Forgetting English words after studying another language?
Summary
TLDRIn this linguistic exploration, Dr. Taylor Jones delves into the phenomenon of 'tip of the tongue' moments, particularly when speakers juggle multiple languages. The video unpacks how bilingualism can inadvertently suppress native language usage, leading to temporary word forgetfulness. It also touches on the intriguing link between language learning, executive function, and ADHD, suggesting that bilingualism may enhance cognitive control. The engaging narrative is a must-watch for language enthusiasts and those curious about the fascinating intersection of linguistics and cognitive science.
Takeaways
- 😅 The script discusses a common experience where people forget words in their first language while using a second language.
- 🧠 The phenomenon is related to psycholinguistics and how the brain processes language, specifically 'tip of the tongue' moments.
- 📚 The speaker, Dr. Taylor Jones, has a PhD in linguistics and speaks multiple languages, providing a credible perspective on the topic.
- 🗣️ When speaking, one must convert concepts into words, which involves selecting and arranging sounds and syntax.
- 🤔 Theories suggest that language processing involves cascading activations where concepts activate words and their corresponding sounds simultaneously.
- 🌐 Bilinguals may use a word-mediated approach, thinking in one language and translating to another, or a concept-mediated approach, mapping concepts to words in both languages.
- 🕊️ There's evidence that translation involves conceptual mediation, taking longer as the brain doesn't just translate word-for-word but thinks of the concept first.
- 🔍 Studies show that bilinguals experience priming effects where recent exposure to similar words or concepts can speed up language processing.
- 🔄 Bilinguals also experience interference effects where certain words can activate networks of another language in the brain, causing confusion.
- 💡 The script suggests that learning a second language might improve executive function, including suppression and response inhibition, which are related to ADHD.
- 🤷♂️ Forgetting words in one's native language while using a second language is a natural part of bilingualism and doesn't require a solution.
Q & A
What is the phenomenon where people forget words in their first language while learning another language?
-This phenomenon is known as a 'tip of the tongue' moment, where one feels the word is almost there but cannot recall it immediately. It is related to the process of language learning and the brain's way of managing multiple languages.
What does the term 'L1' stand for in the context of the script?
-L1 stands for 'first language,' which is the native language of a person.
What is the difference between 'word-mediated' and 'concept-mediated' approaches in bilingualism?
-The word-mediated approach suggests that bilinguals think in their first language and adapt it for the second language at the word level. The concept-mediated approach posits that concepts are mapped to words in both languages, leading to different predictions about brain activity and language processing.
How does the brain process language during speech?
-The brain processes language by getting from a concept to selecting words that communicate the concept, and then turning these mental objects of words and syntax into instructions for speech production, which involves complex and rapid cognitive processes.
What is the 'paradoxical suppression' mentioned in the script?
-Paradoxical suppression refers to the mental effort required to suppress the first language when speaking the second language, especially when the second language is less dominant. This suppression can be exhausting and may lead to difficulty in recalling words from the first language.
How does learning a second language affect the executive function of the brain?
-Learning a second language can improve executive function, as it involves skills like interference suppression and response inhibition, which are subdomains of executive control. Some studies suggest that bilingualism may even have a causal effect on enhancing executive function.
What is the relationship between ADHD and language learning as discussed in the script?
-The script suggests that while some skills involved in language learning might be more challenging for individuals with ADHD due to executive control issues, it does not mean they are not capable of language learning. In fact, bilingualism might improve executive function, which could be beneficial for those with ADHD.
What does the script suggest about the effect of bilingualism on very young children?
-The script indicates that very young children, including native bilinguals, may see a benefit in executive function from being bilingual, as seen in experimental studies.
Why might someone forget a word in their native language while speaking their second language?
-The script explains that when speaking a second language, the first language is suppressed, and this suppression can make it harder to recall low-frequency words from the native language, especially if the second language has been recently and actively used.
What is the role of 'priming' in language processing as discussed in the script?
-Priming refers to the effect where recent exposure to certain words or concepts makes it easier to process related information. In the context of bilingualism, hearing or seeing words in one language can prime related words or concepts in another language.
What advice does the script give for dealing with the phenomenon of forgetting words in one's native language while learning another?
-The script suggests that there isn't much one can do about this phenomenon, as it comes with the territory of learning a new language. However, developing robust code-switching skills may help benefit from priming rather than suffer from interference.
