Doctoral Dissertation Research: The influence of local social context on speech perception in bilinguals

Bilinguals dynamically adapt their language use in response to social context. Their perception of a conversation partner’s language knowledge, for example, can influence their expectations for what language(s) are needed or appropriate in an interaction. Theories of bilingual language control, which consider how bilinguals engage and switch between their languages, postulate a role for social information in these processes but have not determined what aspects are relevant.

Furthermore, where studies have considered the role of social context on bilinguals’ language control mechanisms, they have traditionally utilized measures that are not locally situated and, therefore, do not capture the ways in which localized social meanings may impact bilingual language processing and control. To better reflect how bilinguals communicate, however, theories of bilingual language control must account for the social meanings that bilinguals associate with the use of their languages within a local context.

Through semi-structured interviews, social evaluation tasks, and perception tasks with Mexican American, Spanish-English bilinguals, this doctoral dissertation project will investigate how local social meanings shape bilinguals’ expectations of what language(s) someone will speak and, consequently, their perception of that person’s speech. This work contributes to the understanding of how detailed, community-grounded social information is engaged in bilingual language perception and control processes, expanding our knowledge of what aspects of social context matter for bilinguals when perceiving and producing language.

This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.