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Inhibitory control predicts language switching performance in trilingual speech production
Abstract
This study investigated the role of domain-general inhibitory control in trilingual speech production. Taking an individual differences approach, we examined the relationship between performance on a non-linguistic measure of inhibitory control (the Simon task) and a multilingual language switching task for a group of fifty-six native English (L1) speakers learning French (L2) and Spanish (L3). Better inhibitory control was related to reduced switch costs, but only when switching into or out of the more dominant L1, where inhibitory control has been theorized to be most important (Green, 1998). The results provide evidence of a direct link between inhibitory control abilities and language switching capabilities, and suggest constraints on the conditions under which a domain-general inhibitory control mechanism supports language switching.
... A growing body of research has consistently observed a modulation effect of linguistic contexts on domaingeneral control in both language production and comprehension (Green, 1986;Jiao et al., 2019;Jiao, Grundy, et al., 2020;Linck et al., 2012;Liu, Li, et al., 2022;. However, most of these studies have examined the relative "static" influence of linguistic contexts on domain-general cognitive control, such as behavioral performance (e.g., the flanker effect) and eventrelated potentials (ERPs), by comparing different contexts (Jiao et al., 2019;Linck et al., 2012;Liu, Li, et al., 2022), or by manipulating the order of language-switching and cognitive tasks (Kang et al., 2017;Wu et al., 2018). ...
... A growing body of research has consistently observed a modulation effect of linguistic contexts on domaingeneral control in both language production and comprehension (Green, 1986;Jiao et al., 2019;Jiao, Grundy, et al., 2020;Linck et al., 2012;Liu, Li, et al., 2022;. However, most of these studies have examined the relative "static" influence of linguistic contexts on domain-general cognitive control, such as behavioral performance (e.g., the flanker effect) and eventrelated potentials (ERPs), by comparing different contexts (Jiao et al., 2019;Linck et al., 2012;Liu, Li, et al., 2022), or by manipulating the order of language-switching and cognitive tasks (Kang et al., 2017;Wu et al., 2018). In the present study, we employ a cross-task paradigm in which a flanker task was interleaved with a language-switching task trialby-trial to examine the dynamic modulation effect of various switching contexts on domain-general control. ...
In everyday conversation, bilingual individuals switch between their languages
not only in reaction to monolinguals with different language profiles but also
voluntarily and naturally. However, whether and how various switching contexts
dynamically modulate domain-general cognitive control is still unclear. Using
a cross-task paradigm in which a flanker task was interleaved with a language-switching task trial-by-trial, the present study examined the performance of unbalanced Chinese-English bilinguals on a flanker task in forced, voluntary, and
natural switching contexts. The cross-domain interaction on the P3 component
revealed an atypical flanker effect in forced switching contexts only, and the P3
amplitude of incongruent trials in forced switching contexts was smaller than in
both natural and voluntary switching contexts. Furthermore, robust brain–brain
and brain-behavior relationships between language control and domain-general
control emerged in the forced switching context only. Altogether, our findings
support the dynamic adaptation of language control to cognitive control and
highlight the importance of different types of switching contexts.
... Hence, the findings of this study are in line with previous literatures (e.g., Blumenfeld & Marian, 2013;Linck et al., 2012;Yang et al., 2018) that language dominance scores of the balanced bilinguals and Malay-dominant bilinguals have a significant relationship with their cognitive control capacity. Hence, by using the four factors in measuring the language dominance scores of the bilinguals, this study managed to support the notion that the mechanism of language dominance is related to the bilingual cognitive benefit. ...
... This study suggests language dominance is related to bilinguals' enhanced cognitive control capacity. The findings of this study are in line with the previous literatures (e.g., Blumenfeld & Marian, 2013;Linck et al., 2012;Yang et al., 2018) that suggest a significant correlation between language dominance scores and cognitive control capacity among balanced and Malay-dominant bilinguals. By examining four factorslanguage history, language use, language proficiency, and language attitude-this research supports the hypothesis that language dominance mechanisms are linked to bilingual language control and can positively influence the cognitive control abilities of balanced bilinguals. ...