Outlines
🤔 Language Learning and 'Tip of the Tongue' Phenomenon
In this paragraph, the speaker addresses a common issue experienced by language learners where they momentarily forget words in their native language while speaking or studying a foreign language. The speaker introduces the concept of 'tip of the tongue' moments and explains that this phenomenon is not about forgetting words but rather the temporary inability to recall them. The speaker, Dr. Taylor Jones, a linguist with a PhD from the University of Pennsylvania, dives into psycholinguistic theories to explain why this happens, including the idea of cascading activations where concepts activate words in a waterfall-like manner. The paragraph sets the stage for a deeper exploration of bilingualism's impact on language processing and the brain.
🧠 Bilingualism's Impact on Language Processing and Priming Effects
This paragraph delves into the intricacies of bilingual language processing, discussing how bilinguals may map their first language (L1) to their second language (L2) or vice versa, leading to different predictions about brain activity that can be tested through experiments. The speaker explains the concept-mediated and word-mediated approaches to translation and how they affect the speed of language processing. The paragraph also covers the phenomenon of priming, where recent exposure to certain words or concepts can speed up processing related information. Additionally, it touches on interference effects and the concept of suppression, where the speaker must inhibit their L1 while using their L2, which can be mentally taxing and lead to the forgetting of L1 words.
📚 Understanding and Embracing Language Interference in Bilingualism
The final paragraph concludes the discussion on language interference among bilinguals, suggesting that there's not much that can be done about the 'tip of the tongue' moments except to accept them as a natural part of bilingual language use. The speaker suggests that regular code-switching can lead to benefits from priming rather than interference. The paragraph also humorously addresses the idea of 'paradoxical suppression,' where the effort to speak one's L2 can lead to difficulty in recalling words from the L1. The speaker wraps up by encouraging viewers to like, subscribe, and comment on their favorite linguistic mix-ups, and mentions the support options available for the channel.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Tip of the tongue
💡Psycholinguistics
💡Cascading activations
💡Word association model
💡Concept-mediated approach
💡Priming
💡Paradoxical suppression
💡Executive control
💡Bilingualism
💡Code-switching
Highlights
People often forget words in their first language when studying or speaking another language.
The phenomenon is known as a 'tip of the tongue' moment, indicating the word feels accessible but isn't immediately recalled.
Language processing and speech planning involve complex, subconscious mechanisms that are not fully understood.
When speaking, one must convert concepts into words, syntax, and then into physical speech movements.
Early theories suggest that concepts activate abstract word forms before sounds and morphology.
Cascading activation models propose that concepts, word selection, and sound mapping occur simultaneously.
Bilinguals may use a word-mediated approach, thinking in one language and translating to another.
Alternatively, bilinguals might use a concept-mediated approach, mapping concepts directly to words in both languages.
Translation tasks show that bilinguals often think of the concept before translating, supporting conceptual mediation.
Priming effects demonstrate that recent exposure to words or concepts can speed up language processing.
Cross-linguistic studies show that words in one language can activate related words in another, even if not identical.
Interference effects occur when words in one language hinder retrieval of the correct word in another.
Suppression of the first language is necessary when speaking the second language, which can be mentally taxing.
Paradoxical suppression suggests that it's more effortful to suppress the dominant first language.
Bilingualism may improve executive function, with potential benefits observed even in young children.
Executive control, including interference suppression and response inhibition, is linked to ADHD.
People with ADHD might find it more challenging to switch languages, but it doesn't mean they can't learn languages.
Regular code-switching can lead to benefits from priming rather than negative effects for bilinguals.
Forgetting words in one's native language while speaking it can occur due to the effort to activate a second language.
