Cross-linguistic interactions in the spontaneous productions of preschoolers who speak Jamaican-Creole and English

Abstract

ABSTRACT Knowledge of typical cross-linguistic interactions in bilingual speakers is important for informing clinical practice and avoiding misdiagnosis of typically developing bilingual children as disordered. The present study investigated cross-linguistic interactions in the spontaneous productions of Jamaican Creole (JC)-English speaking preschoolers. Participants in this study were 61 JC-English bilingual preschoolers (aged 4;2-5;10). The Index of Productive Syntax (IPSyn) and token-based analyses were used to quantify and characterize preschoolers’ cross-linguistic interactions. Within-utterance cross-linguistic interactions identified using the IPSyn framework (Noun Phrases, Verb Phrases, Questions/Negation, Sentence Structures) were present for 49.6% and 41.7% of linguistic structures, in JC and English respectively. Token-based analysis revealed cross-linguistic interactions, with syntax being the most often involved in the JC context and phonology in the English context, for both within- and across-utterance analyses. Children used cross-linguistic interactions more often in the JC context, at an average rate of 44.9%, compared to an average rate of 27.8% in the English context. Most cross-linguistic interactions occurred towards the end of the language sample for both languages. The results of this study provide specific knowledge regarding JC-English preschoolers’ cross-linguistic interactions in spontaneous speech. This knowledge is critical to increasing speech-language pathologists’ cultural competence and responsivity for interpreting dynamic language use in this bilingual population.