Electrophysiology of Non-Native Language Acquisition and Attrition

非母语习得和消耗的电生理学

• 批准号: 1261501
• 负责人: Lee Osterhout
• 金额: $ 45万
• 依托单位: University of Washington
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2013
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2013-06-15 至 2017-11-30
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1261501&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Electrophysiology; Non; Native; Language; Acquisition

Global changes in transportation and communication have placed a premium on the ability to speak two or more languages. However, learning a third language (L3) can interfere with the learner's proficiency in a previously acquired second (L2) language, a phenomenon referred to as language attrition. Fundamental questions about why languages attrite, how they attrite, and what aspects of language are most susceptible to attrition remain unanswered. This proposal seeks to better understand how the learning of a new language (L3) can interfere with the learner's proficiency with a previously acquired non-native language (L2), in the context of real-world language learning among college students. Dr. Lee Osterhout, from the University of Washington, will perform three experiments using a high density EEG-based brain activity measure to longitudinally investigate changes in learners' ability to process sentences in their L3 (Italian) and in their L2 (a similar language, Spanish, or a less similar language, such as Japanese). Because the brain activity measure is differentially sensitive to aspects of linguistic meaning and grammar, the results will provide a specific understanding of what linguistic knowledge (for both the L2 and L3) has been gained or lost, and how the acquisition of one language influences the loss of another.Given the importance of multi-lingual skills in the modern, inter-connected world, a better understanding of the causes of language attrition will have broad impact. Findings from this project may lead to ways to improve and customize instructional pedagogy with respect to language learning, and to protect previously acquired foreign languages. This project will generate a large data set with broad relevance. Potentially, this data set could be used to study the spatial origins of language-sensitive brain responses, test new mathematical and computational tools for high-density EEG-based brain source imaging, and address the fundamental question of how brain activity, at the temporal scale of milliseconds and from multiple brain regions, changes as a result of learning and "unlearning" outside of the laboratory.

全球交通和通讯的变化使讲两种或两种以上语言的能力受到重视。然而，学习第三语言（L3）可能会干扰学习者对先前习得的第二语言（L2）的熟练程度，这种现象被称为语言磨蚀。关于语言为什么会磨损，如何磨损，以及语言的哪些方面最容易受到磨损的基本问题仍然没有答案。该建议旨在更好地了解如何学习一种新的语言（L3）可以干扰学习者的熟练程度与以前获得的非母语（L2），在现实世界的语言学习的背景下，大学生。 来自华盛顿大学的Lee Osterhout博士将进行三个实验，使用基于高密度EEG的大脑活动测量来纵向调查学习者在L3（意大利语）和L2（类似的语言，西班牙语或不太相似的语言，如日语）中处理句子的能力的变化。 由于大脑活动测量对语言意义和语法方面的敏感度不同，因此结果将提供对语言知识的具体理解。（对于第二语言和第三语言）的获得或丧失，以及一种语言的获得如何影响另一种语言的丧失。鉴于多语言技能在现代相互联系的世界中的重要性，更好地了解语言磨蚀的原因将产生广泛的影响。 该项目的研究结果可能会导致如何改善和定制语言学习方面的教学法，并保护以前获得的外语。该项目将产生一个具有广泛相关性的大型数据集。 潜在地，该数据集可用于研究语言敏感的大脑反应的空间起源，测试新的数学和计算工具，用于高密度基于EEG的脑源成像，并解决大脑活动的基本问题，在毫秒的时间尺度上，来自多个大脑区域，由于实验室外的学习和“遗忘”而发生变化。