1887
  1. Home
  2. e-Journals
  3. Linguistic Approaches to Bilingualism
  4. Volume 12, Issue 4
  5. Article
Volume 12, Issue 4
  • ISSN 1879-9264
  • E-ISSN: 1879-9272
USD
Buy:$35.00 + Taxes

Abstract

Abstract

Previous studies show mixed findings concerning whether higher-order story structure (macrostructure) is similar across bilinguals’ two languages. It is not known how macrostructure is influenced by general language proficiency and amount of exposure. The present study investigates these issues in 46 German-Swedish bilingual 4- to 6-year-olds. Narratives were elicited in both languages with two picture-based tasks from the Multilingual Assessment Instrument for Narratives (MAIN) in the telling mode. We investigate to what extent the language of elicitation (Swedish vs German) influences bilingual children’s macrostructure (story structure, episodic complexity) and explore effects of narrative task, age, narrative length, expressive vocabulary and estimated language exposure, both separately and combined, on macrostructure in the respective language. Results show that macrostructural skills developed measurably with age from 4 to 6 years in both languages, with no task effects. Story structure scores were higher in the majority language Swedish than in German and developed differently with age. The effect of narrative length on story structure was similar in the two languages. Language exposure did not have any significant effect. Macrostructure scores were significantly affected by expressive vocabulary in German only. Generally, the results may be linked to slightly higher language proficiency in Swedish.

© John Benjamins Publishing Company
Loading

Article metrics loading...

/content/journals/10.1075/lab.20020.lin
2021-01-28
2023-09-21

  • From This Site

    /content/journals/10.1075/lab.20020.lin
    dcterms_title,dcterms_subject,pub_keyword
    -contentType:Journal -contentType:Contributor -contentType:Concept -contentType:Institution
    10
    5
Loading full text...

Full text loading...

