Cognitive Architecture of Bilingual Language Processing

描述(由申请者提供)：广义定义，拟议的项目以语言和认知之间的关系为中心，重点关注双语对认知、语言和发展过程的影响。本研究的目的是了解使用一种以上语言是如何改变认知结构和影响一般认知功能的。我们以前的研究表明，在双语口语理解过程中，听觉输入通过自下而上的级联激活平行地共同激活两种语言。本研究采用交互式激活框架，通过研究自上而下激活的作用以及自上而下、自下而上和横向激活在双语口语理解过程中的交互作用，进一步促进了对双语口语加工的理解。四项研究利用眼动和其他行为测量来考察双语者如何管理跨两种语言、跨情态(例如，在口语和手语之间)、跨级别(例如，在音段和超段输入之间)以及在句子上下文中的共同激活和互动。这项研究还通过建立跨语言共激活和抑制控制之间的直接联系，考察了双语的认知后果。理论上，本研究有助于从双语的独特视角来理解语言和认知之间的复杂关系，并明确了双语认知结构中自上而下、自下而上和横向激活的交互性质。针对更广泛的社会需求，这项工作对大部分在家中说英语以外的语言的美国人具有实际意义，他们的临床和教育结果可以通过利用两种语言的互动和共同激活而得到改善。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Broadly defined, the proposed project centers on the relationship between language and cognition, focusing on the consequences of bilingualism for cognitive, linguistic, and developmental processes. The objective of the present work is to understand how using more than one language changes cognitive architecture and impacts general cognitive function. Our previous research demonstrates that auditory input co-activates both languages in parallel during bilingual spoken comprehension via bottom-up cascading activation. Using an interactive activation framework, the proposed project further advances understanding of bilingual spoken language processing by examining the role of top-down activation and the interaction of top- down, bottom-up, and lateral activation during bilingual spoken language comprehension. Four studies utilize eye-movements and other behavioral measures to examine how bilinguals manage co-activation and interaction across the two languages, across modalities (e.g., between spoken and sign languages), across levels (e.g., between segmental and suprasegmental input), and in sentence context. The proposed research also examines cognitive consequences of bilingualism by establishing a direct link between cross-linguistic co- activation and inhibitory control. Theoretically, the proposed research contributes to understanding the complex relationship between language and cognition from the unique vantage point of bilingualism and specifies the interactive nature of top-down, bottom-up and lateral activation in the bilingual cognitive architecture. Addressing broader societal needs, this work has practical implications for the large segment of the American population who speaks a language other than English at home and for whom clinical and educational outcomes can be improved by capitalizing on the interaction and co-activation of two languages.