Embodiment of action-related language in the native and a late foreign language – An fMRI-study

• Published in: Brain and language Vol. 244; p. 105312
• Main Authors: Monaco, E., Mouthon, M., Britz, J., Sato, S., Stefanos-Yakoub, I., Annoni, J.M., Jost, L.B.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Netherlands Elsevier Inc 01.09.2023
• Subjects: Bilingualism; Embodiment; fMRI; Semantic processing; fMRI; Semantic processing; Bilingualism; Embodiment
• ISSN: 0093-934X; 1090-2155; 1090-2155
• DOI: 10.1016/j.bandl.2023.105312

•L2 processing led to stronger activation in motor areas than L1, independently of motor-relatedness.•Motor-related verbs involved motor regions more strongly than non-motor verbs.•Embodiment of motor verbs did not differ between L1 and L2. Theories of embodied cognition postulate that language processing activates similar sensory-motor structures as when interacting with the environment. Only little is known about the neural substrate of embodiment in a foreign language (L2) as compared to the mother tongue (L1). In this fMRI study, we investigated embodiment of motor and non-motor action verbs in L1 and L2 including 31 late bilinguals. Half had German as L1 and French as L2, and the other half vice-versa. We collapsed across languages to avoid the confound between language and order of language acquisition. Region of interest analyses showed stronger activation in motor regions during L2 than during L1 processing, independently of the motor-relatedness of the verbs. Moreover, a stronger involvement of motor regions for motor-related as compared to non-motor-related verbs, similarly for L1 and L2, was found. Overall, the similarity between L1 and L2 embodiment seems to depend on individual and contextual factors.