References

  1. Akinci, M.-A., Jisa, H., & Kern, S.
    (2001) Influence of L1 Turkish on L2 French narratives. InL. Verhoeven & S. Strömqvist (Eds.), Narrative development in a multilingual context (pp.189–208). Amsterdam: John Benjamins. 10.1075/sibil.23.07aki
     https://doi.org/10.1075/sibil.23.07aki [Google Scholar]
  2. Berman, R. A., & Slobin, D. I.
    (1994) Narrative structure. InR. A. Berman & D. I. Slobin (Eds.), Relating events in narrative: A crosslinguistic developmental study (pp.39–84). Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.
     [Google Scholar]
  3. Bishop, D. V. M.
    (1997) Uncommon understanding: Development and disorders of language comprehension in children. Hove/New York: Psychology Press.
     [Google Scholar]
  4. Bishop, D. V. M., & Adams, C.
    (1992) Comprehension problems in children with specific language impairment: Literal and inferential meaning. Journal of Speech Language and Hearing Research, 35(1), 119–129. 10.1044/jshr.3501.119
     https://doi.org/10.1044/jshr.3501.119 [Google Scholar]
  5. Bitetti, D., & Hammer, C. S.
    (2016) The home literacy environment and the English narrative development of Spanish-English bilingual children. Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research, 59(5), 1159–1171. 10.1044/2016_JSLHR‑L‑15‑0064
     https://doi.org/10.1044/2016_JSLHR-L-15-0064 [Google Scholar]
  6. Blom, E., & Boerma, T.
    (2016) Why do children with language impairment have difficulties with narrative macrostructure?Research in Developmental Disabilities, 55, 301–311. 10.1016/j.ridd.2016.05.001
     https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ridd.2016.05.001 [Google Scholar]
  7. Boerma, T., Leseman, P., Timmermeister, M., Wijnen, F., & Blom, E.
    (2016) Narrative abilities of monolingual and bilingual children with and without language impairment: Implications for clinical practice: A narrative as diagnostic tool. International Journal of Language & Communication Disorders, 51(6), 626–638. 10.1111/1460‑6984.12234
     https://doi.org/10.1111/1460-6984.12234 [Google Scholar]
  8. Bohnacker, U.
    (2016) Tell me a story in English or Swedish: Narrative production and comprehension in bilingual preschoolers and first graders. Applied Psycholinguistics, 37(1), 19–48. 10.1017/S0142716415000405
     https://doi.org/10.1017/S0142716415000405 [Google Scholar]
  9. Bohnacker, U., & Lindgren, J.
    (in press). MAIN story comprehension: What can we expect of a typically developing child?InS. Armon-Lotem & K. K. Grohmann (Eds.) LITMUS in Action: Cross-Comparison Studies across Europe. Amsterdam: John Benjamins. Preprint retrieved fromuu.diva-portal.org/smash/get/diva2:1348899/FULLTEXT01.pdf (18June 2019).
     [Google Scholar]
  10. Bohnacker, U., Lindgren, J., & Öztekin, B.
    (2020) Bilingual Turkish-Swedish children’s understanding of MAIN picture sequences: Individual variation, age, language and task effects. InU. Bohnacker & N. Gagarina (Eds.), Developing narrative comprehension: Multilingual Assessment Instrument for Narratives (pp.99–147). Amsterdam: John Benjamins. 10.1075/sibil.61.04boh
     https://doi.org/10.1075/sibil.61.04boh [Google Scholar]
  11. Botting, N.
    (2002) Narrative as a tool for the assessment of linguistic and pragmatic impairments. Child Language Teaching and Therapy, 18(1), 1–21. 10.1191/0265659002ct224oa
     https://doi.org/10.1191/0265659002ct224oa [Google Scholar]
  12. Burris, S. E., & Brown, D. D.
    (2014) When all children comprehend: Increasing the external validity of narrative comprehension development research. Frontiers in Psychology, 5 (Article 168).   10.3389/fpsyg.2014.00168
     https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2014.00168 [Google Scholar]
  13. Dickinson, D., & Tabors, P.
    (2001) Beginning literacy with language. Baltimore, MD: Brookes.
     [Google Scholar]
  14. Fiestas, C. E., & Peña, E. D.
    (2004) Narrative discourse in bilingual children: Language and task effects. Language, Speech, and Hearing Services in Schools, 35(2), 155–168. 10.1044/0161‑1461(2004/016)
     https://doi.org/10.1044/0161-1461(2004/016) [Google Scholar]
  15. Gagarina, N.