Transcripts
I got a question on my last video that
was really interesting I am so far off
my filming schedule at this point it's
ridiculous but it's a question a lot of
people have a lot of people ask me and
it's probably more interesting than what
I was going to talk about this week
anyway so here's what happened last week
I had a few tips for language Learners
and when I introduced them I mentioned
it took me a few seconds to remember the
word tip in English instead of the word
asuse which is not English I remembered
all of the other words it was just the
tip
but I'm not the only person this happens
to a lot of people talk about forgetting
a word in their first language when
they've been studying or speaking
another language even if it wasn't super
recent and we've all had that friend who
did two weeks in Spain over the summer
and came back talking like Hilaria
Baldwin so I was asked what's going on
why does this happen and it's actually
really interesting and related to some
fascinating psycholinguistics that tells
us more about the language faculty so
stick around and I'll explain what's
going on whether we can do anything
about it and how it relates to ADHD eh
that's a good hook it's a good hook if
you don't know me I've got a PhD in
linguistics from the University of
Pennsylvania I speak a handful of
languages and I'm an international Man
of Mystery I'm Dr Taylor Jones and this
is uh um
uh this is language
Jones first things first we have to get
some terminology out of the way what
we're talking about here isn't really
forgetting per se you'll remember the
word later and be able to use it you
haven't wiped the drive rather the
technical term and I'm not even kidding
is tip of the tongue moment you feel
like the word is there it's just not
quite happening there's a lot of
research on how we process language in
the brain and speech processing and
speech planning are way too much to get
into for just this video but you should
know it's an academic morass with all
sorts of competing theories so when I
tell you what I think makes sense there
is strong academic support for it but
it's also not completely settled anyway
if you're just a regular old monolingual
who's speaking your native language you
still get tip of the tongue moments the
difference is that for many of us it
feels like the word in the language
we're learning almost forces out the
word we wanted before we can get to why
I just want to run down what even
happens when we speak you have to
somehow get from a concept to selecting
the words that communicate the concept
to turning the mental objects of words
and syntax you've constructed into
instructions for moving your mouth meat
and nose holes
those are not the technical terms early
theories posited that you think of a
concept then that activates a number of
competing lmas basically abstract words
sort of before letters and sounds and
definitely by all accounts before you
add things like morphological markers
that's plural s for instance then you'd
actually select word sounds and arrange
them or arrange the concepts and select
the sounds that spell out that structure
in generative syntax this is actually
just called spellout in all caps the
theory I'm partial to and which has a
lot of academic support is one where you
have cascading activations so concepts
are coming together but words are
already being selected and mapped to
actual gestures to produce those sounds
all in a beautiful waterfall like teared
champagne glasses at a wedding if you're
someone who's already speaking before
you know how that sentence will end
you'll agree with me on the plausibility
of this over organizing everything on
one level at a time and then speaking
either way both would be below the level
of Consciousness and blazing fast okay
so what happens when you add a second
language in the mix well there's
different things that could happen one
is that you map your L1 that's fancy
linguist jargon for your first language
to your L2 your second language so if
you're bilingual in English and French
like me maybe you just kind of think in
English and adapt it at least at a word
level for concrete items this is the
word mediated approach is it word
mediated no W is not word association
model okay this is the word association
model the other option is the concept
mediated approach where you map Concepts
to words in both languages what's cool
about this is that they make different
predictions about how our brains work
and we can test those predictions with
experiments that are potentially as
simple as just measuring how long it
takes people to translate Andor label
things under various conditions so this
is what linguist and psychologists did
There's pretty strong evidence that
translation or switching languages is
conceptually mediated meaning it
actually takes longer if you're given a
word and told to translate it because
you don't just go word to word but you
actually think of the thing first
although that's not quite right and
recent work has found that there's all
sorts of asymmetries so if you give me a
word in my L2 let's take koska a
different L2 I might actually depending
on how I learned it have that mapped
directly to English cat but if you ask
me how to say cat in Russian I'm likely
to actually have to think of a cat on
some level before I can generate koska
there's all sorts of studies that
indicate interesting priming effects
meaning if you've heard or seen
something recently it makes processing
Rel information faster that's priming
but the crosslinguistic stuff is the
weird stuff if you ask Russian English
bilinguals to perform a task in English
if the words in English are sort of
similar to Russian words they'll
activate entire networks of Russian in
their brain activating entire networks
of Russian the classic study on this was
an eye tracking study that asked people
to click on the marker and found that
Russian speakers looked at stamps before
clicking on the picture with a marker in
it but English monolinguals didn't why
well stamp in Russian is Mara the astute
among you will notice that they're not
pronounced exactly the same so cascading
models of activation actually get some
support here because they hear Mar and
