Doctoral Dissertation Research: Word Learning in a Signed Language and Its Relationship to Spoken Word Learning in Hearing Non-Signing Adults

1990年至2013年间，美国高校将美国手语（ASL）作为第二语言的招生人数增加了6840%；因此，在2013年，美国手语取代了德语，成为美国高等教育学校中第三常用的第二语言。尽管手语的受欢迎程度急剧上升，但我们对学习手语作为第二语言所涉及的认知过程知之甚少，也不知道它们与学习口语所涉及的过程有什么关系。例如，先前的研究告诉我们，在语言处理任务中，手语者和说话者的大脑激活模式非常相似，但在感觉和运动区域观察到差异——这些差异如何影响手语的学习？此外，对预测口语学习成功的认知因素进行了广泛的研究——其中一些因素是否也能预测手语学习的成功？为了开始解决上述问题，本项目旨在1)将现有的关于口语中第二语言单词学习的认知预测因素的研究扩展到手语的研究，2)调查第二语言手势和口语单词学习之间的关系。为了实现这些目标，研究人员将进行一项多变量模型研究，评估听力正常的非手语成年人的短期记忆、工作记忆、推理、词汇知识和单词学习，并探索这些变量与他们在实验室环境中学习新手语的能力之间的关系。该项目的研究结果将具有理论和实践意义。从理论的角度来看，该项目将深入了解所有语言共同的认知成分，以及手语或口语所特有的认知成分。从实践的角度来看，本研究的结果将有助于发展诊断性和预测性语言评估，教师、学生和组织在考虑第二语言课程时可以使用这些评估。

Between 1990 and 2013, enrollment in American Sign Language (ASL) as a second language in US colleges and universities increased by 6,840%; consequently, in 2013, ASL displaced German as the third most frequently taught second language in US schools of higher education. Despite the dramatic increase in popularity, we know very little about the cognitive processes involved in learning a signed language as a second language or how they relate to the processes involved in learning a spoken language. For example, prior research tells us that brain activation patterns during language processing tasks are quite similar for signers and speakers, but differences are observed in sensory and motor areas--how do these differences affect learning a signed language? Moreover, there is an extensive body of research on cognitive factors that predict spoken language learning success--do some of these factors also predict sign learning success? In order to begin addressing the questions posed above, this project aims to 1) extend the existing research on cognitive predictors of second language word learning in spoken language to that of signed language and 2) investigate the relationship between second language signed and spoken word learning. In order to accomplish these aims, the researchers will conduct a multivariate modeling study assessing short-term memory, working memory, reasoning, vocabulary knowledge, and word learning in hearing non-signing adults and explore how these variables relate to their ability to learn novel signs in the laboratory setting. The results of this project will have theoretical and practical implications. From a theoretical perspective, this project will provide insight into the cognitive components that are common to all languages and those that are unique to either signed or spoken languages. From a practical perspective, the results of this study will aid in the development of diagnostic and predictive language assessments that teachers, students, and organizations can use when considering second language courses.