    (2016) Narratives of Russian–German preschool and primary school bilinguals: Rasskaz and Erzählung. Applied Psycholinguistics, 37(1), 91–122. 10.1017/S0142716415000430
     https://doi.org/10.1017/S0142716415000430 [Google Scholar]
  16. Gagarina, N., Klop, D., Kunnari, S., Tantele, K., Välimaa, T., Balčiūnienė, I., Bohnacker, U., & Walters, J.
    (2012) MAIN: Multilingual Assessment Instrument for Narratives. ZAS Papers in Linguistics, 56, 1–140.
     [Google Scholar]
  17. (2015) Assessment of narrative abilities in bilingual children. InS. Armon-Lotem, J. de Jong, & N. Meir (Eds.), Assessing multilingual children: Disentangling bilingualism from language impairment (pp.243–269). Bristol: Multilingual Matters. 10.21832/9781783093137‑011
     https://doi.org/10.21832/9781783093137-011 [Google Scholar]
  18. Gagarina, N., Klop, D., Kunnari, S., Tantele, K., Välimaa, T., Bohnacker, U., & Walters, J.
    (2019) MAIN: Multilingual Assessment Instrument for Narratives – Revised. ZAS Papers in Linguistics, 63, 1–36. 10.21248/zaspil.63.2019.516
     https://doi.org/10.21248/zaspil.63.2019.516 [Google Scholar]
  19. Gathercole, V. C. M., Thomas, E. M., Roberts, E. J., Hughes, C. O., & Hughes, E. K.
    (2013) Why assessment needs to take exposure into account: Vocabulary and grammatical abilities in bilingual children. InV. C. M. Gathercole (Ed.), Issues in the assessment of bilinguals (pp.20–55). Bristol: Multilingual Matters. 10.21832/9781783090105‑004
     https://doi.org/10.21832/9781783090105-004 [Google Scholar]
  20. Griffin, T. M., Hemphill, L., Camp, L., & Wolf, D. P.
    (2004) Oral discourse in the preschool years and later literacy skills. First Language, 24(2), 123–147. 10.1177/0142723704042369
     https://doi.org/10.1177/0142723704042369 [Google Scholar]
  21. Gutiérrez-Clellen, V. F.
    (2002) Narratives in two languages: Assessing performance of bilingual children. Linguistics and Education, 13(2), 175–197. 10.1016/S0898‑5898(01)00061‑4
     https://doi.org/10.1016/S0898-5898(01)00061-4 [Google Scholar]
  22. Halliday, M. A. K., & Hasan, R.
    (1976) Cohesion in English. London: Longman.
     [Google Scholar]
  23. Haman, E., Łuniewska, M., & Pomiechowska, B.
    (2015) Designing cross-linguistic lexical tasks (CLTs) for bilingual preschool children. InS. Armon-Lotem, J. de Jong, & N. Meir (Eds.), Methods for assessing multilingual children: Disentangling bilingualism from Language Impairment (pp.196–239). Bristol: Multilingual Matters. 10.21832/9781783093137‑010
     https://doi.org/10.21832/9781783093137-010 [Google Scholar]
  24. Haman, E., Wodniecka, Z., Marecka, M., Szewczyk, J., Białecka-Pikul, M., Otwinowska, A., Mieszkowska, K., Łuniewska, M., Kołak, J., Miękisz, A., Kacprzak, A., Banasik, N., & Foryś-Nogala, M.
    (2017) How does L1 and L2 exposure impact L1 performance in bilingual children? Evidence from Polish-English migrants to the United Kingdom. Frontiers in Psychology, 8 (Article 1444). 10.3389/fpsyg.2017.01444
     https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2017.01444 [Google Scholar]
  25. Heilmann, J., Miller, J. F., & Nockerts, A.
    (2010) Sensitivity of narrative organization measures using narrative retells produced by young school-age children. Language Testing, 27(4), 603–626. 10.1177/0265532209355669
     https://doi.org/10.1177/0265532209355669 [Google Scholar]
  26. Iluz-Cohen, P., & Walters, J.
    (2012) Telling stories in two languages: Narratives of bilingual preschool children with typical and impaired language. Bilingualism: Language and Cognition, 15(1), 58–74. 10.1017/S1366728911000538
     https://doi.org/10.1017/S1366728911000538 [Google Scholar]
  27. Kunnari, S., Välimaa, T., & Laukkanen-Nevala, P.
    (2016) Macrostructure in the narratives of monolingual Finnish and bilingual Finnish–Swedish children. Applied Psycholinguistics, 37(1), 123–144. 10.1017/S0142716415000442
     https://doi.org/10.1017/S0142716415000442 [Google Scholar]
  28. Labov, W., & Waletzky, J.
    (1967) Narrative analysis: Oral versions of personal experience. InJ. Helm (Ed.), Essays on the verbal and visual arts (pp.12–44). Seattle, WA: University of Washington.
     [Google Scholar]
  29. Lindgren, J.
