Graph structure analysis of speech production among second language learners of Spanish and Chinese
Language experience shapes the gradual maturation of speech production in both native (L1) and second (L2) languages. Structural aspects like the connectedness of spontaneous narratives reveal this maturation progress in L1 acquisition and, as it does not rely on semantics, it could also reveal stru...
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| Language: | English |
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Frontiers Media S.A.
2022-09-01
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| Series: | Frontiers in Psychology |
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| Online Access: | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.940269/full |
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| author | Mona Roxana Botezatu Janaina Weissheimer Marina Ribeiro Taomei Guo Ingrid Finger Natalia Bezerra Mota Natalia Bezerra Mota |
| author_facet | Mona Roxana Botezatu Janaina Weissheimer Marina Ribeiro Taomei Guo Ingrid Finger Natalia Bezerra Mota Natalia Bezerra Mota |
| author_sort | Mona Roxana Botezatu |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Language experience shapes the gradual maturation of speech production in both native (L1) and second (L2) languages. Structural aspects like the connectedness of spontaneous narratives reveal this maturation progress in L1 acquisition and, as it does not rely on semantics, it could also reveal structural pattern changes during L2 acquisition. The current study tested whether L2 lexical retrieval associated with vocabulary knowledge could impact the global connectedness of narratives during the initial stages of L2 acquisition. Specifically, the study evaluated the relationship between graph structure (long-range recurrence or connectedness) and L2 learners’ oral production in the L2 and L1. Seventy-nine college-aged students who were native speakers of English and had received classroom instruction in either L2-Spanish or L2-Chinese participated in this study. Three tasks were used: semantic fluency, phonemic fluency and picture description. Measures were operationalized as the number of words per minute in the case of the semantic and phonemic fluency tasks. Graph analysis was carried out for the picture description task using the computational tool SpeechGraphs to calculate connectedness. Results revealed significant positive correlations between connectedness in the picture description task and measures of speech production (number of correct responses per minute) in the phonemic and semantic fluency tasks. These correlations were only significant for the participants’ L2- Spanish and Chinese. Results indicate that producing low connectedness narratives in L2 may be a marker of the initial stages of L2 oral development. These findings are consistent with the pattern reported in the early stages of L1 literacy. Future studies should further explore the interactions between graph structure and second language production proficiency, including more advanced stages of L2 learning and considering the role of cognitive abilities in this process. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-12T05:19:25Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-a3d1fbe85b0143b38b5f73d514557d80 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1664-1078 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-12T05:19:25Z |
| publishDate | 2022-09-01 |
| publisher | Frontiers Media S.A. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Frontiers in Psychology |
| spelling | doaj.art-a3d1fbe85b0143b38b5f73d514557d802022-12-22T03:46:33ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Psychology1664-10782022-09-011310.3389/fpsyg.2022.940269940269Graph structure analysis of speech production among second language learners of Spanish and ChineseMona Roxana Botezatu0Janaina Weissheimer1Marina Ribeiro2Taomei Guo3Ingrid Finger4Natalia Bezerra Mota5Natalia Bezerra Mota6Department of Speech, Language and Hearing Sciences, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO, United StatesBrain Institute, Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte, Natal, BrazilResearch Department at Motrix Lab, Motrix, Rio de Janeiro, BrazilState Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, ChinaDepartment of Modern Languages, Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, BrazilResearch Department at Motrix Lab, Motrix, Rio de Janeiro, BrazilDepartment of Psychiatry and Legal Medicine, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (UFRJ), Rio de Janeiro, BrazilLanguage experience shapes the gradual maturation of speech production in both native (L1) and second (L2) languages. Structural aspects like the connectedness of spontaneous narratives reveal this maturation progress in L1 acquisition and, as it does not rely on semantics, it could also reveal structural pattern changes during L2 acquisition. The current study tested whether L2 lexical retrieval associated with vocabulary knowledge could impact the global connectedness of narratives during the initial stages of L2 acquisition. Specifically, the study evaluated the relationship between graph structure (long-range recurrence or connectedness) and L2 learners’ oral production in the L2 and L1. Seventy-nine college-aged students who were native speakers of English and had received classroom instruction in either L2-Spanish or L2-Chinese participated in this study. Three tasks were used: semantic fluency, phonemic fluency and picture description. Measures were operationalized as the number of words per minute in the case of the semantic and phonemic fluency tasks. Graph analysis was carried out for the picture description task using the computational tool SpeechGraphs to calculate connectedness. Results revealed significant positive correlations between connectedness in the picture description task and measures of speech production (number of correct responses per minute) in the phonemic and semantic fluency tasks. These correlations were only significant for the participants’ L2- Spanish and Chinese. Results indicate that producing low connectedness narratives in L2 may be a marker of the initial stages of L2 oral development. These findings are consistent with the pattern reported in the early stages of L1 literacy. Future studies should further explore the interactions between graph structure and second language production proficiency, including more advanced stages of L2 learning and considering the role of cognitive abilities in this process.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.940269/fullbilingual language productionsecond language proficiencygraph structure analysisSpanishChineseEnglish |
| spellingShingle | Mona Roxana Botezatu Janaina Weissheimer Marina Ribeiro Taomei Guo Ingrid Finger Natalia Bezerra Mota Natalia Bezerra Mota Graph structure analysis of speech production among second language learners of Spanish and Chinese Frontiers in Psychology bilingual language production second language proficiency graph structure analysis Spanish Chinese English |
| title | Graph structure analysis of speech production among second language learners of Spanish and Chinese |
| title_full | Graph structure analysis of speech production among second language learners of Spanish and Chinese |
| title_fullStr | Graph structure analysis of speech production among second language learners of Spanish and Chinese |
| title_full_unstemmed | Graph structure analysis of speech production among second language learners of Spanish and Chinese |
| title_short | Graph structure analysis of speech production among second language learners of Spanish and Chinese |
| title_sort | graph structure analysis of speech production among second language learners of spanish and chinese |
| topic | bilingual language production second language proficiency graph structure analysis Spanish Chinese English |
| url | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.940269/full |
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