◽  
L2 Acquisition ◽  
Linguistic Processing ◽  
Proficiency Level ◽  
Meta Analyses ◽  
L1 And L2 ◽  
Design Factors

The functional organization of first (L1) and second (L2) language processing in bilinguals remains a topic of great interest to the neurolinguistics community. Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) studies report meaningful differences in the location and extent of hemodynamic changes between tasks performed in the L1 and L2, yet there is no consensus on whether these networks can be considered truly distinct. In part, this may be due to the multiplicity of task designs implemented in such studies, which complicates the interpretation of their findings. This paper compares the results of previous bilingual meta-analyses to a new ALE meta-analysis that categorizes neuroimaging studies by task design. Factors such as the age of L2 acquisition (AoA) and the L2 language proficiency level of participants are also considered. The findings support previous accounts of the effect of participant characteristics on linguistic processing, while at the same time revealing dissociable differences in fMRI activation for L1 and L2 networks within and across tasks that appear independent of these external factors.

scholarly journals The most common errors within the written discourse of EFL beginners at Ecuadorian universities

2020 ◽  
pp. 55-74
Author(s):  
Sandy T. Soto ◽  
◽  
Estefanía Vargas Caicedo ◽  
Carmen Maricela Cajamarca ◽  
María Liliana Escobar ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
College Students ◽  
Second Language ◽  
Public Universities ◽  
Mother Tongue ◽  
L2 Acquisition ◽  
Written Discourse ◽  
Acquisition Process ◽  
Clear Image ◽  
Initial Learning ◽  
Grammar Knowledge

Making errors while learning a language is nothing else than part of the learning process itself. The transfer of the mother tongue (L1) into a second language (L2) acquisition process is inevitable and mainly noticeable in the initial learning levels. The results of an Error Analysis (EA) in the written discourse become an advantage in the teaching of English as a Foreign Language (EFL) since it provides a clear image of what should be reinforced in the classroom. The aim of this study is to identify the most common errors made by EFL beginning level Ecuadorian college students in their written discourse. The researchers elaborated a linguistic corpus from writing samples provided by a group of forty-five students from three public universities in Ecuador. The EA process yields a high percentage of errors related to Word Missing; Form Spelling; Lexical Single; Lexico-Grammar, Verbs, Complementation; Style, Grammar, Verbs, Number; Grammar Articles; and, Grammar – Adjective Order. Errors in the analyzed samples mainly occur due to the interference and negative transfer resulting from the L1 (Spanish) over the L2 (English). Poor lexical and grammar knowledge are also causatives of the errors found in the study.

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