Assessing bilingual dominance
Assessing bilingual dominance
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DOI：
10.1017/s0142716402004046
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发表时间：
2002-12-01
影响因子：
2.1
通讯作者：
Piske, T
中科院分区：
文献类型：
--
作者：
Flege, JE;Mackay, IRA;Piske, T
本研究使用两种方法评估了四组18名意大利-英语双语者的双语优势，这些人是根据抵达加拿大的年龄(早期：2-13岁；晚期：15-26岁)和第一语言(L1)、意大利语的使用百分比(低L1使用率：1-15%；高L1使用率：25-85%)选择的。比率是根据双语者对意大利语和理解意大利语的能力与英语的自评(“口头”自评比率)和意大利语的读写能力与英语的自评比率(“书面”自评比率)得出的。每种双语产生的英语和意大利语句子的平均时长的比率也被计算出来。AOA和L1的使用对自评和句子时长比率的影响是相同的，这两个因素是相关的。年轻时来到加拿大并继续使用意大利语的双语者最有可能是意大利语占主导地位的人。意大利语的优势与相对较高的意大利语水平(在翻译任务中评估)和相对较差的英语表现(通过测量外国口音的强度来评估)有关。两组晚双语者(晚低、晚高)和两组早双语者(早低、早高)都能产生带有可察觉口音的英语句子。然而，从最初的72个样本中挑选出的18个双语者(都是早期双语者)，根据他们在英语中的主导地位，没有明显的外国口音。这表明语际干扰效应并不是不可避免的。双语者通常被划分为在第一语言(1-1)占优势，在第二语言(L2)占优，或平衡(即，在第一语言和第二语言中都不占优)。一个平衡的双语可以被定义为在各种测试中“在两种语言上都做得同样好”(Grosjean，1982，p.234)或表现出“很少语际干扰”(Lambert，1990，p.203)的人。因此，对不同二语学习年龄的平衡双语者的同质群体的比较可以提供一种方法，在两种众所周知的解释中进行选择：经过成熟定义的关键期(例如，(C)2002剑桥大学出版社0142-7164/02$9.50)，解释双语者和以单语言为母语的人之间的二语成绩差异。
This study used two methods to assess bilingual dominance in four groups of 18 Italian-English bilinguals, who were selected on the basis of age of arrival (AOA) in Canada (early: 2-13 years; late: 15-26 years) and percentage use of the first language (L1), Italian (low L1 use: 1-15%; high L1 use: 25-85%). Ratios were derived from the bilinguals' self-ratings of ability to speak and understand Italian compared to English (the "verbal" self-rating ratios) and to read and write Italian compared to English (the "written" self-rating ratios). The ratio of the mean duration of English and Italian sentences produced by each bilingual was also computed. AOA and L1 use had the same effect on the self-rating and sentence duration ratios, which were correlated. The bilinguals who arrived in Canada as young adults and continued to use Italian often were the most likely to be Italian dominant. Dominance in Italian was associated with a relatively high level of performance in Italian (assessed in a translation task) and relatively poor performance in English (assessed by measuring strength of foreign accents). Both groups of late bilinguals (late low, late high) and both groups of early bilinguals (early low, early high) were found to produce English sentences with detectable accents. However, a group of 18 bilinguals (all early bilinguals) selected from the original sample of 72 based on their dominance in English did not have detectable foreign accents. This suggested that interlingual interference effects may not be inevitable.It is common to classify bilinguals as dominant in the first language (1-1), dominant in their second language (L2), or balanced (i.e., dominant in neither the L1 nor the L2). A balanced bilingual may be defined as one "who does equally well in both languages" on a variety of tests (Grosjean, 1982, p. 234) or who shows "little interlingual interference" (Lambert, 1990, p. 203). The comparison of homogenous groups of balanced bilinguals differing in age of L2 leaming might, therefore, provide a way to choose between two well-known explanations for differences in L2 performance between bilinguals and monolingual native speakers of the L2: the passing of a maturationally defined critical period (e.g.,(C) 2002 Cambridge University Press 0142-7164/02 $9.50.