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Processing of Code-Switched Sentences in Noise by Bilingual Children.
Megan C Gross1, Haliee Patel2, Margarita Kaushanskaya3
1Department of Communication Disorders, University of Massachusetts Amherst.
Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research : JSLHR
|March 31, 2021
Summary
Code-switching in noisy environments impacts bilingual children
Area of Science:
- Psycholinguistics
- Bilingualism Research
- Child Development
Background:
- Bilingual children frequently code-switch between languages.
- Understanding code-switching's impact on comprehension in challenging conditions is crucial.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate how code-switching affects bilingual children's sentence processing and comprehension amidst background noise.
- To explore if language ability and cognitive control moderate these effects.
Main Methods:
- 50 Spanish-English bilingual children (ages 7-11) participated.
- Auditory moving window task assessed online processing of single-language vs. code-switched sentences in noise.
- Cognitive control and language ability were measured.
Main Results:
- Children showed lower accuracy in offline comprehension of code-switched sentences in noise, particularly in their dominant language.
- Slower processing speeds were observed but not statistically significant.
- Cognitive control moderated the impact of language dominance on comprehension costs.
Conclusions:
- Code-switching in noise increases comprehension demands for bilingual children.
- Processing the non-dominant language in noise, rather than code-switching itself, presents a significant challenge.
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