At present, approximately two thirds of the world’s population is bilingual. Globalisation, migration and decreasing gaps between different cultures and countries make the ability to speak two or more languages necessary, and, consequently, the number of bilingual people increases steadily. The ever-increasing, significant number of people speaking two or more languages has caused high interest, among psychologists, educators and also psycholinguists, in the cognitive and cerebral study of the bilingual. An important part of the research is the study of bilingual aphasia, meaning the loss of the capability to comprehend and/or speak a language, either totally or in part, which is a result of brain injuries often caused by diseases, such as strokes or tumours, war injuries or car accidents (cf. Myers-Scotton 2006: 317). Studying bilingual aphasia and its impacts on the bilingual’s different languages contributes to finding an answer to the question of how two or more languages are organised and represented in the brain. In so doing, this field of research posits hypotheses concerning the cerebral organisation of language in general and the parts of the brain which function for its production. After having defined the terms bilingualism and bilingual, which is a necessary prerequisite to avoid confusing ambiguities in the following text, this essay will illustrate the most common patterns of language recovery and their relative incidence. This illustration will be followed by an overview of early suggested and attempted explanations for the questions about which brain mechanisms are responsible for the various patterns, why a certain patient shows a certain recovery pattern and why one language in some cases remains more intact than the other, or why sometimes one is preserved, while the other is lost entirely. Finally, the essay will outline the findings of recent research and their contribution to the cognitive study of language.
Table of Contents
1 INTRODUCTION
2 WHO IS A BILINGUAL?
3 LANGUAGE RECOVERY PATTERNS IN BILINGUAL APHASICS
3.1 THE BASIC RECOVERY PATTERNS
3.2 INCIDENCE
3.4 EARLY ATTEMPTED EXPLANATIONS
4 RECENT FINDINGS
4.1 THE LOCALISATION OF MULTIPLE LANGUAGES IN ONE BRAIN
4.2 THE ACTIVATION THRESHOLD HYPOTHESIS
5 CONCLUSION
Research Objectives and Themes
This work explores the neurological and cognitive dimensions of bilingual aphasia, specifically investigating how multiple languages are represented and processed within the brain. It seeks to clarify the mechanisms underlying observed recovery patterns in aphasic patients through a review of historical theories and contemporary neuroscientific findings.
- Definition and linguistic scope of bilingualism
- Common clinical patterns of language recovery in bilingual aphasics
- Evaluation of historical and modern hypotheses regarding cerebral language organisation
- The role of the Activation Threshold Hypothesis (ATH) in explaining recovery phenomena
Excerpt from the Book
3.1 The Basic Recovery Patterns
There are six basic patterns of recovery classified by Paradis in 1977, namely parallel, differential, successive, antagonistic and selective recovery.
One speaks of parallel recovery if the patient’s languages are impaired in the same ways and then regained at the same rate. The post-onset speech parallels the premorbid proficiency in the different languages, which is the reason for its denotation (cf. Paradis 2004: 63). Differential recovery, on the other hand, is the description of those cases in which the languages are impaired to a different extent, meaning that at least one language is impaired more strongly than the others. Nevertheless, the patient’s abilities do increase steadily in all his languages. These two patterns are also described as synergistic recovery, since the restoration of one language is simultaneous with the restoration of the other (cf. www.fask.uni-mainz.de/user/horschmann/Aphasie+Biling.html).
A third pattern is successive recovery. As the name already implies, the term refers to the sequential recovery of the languages, that is to say the languages are restored one after the other (cf. Myers-Scotton 2006: 318).
Paradis speaks of antagonistic recovery if the different languages are not available at the same time, which means that the ability to speak the language which is first available to the patient decreases to the same degree as the ability to speak a second language increases. Finally, the language first recovered by the patient disappears (cf. Paradis 2004: 63).
The term selective recovery is used for cases of patients who do not regain any recovery of at least one of the languages they spoke premorbidly, while blended recovery refers to those who mix their languages in situations where this is inapplicable, but yet do it systematically. There are patients reported who blend their languages on nearly all linguistic levels (cf. Myers-Scotton 2006: 319).
Summary of Chapters
1 INTRODUCTION: Outlines the rising prevalence of bilingualism and the clinical significance of studying bilingual aphasia for understanding cerebral language representation.
2 WHO IS A BILINGUAL?: Discusses the challenges of defining bilingualism and establishes a functional working definition based on proficiency and usage.
3 LANGUAGE RECOVERY PATTERNS IN BILINGUAL APHASICS: Provides a classification of primary recovery patterns and examines the statistical incidence and early theoretical attempts at explanation.
4 RECENT FINDINGS: Evaluates contemporary hypotheses on the neural storage of multiple languages, focusing on the Activation Threshold Hypothesis as a mechanism for recovery.
5 CONCLUSION: Synthesizes the current state of research and calls for more empirical data to substantiate existing models of bilingual language processing.
Keywords
Bilingualism, Aphasia, Language Recovery, Cerebral Organization, Parallel Recovery, Differential Recovery, Selective Recovery, Blended Recovery, Activation Threshold Hypothesis, Neural Inhibition, Neurolinguistics, Cognitive Neuroscience, Language Representation, Brain Lesions, Bilingual Aphasia Test
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the primary subject of this study?
The study examines bilingual aphasia, focusing on how brain injuries affect the comprehension and production of multiple languages in bilingual individuals.
What are the core themes addressed in the text?
Key themes include the definition of bilingualism, the classification of language recovery patterns, and the theoretical models explaining how multiple languages are represented in the human brain.
What is the main objective of the research?
The research aims to understand why different patients exhibit different recovery patterns after brain injury and to evaluate how these patterns reflect the organization of language in the brain.
Which scientific methods are discussed to analyze these phenomena?
The text analyzes clinical case studies and reviews established neurolinguistic theories, such as the Activation Threshold Hypothesis and various system-based storage models.
What topics are covered in the main body of the text?
The main body covers definitions of bilingualism, a classification of six specific recovery patterns, and an evaluation of competing hypotheses regarding the cortical localization of multiple languages.
Which keywords best characterize this work?
The work is defined by terms such as bilingual aphasia, language recovery patterns, cerebral organization, and the Activation Threshold Hypothesis.
What does the term "parallel recovery" imply?
It describes a situation where a patient's languages are impaired to a similar degree and recover at the same rate, effectively mirroring their premorbid proficiency.
How does the Activation Threshold Hypothesis (ATH) explain aphasia?
The ATH suggests that language impairment in aphasics is primarily an inhibition issue rather than complete destruction, where the threshold for activating linguistic items is abnormally elevated.
Why are standard definitions of "bilingualism" often considered problematic?
Definitions are often imprecise because they fail to account for varying degrees of proficiency, frequency of language use, and the context in which languages were acquired.
What is the limitation of current research on bilingual aphasia?
The field is still in its early stages and relies heavily on diverse case studies that are not always representative, highlighting the need for more objective data collection.
- Quote paper
- Theresa Weisensee (Author), 2007, The Research of Bilingual Aphasia and Its Contribution to the Study of Multiple Languages in One Brain, Munich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/149477