    (2018) Developing narrative competence: Swedish, Swedish-German and Swedish-Turkish children aged 4–6. Uppsala: Acta Universitatis Upsaliensis.
     [Google Scholar]
  30. (2019) Comprehension and production of narrative macrostructure in Swedish: A longitudinal study from age 4 to 7. First Language, 39(4), 412–432. 10.1177/0142723719844089
     https://doi.org/10.1177/0142723719844089 [Google Scholar]
  31. Lindgren, J., & Bohnacker, U.
    (2020a) Inferential comprehension, age and language: How German-Swedish bilingual preschoolers understand picture-based stories. InU. Bohnacker & N. Gagarina (Eds.), Developing narrative comprehension: Multilingual Assessment Instrument for Narratives (pp.61–98). Amsterdam: John Benjamins. 10.1075/sibil.61.03lin
     https://doi.org/10.1075/sibil.61.03lin [Google Scholar]
  32. (2020b) Vocabulary development in closely-related languages: Age, word type and cognate facilitation effects in bilingual Swedish-German preschool children. Linguistic Approaches to Bilingualism, 10(5), 587–622. 10.1075/lab.18041.lin
     https://doi.org/10.1075/lab.18041.lin [Google Scholar]
  33. Lynch, J. S., van den Broek, P., Kremer, K. E., Kendeou, P., White, M. J., & Lorch, E. P.
    (2008) The development of narrative comprehension and its relation to other early reading skills. Reading Psychology, 29(4), 327–365. 10.1080/02702710802165416
     https://doi.org/10.1080/02702710802165416 [Google Scholar]
  34. MacWhinney, B.
    (2000) The CHILDES Project: Tools for analyzing talk (Third Edition). Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.
     [Google Scholar]
  35. Mäkinen, L.
    (2014) Narrative language in typically developing children, children with specific language impairment and children with autism spectrum disorder (PhD Thesis). University of Oulu, Oulu.
     [Google Scholar]
  36. Mandler, J. M., & Johnson, N. S.
    (1977) Remembrance of things parsed: Story structure and recall. Cognitive Psychology, 9, 111–151. 10.1016/0010‑0285(77)90006‑8
     https://doi.org/10.1016/0010-0285(77)90006-8 [Google Scholar]
  37. Maviş, I., Tunçer, M., & Gagarina, N.
    (2016) Macrostructure components in narrations of Turkish–German bilingual children. Applied Psycholinguistics, 37(1), 69–89. 10.1017/S0142716415000429
     https://doi.org/10.1017/S0142716415000429 [Google Scholar]
  38. Nordqvist, Å.
    (2001) Speech about speech: A developmental study on form and function of direct and indirect speech (PhD Thesis). University of Gothenburg, Gothenburg.
     [Google Scholar]
  39. Oller, D. K., & Eilers, R. E.
    (Eds.) (2002) Language and literacy in bilingual children. Clevedon: Multilingual Matters. 10.21832/9781853595721
     https://doi.org/10.21832/9781853595721 [Google Scholar]
  40. Otwinowska, A., Mieszkowska, K., Białecka-Pikul, M., Opacki, M., & Haman, E.
    (2020) Retelling a model story improves the narratives of Polish-English bilingual children. International Journal of Bilingual Education and Bilingualism, 23(9), 36–76.   10.1080/13670050.2018.1434124
     https://doi.org/10.1080/13670050.2018.1434124 [Google Scholar]
  41. Öztekin, B.
    (2019) Typical and atypical language development in bilingual Turkish-Swedish preschool children. Uppsala: Acta Universitatis Upsaliensis.
     [Google Scholar]
  42. Paradis, J., Genesee, F., & Crago, M. B.
    (2011) Dual language development and disorders: A handbook on bilingualism and second language learning (2nd ed). Baltimore, MD: Paul H. Brookes.
     [Google Scholar]
  43. Paris, A. H., & Paris, S. G.
    (2003) Assessing narrative comprehension in young children. Reading Research Quarterly, 38(1), 36–76. 10.1598/RRQ.38.1.3
     https://doi.org/10.1598/RRQ.38.1.3 [Google Scholar]
  44. Pearson, B. Z.
    (2002) Narrative competence among monolingual and bilingual school children in Miami. InD. K. Oller & R. E. Eilers (Eds.), Language and literacy in bilingual children (pp.135–174). Clevedon: Multilingual Matters. 10.21832/9781853595721‑008
     https://doi.org/10.21832/9781853595721-008 [Google Scholar]
  45. Peterson, C., & McCabe, A.
    (1983) Developmental psycholinguistics: Three ways of looking at a child’s narrative. New York, NY: Plenum Press. 10.1007/978‑1‑4757‑0608‑6