A growing number of research has suggested that bilingualism could be related to enhanced cognitive control functions (Bellegarda & Macizo, 2021), because of frequent interference suppression of the first language when a bilingual speaker chooses to speak in the second language and vice versa. Nevertheless, the relationship was not shown in some studies, which raises various questions regarding previous findings. Hence, more studies are done to explore other facets of bilingual speaker’s experience that could modulate the cognitive control functions. Accordingly, the bilingualism threshold is examined to investigate the bilingual benefits. It is suggested that bilingual benefits are not just about knowing two languages, but more so into the usage of the languages possessed. Hence, some studies claimed that balanced language dominance would have better cognitive control capacity. This is a result of the continuous practice of suppressing one language over the targeted language. Therefore, there is a need to look at how language dominance could be related to cognitive control capacity as language dominance may impact the frequency of switching as well as activation of the two languages. This study reports the findings of the relationship between cognitive control capacity and language dominance of Malay bilinguals. The participants of this study were 69 balanced bilinguals and 74 Malay-dominant bilinguals. The Bilingual Language Profile was adopted to measure the language dominance of the participants of this study. Cognitive control capacity of the participants was measured with the Stroop Task. Through a Pearson-correlation analysis, it was found that there is a significant relationship between language dominance and cognitive control capacity. Thus, the findings of this research as in line with previous literatures where language dominance of a bilingual is related to enhanced cognitive control functions.
... In other words, switching costs can serve as a quantitative measure of the efficiency of bilingual language control mechanisms (e.g. Linck et al. 2012). ...
Language production in bilinguals relies on the collaborative interaction between two neural systems: the language control system (e.g. the right inferior frontal gyrus) and the language processing system (e.g. the left superior temporal gyrus). However, the causal mapping between these brain systems and their cognitive functions, as well as the temporal dynamics between these two systems during bilingual language production, remain unclear. To investigate this, our study applied online transcranial magnetic stimulation to the right inferior frontal gyrus and left superior temporal gyrus in Chinese–English bilinguals performing a language-switching task. Transcranial magnetic stimulation was administered within seven 100 ms time windows (TW1 to TW7) following the picture onset. We observed time window–specific enhancements of language control, as shown by a significant reduction in switching costs upon the stimulations on both sites relative to the sham stimulation: specifically, the right inferior frontal gyrus at TW1, TW2, TW4, and TW5 and the left superior temporal gyrus at TW2 and TW5. These findings indicate a double-strike top–down control mechanism underpinned by the pathway from the right inferior frontal gyrus to the right inferior frontal gyrus, potentially during both stages during production: the language task schema and the lemma selection. Our study provides the first evidence of the dynamic interactions between language control and processing systems causally underpinning bilingual language production.
... Este estudio utilizó tareas de nombramiento de imágenes y encontró que la capacidad de suprimir la respuesta en L1 estaba directamente relacionada con la velocidad y precisión en L2. Por otro lado, Linck et al. (2012) examinaron el papel del control cognitivo en el rendimiento en L2, y encontraron que los individuos con mejores habilidades de control cognitivo, medidos por una tarea de Simon, tenían un mejor desempeño en tareas de cambio de código. Estos resultados subrayan la importancia del control cognitivo para gestionar la interferencia de la L1 y facilitar el procesamiento en L2. ...
... The first is by improving bilinguals' ability to efficiently suppress the nontarget language using cognitive control resources. Better cognitive control is associated with better resolution of nontarget language competition (Bartolotti et al., 2011;Blumenfeld & Marian, 2007;Linck et al., 2012). During speech production, language selection has already occurred (e.g., the target word has been selected for production), but the nontarget language could become reactivated due to its semantic association with the target word (Kroll et al., 2006). ...
