scholarly journals Bilingual and Monolingual First Language Acquisition Experience Differentially Shapes Children’s Property Term Learning: Evidence from Behavioral and Neurophysiological Measures

2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
pp. 40 ◽  
Author(s):  
Agnes Groba ◽  
Annick De Houwer ◽  
Hellmuth Obrig ◽  
Sonja Rossi
Keyword(s):  
Language Acquisition ◽  
Near Infrared ◽  
First Language ◽  
Brain Regions ◽  
Choice Task ◽  
Bilingual Children ◽  
First Language Acquisition ◽  
Functional Near Infrared Spectroscopy ◽  
Neurophysiological Data ◽  
Forced Choice Task

Studies of novel noun learning show bilingual children rely less on the Mutual Exclusivity Constraint (MEC) for word learning than monolinguals. Shifting the focus to learning novel property terms (adjectives), the present study compared 3.5- and five-year-old bilingual and monolingual preschoolers’ adherence to the MEC. We found no bilingual-monolingual differences on a behavioral forced-choice task for the 3.5-year-olds, but five-year-old monolinguals adhered more to the MEC than bilinguals did. Older bilinguals adhered less to the MEC than younger ones, while there was no difference in MEC adherence between the younger and older monolinguals. In the 5-year-olds, we additionally acquired neurophysiological data using functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) to allow for a first explorative look at potential neuronal underpinnings. The data show that, compared to bilinguals, monolinguals reveal higher activation over three brain regions (right frontal, left temporo-parietal, and left prefrontal) that may be involved in exploiting the MEC, building on conflict detection, inhibition, solution of a disjunction, and working memory processes. Taken together, our behavioral and neurophysiological findings reveal different paths towards novel property term learning depending on children’s language acquisition context.

scholarly journals Different sources of delay and acceleration in early child bilingualism

2017 ◽  
Vol 36 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Natascha Müller
Keyword(s):  
Language Acquisition ◽  
Speech Production ◽  
First Language ◽  
Bilingual Children ◽  
First Language Acquisition ◽  
Efficient Computation ◽  
Linguistic Development ◽  
The Difference ◽  
Acquisition Delay ◽  
Different Sources

AbstractThe present article argues that the two effects observed in bilingual first language acquisition, delay and acceleration, have different sources. Whereas delay can be due to cross-linguistic influence on the competence or the performance level and to the mere cognitive burden to process two languages, acceleration is always rooted in efficient computation in a non-linguistic sense. The evidence for the difference between delay and acceleration effects stems from children who are raised bilingually from birth and who are studied during spontaneous speech production. It falls out rather naturally that linguistic development is immune to acceleration, while it can be delayed in bilingual children as compared to monolinguals.

Bilingual first language acquisition at the interface between syntax and pragmatics

2000 ◽  
Vol 3 (3) ◽  
pp. 227-244 ◽  
Author(s):  
Aafke Hulk ◽  
Natascha Müller
Keyword(s):  
Language Acquisition ◽  
First Language ◽  
External Factors ◽  
The Other ◽  
Bilingual Children ◽  
First Language Acquisition ◽  
Internal Factors ◽  
Surface Level ◽  
Language Dominance ◽  
Starting Point

This paper has as its starting point the assumption that in acquiring two languages from birth, bilingual children separate their grammars from very early on. This does not, however, exclude cross-linguistic influence – the possible influence of one language on the other. The main focus of the paper is on the acquisition of syntax in a generative framework. We argue that cross-linguistic influence can occur if (1) an interface level between two modules of grammar is involved, and (2) the two languages overlap at the surface level. We show that both conditions hold for object drop, but not for root infinitives. Root infinitives satisfy the first condition: they involve the interface between syntax and pragmatics. However, they do not satisfy the second condition. Therefore, we expect cross-linguistic influence to occur only in the domain of object drop and not in the domain of root infinitives. Comparing the development of the two phenomena in a bilingual Dutch–French and a German–Italian child to the development in monolingual children, we show that this prediction is borne out by our data. Moreover, this confirms the hypothesis that cross-linguistic influence is due to language internal factors and not to language external factors such as language dominance: the periods during which we observe influence in the domain of object drop and non-influence in the domain of root infinitives are identical.

Evidence for transfer in bilingual children?

