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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Nov 11, 2025

Examining Bilingual Language Control Using the Stroop Task

Examining Bilingual Language Control Using the Stroop Task

Published on: February 26, 2020

Speech cues to deception in bilinguals.

Margarethe McDonald¹, Elizabeth Mormer², Margarita Kaushanskaya¹

¹Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, University of Wisconsin-Madison.

Applied Psycholinguistics

|March 29, 2021

Summary

Lying increases reaction times for all English speakers, especially second-language (L2) learners. While articulation rate increases when lying, acoustic cues like fundamental frequency are unreliable indicators of deception.

Keywords:

acoustic cues bilingualism deception second-language speakers

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Area of Science:

Psycholinguistics
Cognitive Psychology
Speech Science

Background:

Deception detection relies on identifying behavioral cues.
Cognitive load theory suggests lying increases mental effort.
Bilingualism introduces linguistic complexity, potentially impacting cognitive load.

Purpose of the Study:

To investigate acoustic cues to deception in monolinguals and bilinguals.
To examine how language background (English-L1 vs. English-L2) influences deception cues.
To test the cognitive-load theory of deception in a bilingual context.

Main Methods:

Participants: Monolingual English speakers, bilinguals with English as L1, and bilinguals with English as L2.
Task: Picture naming, involving truthful and deceptive responses.
Analysis: Acoustic analysis of speech, including reaction times, articulation rate, fundamental frequency, and intensity.

Main Results:

All groups exhibited longer reaction times for lies versus truths.
The effect of deception on reaction time was more pronounced in English-L2 bilinguals.
Articulation rate was higher during deception for all groups; fundamental frequency and intensity were not reliable deception cues but showed reduced variance.

Conclusions:

Naming latency is the primary deception cue influenced by language background.
The cognitive load of deception is amplified when speaking a second language.
Findings support cognitive-load theory, indicating dual cognitive demands for L2 deception.