The effect of translation knowledge on bilingual lexical production is mixed, with some studies showing translation interference and others showing facilitation. We considered the roles of first-language (L1) translation knowledge and second-language (L2) proficiency in lexical retrieval, testing predictions of the competition for selection , frequency lag and activation boosting accounts. In experiment 1, 54 highly proficient Spanish–English bilinguals named pictures of low-frequency nouns in English (L2). Spanish (L1) translation knowledge and English proficiency had an interactive effect on tip-of-the-tongue experiences with increased L1 translation interference at low levels of L2 proficiency and facilitation at high levels of L2 proficiency, consistent with combined predictions of competition for selection and activation boosting accounts. Experiment 2 confirmed that confounding lexical variables did not drive translation effects. By examining individual differences within bilinguals, we found support for multiple mechanisms that play a role in bilingual lexical retrieval that were not evident at the group level.
In this article, we discuss the role of networking and collaboration in the science of bilingualism. Given the tremendous diversity of individual language experiences and the varieties of contexts and patterns in which languages are used across the globe, collaboration and networking between research laboratories are crucial to provide a comprehensive understanding of the bilingual mind. We demonstrate the role that Judy Kroll has played in initiating, establishing, and inspiring new networks and in building a strong research community. One of the many contributions Judy has made to the field of bilingualism and beyond is her tireless advocacy for the need to embrace the diversity of bilingualism and its consequences and to understand failures to replicate various effects as a means to discover the intricacies and nuances of the bilingual experience.
The complexity of language elements varies from words to phrases, requiring distinct control demands during bilingual language switching. However, the relationships between language control at different language levels (i.e., lexical and phrasal) as well as how multi-level language control interacts with general cognitive control remain largely unclear yet. Therefore, in this study, we set out to scrutinize the dynamic interplay between language control and general cognitive control at both the lexical and phrasal levels. Our findings offer new insights into how bilinguals recruit proactive and reactive control mechanisms across these linguistic levels of different complexities. Furthermore, on the basis of the present findings, we propose a novel dynamic cognitive model for language control.
Key findings include:
(1) High-second language (L2)-proficiency bilinguals could apply greater proactive control to L2 at both linguistic levels, suggesting the monitoring of the less dominant L2.
(2) Reactive control demands vary from lexical and phrasal levels, influenced by L2 proficiency and bilingual typological differences
(3) General proactive cognitive control mechanism is recruited at the lexical control, whereas both general proactive and reactive cognitive control mechanisms are engaged at the phrasal control.
The present study extends previous research reporting that orthographic forms, such as the use of a single letter or two letters to indicate the same sound, affect sound duration in second-language (L2) production. Native-language (L1) Korean L2 English sequential bilinguals performed a delayed repetition task for word pairs containing the same consonant or vowel spelled with one or two letters. Korean provided an interesting case because (1) it has an alphabetic orthographic system but not a Roman alphabet and thus, there may be no interorthographic interference and (2) it has no phonemic length contrast for vowels, whereas there is some disagreement on the contrastiveness of the consonant length, which can lead to an asymmetry in the grapheme-to-phoneme correspondence between vowels and consonants. The results showed that Korean learners produced the same English vowel with a short duration when spelled with a single letter and with a long duration when spelled with double letters or digraphs composed of two different letters; this variation in duration did not appear when producing English consonants spelled with a single or two letters. This study further examined whether individual differences in inhibitory control influenced the magnitude of orthographic effects in the production of English vowels by Korean learners. Individual differences in inhibitory control were not strongly related to the influence of orthography on vowel production.
Language production in bilinguals relies on the collaborative interaction between two neural systems: the language control system (e.g., the right inferior frontal gyrus, rIFG) and the language processing system (e.g., the left superior temporal gyrus, lSTG). However, the causal mapping between these brain systems and their cognitive functions, as well as the temporal dynamics between these two systems during bilingual language production remain unclear. To investigate this, our study applied online transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) to the rIFG and lSTG in 21 Chinese-English bilinguals performing a language-switching task. TMS was administered within seven 100-ms time windows (TWs: TW1-TW7) following the picture onset. We observed TW-specific enhancements of language control, as shown by a significant reduction in switching costs upon the stimulations on both sites relative to the sham stimulation: specifically, the rIFG at TW1, TW2, TW4, and TW5, and the lSTG at TW2 and TW5. These findings indicate a double-strike top-down control mechanism underpinned by the pathway from the rIFG to the lSTG, potentially during both stages during production: the language task schema and the lemma selection. Our study provides the first evidence of the dynamic interactions between language control and processing systems causally underpinning bilingual language production.
