Cited by 536Neurobiology of Language and BilingualismLanguage Development and DisordersPhonetics and Phonology Research

Language selection in bilingual speech: evidence for inhibitory processes

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Kroll, Judith F., Bobb, Susan C., Misra, Maya, Guo, Taomei·2008·Acta Psychologica

Abstract

Although bilinguals rarely make random errors of language when they speak, research on spoken production provides compelling evidence to suggest that both languages are active when only one language is spoken (e.g., [Poulisse, N. (1999). Slips of the tongue: Speech errors in first and second language production. Amsterdam/Philadelphia: John Benjamins]). Moreover, the parallel activation of the two languages appears to characterize the planning of speech for highly proficient bilinguals as well as second language learners. In this paper, we first review the evidence for cross-language activity during single word production and then consider the two major alternative models of how the intended language is eventually selected. According to language-specific selection models, both languages may be active but bilinguals develop the ability to selectively attend to candidates in the intended language. The alternative model, that candidates from both languages compete for selection, requires that cross-language activity be modulated to allow selection to occur. On the latter view, the selection mechanism may require that candidates in the nontarget language be inhibited. We consider the evidence for such an inhibitory mechanism in a series of recent behavioral and neuroimaging studies.

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Crossref · 10.1016/j.actpsy.2008.02.001

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  • Fluent bilinguals exhibit some activation of and interaction between both languages continuously, even when only one language is contextually relevant.

    “fluent bilinguals show some measure of activation of both languages and some interaction between them at all times, even in contexts that are entirely driven by only one of the languages.”

    From Bilingualism: consequences for mind and brain (2012) · cites this paper as [51]

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Authors
Kroll, J. F., Bobb, S. C., Misra, M., & Guo, T.
Affiliations
  • Pennsylvania State University (US)
  • Beijing Normal University (CN)
Corresponding author
Kroll, Judith F.
Venue
Acta Psychologica
Publisher
Elsevier BV
Published
2008-07
Volume
128
Issue
3
Pages
416-430
ISSN
0001-6918 (ISSN-L)
OpenAlex
W2099850229
Cited by
535
References
86
Citations by year
2026: 8 · 2025: 29 · 2024: 21 · 2023: 26 · 2022: 28 · 2021: 41 · 2020: 58 · 2019: 41 · 2018: 34 · 2017: 32 · 2016: 32 · 2015: 38 · 2014: 33 · 2013: 30 · 2012: 44
FWCI
7.06
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • Acta Psychologica (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (acceptedVersion)
  • PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
Funders
Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (F33HD055003, R56HD053146, R01HD053146)
Topics
  • Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Neurobiology of Language and Bilingualism
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Developmental and Educational Psychology › Language Development and Disorders
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Experimental and Cognitive Psychology › Phonetics and Phonology Research
Keywords
bilingual speech, language choice, inhibitory processes, language transfer, competition model, speech production, second language learners, spoken word production
MeSH terms
Brain, Choice Behavior, Electroencephalography, Evoked Potentials, Humans, Inhibition, Psychological, Language, Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Psycholinguistics, Vocabulary, Multilingualism

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