start looking at the stamps even though
the Marka and marker aren't pronounced
the same similar enough and you get
priming it's also easier to remember
words that share sounds and have meaning
overlap even if they're not actually
related this is why I can remember that
bizar is Mu in Hebrew it's also why I
think it's really smart that dual
insists on forcing you to do harder
mappings pretty sure they only give me
strange or weird as options for that
word film in the French course is
exclusively translated as movie oh and
the even more astute of you will wonder
if I was primed to include the word
astute in my script because I had the
French word ause activate astute in my
mental lexicon while writing the script
we also see some interference effects so
in studies with Dutch English bilinguals
if you want them to say mountain in
their second language in this case
English say you gave them a picture and
said what is this it can be helped Along
by either saying a word like mouth in
English that shares some sounds or ma in
Dutch it can also be impeded by saying
dull which means nothing in English but
Valley in Dutch or so I'm told and is
therefore semantically related but the
wrong word but what we want to know is
why they might remember mountain when
they're speaking Dutch and wanted to say
and that's where it gets really
interesting when you know two languages
they're both active in your brain
listening to your L2 will actually Prim
words in your L1 so yes astute ause
similar overlapping brain regions light
up when we use our various languages but
they don't overlap completely either the
leading theory on what happens when you
speak your L2 is that you actually have
to suppress your L1 and vice versa
believe it or not the thing is I speak
English all the time and I speak French
way less so when I'm speaking English
it's really generally not hard for me to
suppress French but when I speak French
it takes mental bandwidth to keep
speaking French cuz it's hard and it's
not my first language and wouldn't it
just be a lot easier to speak English
this leads to what's sometimes called
paradoxical suppression it takes way
more energy to suppress your first
language this is not just a metaphor
it's literally exhausting and that means
once you've been doing that for a while
it's also hard to turn off so the fact
that I'd been binge listening to French
podcasts a little earlier in the day
before writing that last script was
enough for me to just be in the habit of
suppressing English words and low
frequency words are harder to conjure
than high frequency just normally and
I'd been listening to podcasts that gave
tips so I'd heard the actual word ause
more times recently than the word tip so
is the pretentious friend who now can't
recall anything in English because how
you say I spent a week in Barcelona
faking it maybe it's a real phenomenon
but people can also play it up because
they want you to think they're
interesting and ask them about their
vacation and the running of the bulls or
whatever yeah I I know wrong City leave
me a comment with the right City and if
they still do that okay but what about
that hook at the beginning ADHD this is
absolutely wild to me if you think about
this suppression I've been talking about
it's interference suppression and
response inhibition these are both
subdomains of executive control if
you're at all interested in ADHD you
probably know that it's all about
executive control YouTube's favorite
ADHD expert even argues it should be
called ID intentional deficit disorder
all because of executive control so does
this mean that people with ADHD are not
good at language learning absolutely not
although some of the skills might be
more difficult I know I'll be more
patient with the adhders in my life who
just keep on speaking to me in English
when I switch for funsies to a language
we both speak it's legit harder to make
that switch when it's not necessary or a
crisis this is true of a lot of people
and not just those with ADHD so don't
get it twisted my wife for instance had
studied French for years but wasn't
comfortable speaking it until after I
faked a stomach bug and niece and left
her with my very monolingual Aunt while
I read in the bathroom for a while note
this is neither language learning nor
relationship ship advice and try this at
your own Peril anyway what's really cool
about this is that the research suggests
that bilingualism improves executive
function it looks like it might actually
be causal and not just a neat
relationship and part because very young
children including native bilinguals see
a benefit in experimental studies of
executive function and some studies seem
to suggest an improvement in executive
function from studying a foreign
language although they're not
necessarily longitudinal studies so take
them with a grain of salt and more
research just needed and yada yada yada
yada so what can we do about this
forgetting words in our native language
well nothing really it just sort of
comes with a territory the best we can
say is that if you develop robust code
switching on a very regular basis in all
domains like catalon and Spanish
speakers and this is from an
experimental study you're likely to
benefit from priming rather than suffer
from it but for most of us we're going
to have tip of the tongue moments and
for language Learners paradoxically yes
you can forget words in your native
language when you're speaking your
native language because it's just too
hard hard to suppress the thing you've
been actively trying to develop the
ability to activate so there you have it
if you like what I'm doing with the
Channel please like And subscribe and
leave me a comment with your favorite
linguistic mixup it not only helps with
the algorithm but it also just really
entertains me I have a patreon so you
can support the channel at
www.patreon.com or right here on YouTube
with super thanks and super chat if you
like this video watch some of my others
YouTube's whole game is keeping you
watching videos on the platform and
therefore for ads and they think you'll
like this one until next time
umz ah bye
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