Is it easier to use one language variety at a time, or mix them? An investigation of voluntary language switching with bidialectals

• Published in: PloS one Vol. 16; no. 9; p. e0256554
• Main Authors: Declerck, Mathieu, Kirk, Neil W
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States Public Library of Science 08.09.2021; Public Library of Science (PLoS)
• Subjects: Adolescent; Adult; Analysis; Bilingualism; Biology and Life Sciences; Competition; Computational linguistics; Costs; Dialects; Female; Humans; Language; Language processing; Languages; Male; Middle Aged; Multilingualism; Natural language interfaces; People and Places; Phonetics; Physical sciences; Reaction Time - physiology; Registered Report Protocol; Research and analysis methods; Self Report; Social Sciences; Speech - physiology; Switching; Translating; Verbal Behavior - physiology; Young Adult; United Kingdom
• ISSN: 1932-6203; 1932-6203
• DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0256554

Previous language production research with bidialectals has provided evidence for similar language control processes as during bilingual language production. In the current study, we aim to further investigate this claim by examining bidialectals with a voluntary language switching paradigm. Research with bilinguals performing the voluntary language switching paradigm has consistently shown two effects. First, the cost of switching languages, relative to staying in the same language, is similar across the two languages. The second effect is more uniquely connected to voluntary language switching, namely a benefit when performing in mixed language blocks relative to single language blocks, which has been connected to proactive language control. If a similar pattern could be observed with bidialectals in a voluntary language switching paradigm, then this would provide additional evidence in favor of similar control processes underlying bidialectal and bilingual language production.