1998 ◽  
Vol 1 (3) ◽  
pp. 177-180 ◽  
Author(s):  
AAFKE HULK ◽  
ELISABETH VAN DER LINDEN
Keyword(s):  
Language Acquisition ◽  
First Language ◽  
Bilingual Children ◽  
First Language Acquisition ◽  
Early Language ◽  
New Approach ◽  
Bilingual Child ◽  
Language Differentiation ◽  
Established Fact ◽  
The Way

The paper by Natascha Müller follows the new way of studying bilingual first language acquisition which has been advocated in the last few years by several researchers (Döpke, 1996, 1997; Gawlitzek-Maiwald & Tracy, 1996; Hulk & Van der Linden, 1996; Hulk, 1997). In this new approach, while it is taken as an established fact that bilingual children are capable of early language differentiation, at the same time a lot of attention is given to cross-linguistic influence as an important characteristic of bilingual first language acquisition. We will discuss the nature of differentiation and transfer here as presented by Müller's paper and the way we see it ourselves. We will illustrate our position with examples from the French-Dutch bilingual child we have been studying for some time.

Ambiguity and transfer in bilingual first language acquisition?

1998 ◽  
Vol 1 (3) ◽  
pp. 187-188 ◽  
Author(s):  
JEANINE TREFFERS-DALLER
Keyword(s):  
Language Acquisition ◽  
First Language ◽  
Target Language ◽  
Subordinate Clause ◽  
Bilingual Children ◽  
First Language Acquisition ◽  
Correct Position ◽  
Subordinate Clauses ◽  
German Child ◽  
Finite Verb

Natascha Müller presents a very interesting analysis of the structure of the German subordinate clause in bilingual first language acquisition. The main issue in this paper is to explain the fact that some bilingual children – but not all of them – display non-target language structures in German subordinate clauses. That is, the finite verb does not appear in the final position of the subordinate clause. These non-target structures can in part be explained by transfer, but this cannot be the whole story, because some monolingual children produce these structures as well. Bilingual children, though, appear to have problems with the German subordinate clause more frequently than monolingual children. Interestingly, acquiring the target structures is a slow process for children who produce non-target structures. Ivar, the French-German child Müller discusses in most detail, for example, needs two years to acquire the correct position of the finite verb in German subordinate clauses. Müller argues that the problems arise because the input children receive is ambiguous: the finite verb does not always appear in the finite position in German subordinate clauses in adult speech. The ambiguity of this situation opens the way to transfer. In their uncertainty, the children turn to their other language as a relief strategy.

scholarly journals The acquisition of dative alternation by German-English bilingual and English monolingual children

2015 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 252-284 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rebecca Woods
Keyword(s):  
Language Acquisition ◽  
First Language ◽  
Bilingual Children ◽  
First Language Acquisition ◽  
Dative Alternation ◽  
English Bilingual ◽  
Interface Phenomena ◽  
L1 Attrition ◽  
L1 Acquisition ◽  
English Monolingual

The vulnerability of the syntax–semantics interface in simultaneous bilingual first language acquisition is still up for debate; while some scholars have found crosslinguistic transfer at this interface, others found no such influence. To determine which kinds of syntax–semantics interface phenomena may be vulnerable, this study examines the acquisition and use of dative alternation by German-English bilingual children and adults compared with English monolingual children and German and English monolingual adults. The study shows that bilingual children interpret and comprehend dative constructions in English like their monolingual peers but their production of dative constructions in German is influenced by English. This suggests that syntax–semantics interface phenomena relating to the representation of verbs’ objects are vulnerable to influence. However, bilingual adults perform like monolinguals in both languages. These results suggest that any indeterminacy in the use of dative alternation in the adult state is due to L1 attrition rather than incomplete L1 acquisition.

The impact of typological factors in monolingual and bilingual first language acquisition

2011 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 101-128 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anne-Katharina Ochsenbauer ◽  
Helen Engemann
Keyword(s):  
Language Acquisition ◽  
First Language ◽  
The Other ◽  
Bilingual Children ◽  
First Language Acquisition ◽  
Response Patterns ◽  
Developmental Patterns ◽  
English Bilingual ◽  
Adults And Children ◽  
The Impact

The present study compares (1) monolingual English vs. French adults and children and (2) simultaneous French-English bilingual children who describe caused motion events. The results concerning L1 speakers showed developmental progressions in both languages, e.g., utterance complexity increases with age. However, response patterns differed considerably across languages in that responses were denser and more compact in English than in French. The results concerning bilingual children showed unidirectional crosslinguistic interactions. Responses elicited in English paralleled monolingual developmental patterns, whereas bilinguals’ French productions differed from those of monolingual French peers. The findings suggest that bilingual children transfer lexicalisation patterns from one of their languages to the other when the former provides more transparent means of achieving high semantic density.

scholarly journals Bilingual and monolingual children process pragmatic cues differently when learning novel adjectives