Twenty-five L1 Nepali speaking participants living in Trondheim, Norway who spoke English as L2 and Norwegian as L3 (late adult learners) participated in this study. Participants’ L2 proficiency was established as advanced in LexTALE. We administered language comprehension and production tasks in a trilingual design. In a mouse tracking trilingual parallel activation experiment, participants performed a language comprehension task in which they listened to the spoken word in their L1, L2 and L3 and clicked on the matching target picture. Mouse trajectories of their response pattern were recorded and analyzed. The language production task included a phonological and a semantic verbal fluency task (VFT), which also served as an executive control task. VFT showed their dominance in L1 and L2 compared to L3. This study contributes novel knowledge on trilingual parallel activation and suggests that in the presence of a non-dominant L3, a dominant L1 and a dominant L2 are processed faster than the non-dominant language in phonologically competing conditions.
Presents a standardized set of 260 pictures for use in experiments investigating differences and similarities in the processing of pictures and words. The pictures are black-and-white line drawings executed according to a set of rules that provide consistency of pictorial representation. They have been standardized on 4 variables of central relevance to memory and cognitive processing: name agreement, image agreement, familiarity, and visual complexity. The intercorrelations among the 4 measures were low, suggesting that they are indices of different attributes of the pictures. The concepts were selected to provide exemplars from several widely studied semantic categories. Sources of naming variance, and mean familiarity and complexity of the exemplars, differed significantly across the set of categories investigated. The potential significance of each of the normative variables to a number of semantic and episodic memory tasks is discussed. (34 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2006 APA, all rights reserved).
A key question in bilingual language production research is how bilingual individuals control the use of their two languages. The psycholinguistic literature concerning language control is unresolved. It is a matter of controversy whether (a) issues to do with control are central to understanding bilingual language processing; and (b) if they are, what is the site or sites of control; and (c) whether language control in bilinguals relies upon inhibitory mechanisms.One way to deepen our understanding of language control is to consider the implications from research on functional neuroimaging. In the present paper, we illustrate that neuroimaging research shows that bilinguals engage cognitive control networks for achieving tasks such as language switching. The neural evidence points to multiple neural regions of control that may rely upon an inhibitory mechanism. These ‘brain data’ may, in turn, stimulate the development of neurocognitive accounts of bilingual language processing.
This study tests whether or not trilingual language learners rely on inhibitory control (IC) when accessing words during speech production. In particular, it investigates the extent to which second language (L2) and third language (L3) lexical robustness modulates such reliance. English language learners of French and Spanish participated in a picture-naming task containing language switches in all three of their languages. Analyses were conducted on the switching performance of the three languages followed by an exploration of how these effects were modulated by L2 and L3 lexical robustness. The results support reliance on IC for all three languages. Furthermore, the strength of L2 lexical robustness affected performance in all languages whereas the strength of L3 lexical robustness only affected L3 performance. The results suggest that in the context of having to switch between three languages within a single experiment, trilingual speakers rely on IC.
Recent research on language production suggests that bilinguals shift from using inhibitory control mechanisms to a language-specific selective mechanism during development (Costa, Santesteban, & Ivanova, 2006). Costa et al. argue that the robustness of the L2 lexical representations may be critical to the functionality of a language-specific selective mechanism. Accordingly, in the present study we measured the lexical robustness of a group of 54 English dominant learners of Spanish using a verbal fluency task and investigated its effect on their performance in a picture-naming task with language switches. The results suggest that L2 lexical robustness predicts the shift to a language-specific selective mechanism during speech production. Moreover, we demonstrate a specific threshold of lexical robustness necessary to engage the mechanism.
