The Cognitive Neuroscience of Second Language Acquisition

描述(申请人提供)：在过去的五年里，在NICHD的支持下，我们一直在积极研究大学生学习第二语言的文字处理的时间进程和神经关联。在这项工作中，我们使用了事件相关电位(ERP)技术，该技术提供了一种无创且经济有效的神经活动在线测量方法，可用于研究双语者两种语言中单词的潜在组织和加工。我们的研究对第二语言词汇习得过程中涉及的神经、知觉和认知机制提供了重要的见解，并展示了这种学习如何影响母语(L1)的处理。这项工作使我们描述了一种新的第二语言习得的发展互动激活模式，该模式将在本研究中概述的三组相关研究中进行检验。到目前为止，我们的研究主要集中在法语和英语大学学习者的互补群体上。在这一相互竞争的更新中，我们的第一个目标是对两组更熟练、更平衡的双语者使用我们几个最有希望的ERP范式的研究结果进行后续研究：一组在很小的时候就同时学习了两种语言；另一组在10岁后很早就学会了一种语言，另一组在10岁之后学习了另一种语言。第二个目标是继续我们对法语/英语大学学习者的研究，但也将我们的ERP研究扩展到两种非印欧语言的母语英语和法语学习者，这两种语言要么使用与西方语言完全不同的书写系统(日语)，要么使用相似的书写系统，但字母表(阿拉伯语)不同。最后，我们的第三个目标是将我们的ERP研究扩展到那些刚开始学习新的第二语言视觉词汇的学习者。在这些研究中，学习将在受控的实验室条件下进行，并将跟踪九次培训期间的学习进展情况。将监测新二语词汇中项目的事件相关电位测量和语言能力的变化。总之，这些研究将帮助我们填补在第二语言学习者的神经组织和字处理相互关系方面的重要知识空白。 公共卫生相关性：在世界大多数地区，双语是常态。即使在以单一语言为主的美国，人们也越来越意识到，第二语言(L2)知识对我们的竞争力至关重要。然而，对于二语是如何学习和处理的，以及学习第二语言是如何影响母语处理的，我们的理解存在着严重的差距。这项拟议的研究将提供有关二语习得的心理和神经基础的关键信息。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Over the past five years, thanks to support from NICHD, we have been actively studying the time-course and neural correlates of word processing in university students learning a second language. In this work we use the event-related potential (ERP) technique, which provides a noninvasive and cost effective online measure of neural activity that can be used to study the underlying organization and processing of words in both of a bilingual's two languages. Our studies have provided important insights into the neural, perceptual and cognitive mechanisms involved in acquiring a vocabulary in a new second language (L2), as well as showing how such learning impacts native language (L1) processing. This work has led us to describe a new developmental interactive-activation model of second language acquisition which will be tested in three sets of interrelated studies in the research outlined in this proposal. To date our studies have focused on complementary populations of French and English university learners of a L2. In this competing renewal our first aim is to follow-up on the results of studies using several of our most promising ERP paradigms in two groups of more proficient balanced bilinguals: one that learned both of their languages early in life; and a second that learned one language early and the other after age 10. In a second aim we propose to continue our study of French/English university learners, but to also expand our ERP studies to L1 English and French learners of two non- Indo-European languages that either use a completely different writing system than western languages (Japanese) or use a similar writing system, but a different alphabet (Arabic). Finally, our third aim is to extend our ERP studies to learners who are at the very beginning of acquiring a visual vocabulary in a new L2. In these studies learning will take place under controlled laboratory conditions and the progression of learning over a period of nine training sessions will be tracked. Changes in both ERP measures and language competence on items in the new L2 vocabulary will be monitored. Together these studies will help us fill important gaps in knowledge about the neural organization and interrelationship of word processing in second language learners. PUBLIC HEALTH RELEVANCE: In most of the world bilingualism is the norm. Even in the primarily monolingual US, there is a growing awareness that knowledge of a second language (L2) is essential to our competitiveness. However, there are critical gaps in our understanding of how L2s are learned and processed as well as how learning a second language influences native language processing. The proposed studies will provide critical information about the mental and neural underpinnings of L2 acquisition.