2017 ◽  
Vol 21 (2) ◽  
pp. 384-402 ◽  
Author(s):  
AGNES GROBA ◽  
ANNICK DE HOUWER ◽  
JAN MEHNERT ◽  
SONJA ROSSI ◽  
HELLMUTH OBRIG
Keyword(s):  
Near Infrared ◽  
Posterior Part ◽  
Bilingual Children ◽  
Group Differences ◽  
Functional Near Infrared Spectroscopy ◽  
Challenging Tasks ◽  
Forced Choice Task ◽  
The Right ◽  
Higher Sensitivity

Previous studies have shown bilingually and monolingually developing children to differ in their sensitivity to referential pragmatic deixis in challenging tasks, with bilinguals exhibiting a higher sensitivity. The learning of adjectives is particularly challenging, but has rarely been investigated in bilingual children. In the present study we presented a pragmatic cue supporting the learning of novel adjectives to 32 Spanish–German bilingual and 28 German monolingual 5-year-olds. The children's responses to a descriptive hand gesture highlighting an object's property were measured behaviorally using a forced choice task and neurophysiologically through functional Near-Infrared Spectroscopy (fNIRS). While no group differences emerged on the behavioral level, fNIRS revealed a higher activation in bilingual than monolingual children in the vicinity of the posterior part of the right superior temporal sulcus (STS). This result supports the prominent role of the STS in processing pragmatic gestures and suggests heightened pragmatic sensitivity for bilingual children.

scholarly journals Early Mixing in Bilingual Children: A Psycholinguistics View

2018 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 39
Author(s):  
Dwi Ide Rahayu
Keyword(s):  
Early Childhood ◽  
Language Acquisition ◽  
Early Stage ◽  
First Language ◽  
Bilingual Children ◽  
First Language Acquisition ◽  
Related Literature ◽  
Linguistic Awareness ◽  
Language Mixing ◽  
Language Differentiation

Most studies on Bilinguals First Language Acquisition (BFLA) are concerned with giving explanation for language mixing in young bilinguals. It is commonly stated that language mixing in children has to be interpreted as evidence for confusions in the bilingual’s language acquisition, in the sense that the two languages are not acquired separately but start out as a single system. In other words, it is in contrast to adults’ code-switching. In this article, early mixing in bilingual children is explored based on psycholinguistics view. This article will first discuss the language acquisition, then the theories and assumptions on bilingualism in early childhood, and last the early mixing in bilingual children. According to the review of related literature, it can be inferred that from psycholinguistics view, language mixing cannot indicate the bilingual children’s lack of ability to differentiate the two language system. Spontaneous translation employed by the bilingual children shows that bilingual awareness and language differentiation is possible at an early stage. Bilingual infants can do language mixing as an evidence of their meta-linguistic awareness and language differentiation. As language mixing may be a good indicator of bilingual fluency, we can say that children who become bilingual in their early childhood will reach their fluency in the two languages by doing language mixing according to the two languages they have acquired.

Assessing the Link Between Perception and Production in Cantonese Tone Acquisition

2019 ◽  
Vol 62 (5) ◽  
pp. 1243-1257 ◽  
Author(s):  
Peggy Pik Ki Mok ◽  
Holly Sze Ho Fung ◽  
Vivian Guo Li
Keyword(s):  
Language Acquisition ◽  
General Principle ◽  
Choice Task ◽  
Factors Affecting ◽  
Tone Pair ◽  
Tone Production ◽  
Monosyllabic Words ◽  
Early Production ◽  
Forced Choice Task ◽  
Production Accuracy

Purpose Previous studies showed early production precedes late perception in Cantonese tone acquisition, contrary to the general principle that perception precedes production in child language. How tone production and perception are linked in 1st language acquisition remains largely unknown. Our study revisited the acquisition of tone in Cantonese-speaking children, exploring the possible link between production and perception in 1st language acquisition. Method One hundred eleven Cantonese-speaking children aged between 2;0 and 6;0 (years;months) and 10 adolescent reference speakers participated in tone production and perception experiments. Production materials with 30 monosyllabic words were transcribed in filtered and unfiltered conditions by 2 native judges. Perception accuracy was based on a 2-alternative forced-choice task with pictures covering all possible tone pair contrasts. Results Children's accuracy of production and perception of all the 6 Cantonese tones was still not adultlike by age 6;0. Both production and perception accuracies matured with age. A weak positive link was found between the 2 accuracies. Mother's native language contributed to children's production accuracy. Conclusions Our findings show that production and perception abilities are associated in tone acquisition. Further study is needed to explore factors affecting production accuracy in children. Supplemental Material https://doi.org/10.23641/asha.7960826

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