(
This reprinted article originally appeared in the Journal of Experimental Psychology,
1935, Vol 18, 643–662. The following abstract of the original article appeared in PA, Vol 10:1863.) In this study pairs of conflicting stimuli, both being inherent aspects of the same symbols, were presented simultaneously (a name of one color printed in the ink of another color—a word stimulus and a color stimulus). The difference in time for reading the words printed in colors and the same words printed in black is the measure of the interference of color stimuli on reading words. The difference in the time for naming the colors in which the words are printed and the same colors printed in squares is the measure of the interference of conflicting word stimuli on naming colors. The interference of conflicting color stimuli on the time for reading 100 words (each word naming a color unlike the ink-color of its print) caused an increase of 2.3 sec or 5.6% over the normal time for reading the same words printed in black. This increase is not reliable, but the interference of conflicting word stimuli on the time for naming 100 colors (each color being the print of a word which names another color) caused an increase of 47.0 sec or 74.3% of the normal time for naming colors printed in squares.… (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
This study investigated the possibility that lifelong bilingualism may lead to enhanced efficiency in the ability to shift between mental sets. We compared the performance of monolingual and fluent bilingual college students in a task-switching paradigm. Bilinguals incurred reduced switching costs in the task-switching paradigm when compared with monolinguals, suggesting that lifelong experience in switching between languages may contribute to increased efficiency in the ability to shift flexibly between mental sets. On the other hand, bilinguals did not differ from monolinguals in the differential cost of performing mixed-task as opposed to single-task blocks. Together, these results indicate that bilingual advantages in executive function most likely extend beyond inhibition of competing responses, and encompass flexible mental shifting as well.
Bilingual speech requires that the language of utterances be selected prior to articulation. Past research has debated whether the language of speaking can be determined in advance of speech planning and, if not, the level at which it is eventually selected. We argue that the reason that it has been difficult to come to an agreement about language selection is that there is not a single locus of selection. Rather, language selection depends on a set of factors that vary according to the experience of the bilinguals, the demands of the production task, and the degree of activity of the nontarget language. We demonstrate that it is possible to identify some conditions that restrict speech planning to one language alone and others that open the process to cross-language influences. We conclude that the presence of language nonselectivity at all levels of planning spoken utterances renders the system itself fundamentally nonselective.
In an experimental study of language switching and selection, bilinguals named numerals in either their first or second language unpredictably. Response latencies (RTs) on switch trials (where the response language changed from the previous trial) were slower than on nonswitch trials. As predicted, the language-switching cost was consistently larger when switching to the dominant L₁ from the weaker L₂ than vice versa such that, on switch trials, L₁ responses were slower than in L₂. This "paradoxical" asymmetry in the cost of switching languages is explained in terms of differences in relative strength of the bilingual's two languages and the involuntary persistence of the previous language set across an intended switch of language. Naming in the weaker language, L₂, requires active inhibition or suppression of the stronger competitor language, L₁; the inhibition persists into the following (switch) trial in the form of "negative priming" of the L₁ lexicon as a whole. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
A key aspect of higher cognitive function is the ability to switch rapidly and efficiently between alternative modes of response where this is appropriate behaviourally. Such suppression appears to be highly dependent upon the integrity of the prefrontal cortex, yet other cortical areas are likely to be necessary to implement response switching. Language switching in bilingual speakers is a clear example of a task in which response switching is required. Functional brain imaging studies have demonstrated parietal cortex activation during repeated language switching within a translation task. Here we used event-related dense-sensor EEG recording techniques to examine the time course of language switching during a visually cued naming task in which bilingual participants named digits in either their first or second language. Switch-related modulation of ERP components was evident over parietal and frontal cortices, and in the latter case showed an asymmetry across first and second languages. Correspondence with a frontal ERP component found when suppressing manual responding in a Go/No-Go reaction time task may imply that similar inhibitory mechanisms are involved in both response suppression and language switching.