     https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4757-0608-6 [Google Scholar]
  46. Reuterskiöld, C., Hansson, K., & Sahlén, B.
    (2011) Narrative skills in Swedish children with language impairment. Journal of Communication Disorders, 44(6), 733–744. 10.1016/j.jcomdis.2011.04.010
     https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jcomdis.2011.04.010 [Google Scholar]
  47. Reuterskiöld Wagner, C., Sahlén, B., & Nettelbladt, U.
    (1999) What’s the story? Narration and comprehension in Swedish preschool children with language impairment. Child Language Teaching and Therapy, 15(2), 83–93. 10.1191/026565999671432141
     https://doi.org/10.1191/026565999671432141 [Google Scholar]
  48. Ringblom, N., Håkansson, G., & Lindgren, J.
    (2014) Cross-Linguistic Lexical Task: Swedish version (CLT-SWE). Unpublished material.
     [Google Scholar]
  49. Rinker, T., & Gagarina, N.
    (2014) Cross-Linguistic Lexical Task: German version (CLT-DE). Unpublished material.
     [Google Scholar]
  50. Roch, M., Florit, E., & Levorato, C.
    (2016) Narrative competence of Italian–English bilingual children between 5 and 7 years. Applied Psycholinguistics, 37(1), 49–67. 10.1017/S0142716415000417
     https://doi.org/10.1017/S0142716415000417 [Google Scholar]
  51. Rodina, Y.
    (2017) Narrative abilities of preschool bilingual Norwegian-Russian children. International Journal of Bilingualism, 21(5), 617–635. 10.1177/1367006916643528
     https://doi.org/10.1177/1367006916643528 [Google Scholar]
  52. Schneider, P., Hayward, D., & Dubé, R. V.
    (2006) Storytelling from pictures using the Edmonton Narrative Norms Instrument. Journal of Speech-Language Pathology and Audiology, 30(4), 224–238.
     [Google Scholar]
  53. Sénéchal, M., & LeFevre, J.-A.
    (2001) Storybook reading and parent teaching: Links to language and literacy development. New Directions for Child and Adolescent Development, 92, 39–52. 10.1002/cd.14
     https://doi.org/10.1002/cd.14 [Google Scholar]
  54. Stein, N. L., & Glenn, C. G.
    (1979) An analysis of story comprehension in elementary school children. InR. Freedle (Ed.), Discourse processing: Multidisciplinary perspectives (pp.53–120). Norwood, NJ: Ablex.
     [Google Scholar]
  55. Stein, N. L., & Policastro, M.
    (1984) The concept of a story: A comparison between children’s and teacher’s viewpoints. InH. Mandl, N. L. Stein, & T. Trabasso (Eds.), Learning and comprehension of text (pp.113–155). Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.
     [Google Scholar]
  56. Strömqvist, S., & Day, D.
    (1993) On the development of narrative structure in child L1 and adult L2 acquisition. Applied Psycholinguistics, 14(2), 135–158. 10.1017/S0142716400009528
     https://doi.org/10.1017/S0142716400009528 [Google Scholar]
  57. Trabasso, T., & Nickels, M.
    (1992) The development of goal plans of action in the narration of a picture story. Discourse Processes, 15(3), 249–275. 10.1080/01638539209544812
     https://doi.org/10.1080/01638539209544812 [Google Scholar]
  58. Trabasso, T., & Rodkin, P. C.
    (1994) Knowledge of goal/plans: A conceptual basis for narrating “Frog where are you?”. InR. A. Berman & D. I. Slobin (Eds.), Relating events in narrative: A crosslinguistic developmental study (pp.85–106). Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.
     [Google Scholar]
  59. Trabasso, T., Stein, N. L., Rodkin, P. C., Munger, M. P., & Baughn, C. R.
    (1992) Knowledge of goals and plans in the on-line narration of events. Cognitive Development, 7(2), 133–170. 10.1016/0885‑2014(92)90009‑G
     https://doi.org/10.1016/0885-2014(92)90009-G [Google Scholar]
  60. Uccelli, P., & Páez, M. M.
    (2007) Narrative and vocabulary development of bilingual children from kindergarten to first grade: Developmental changes and associations among English and Spanish skills. Language Speech and Hearing Services in Schools, 38(3), 225–236. 10.1044/0161‑1461(2007/024)
     https://doi.org/10.1044/0161-1461(2007/024) [Google Scholar]
  61. van den Broek, P., Kendeou, P., Kremer, K., Lynch, J. S., Butler, J., White, M. J., & Lorch, E. P.
    (2005) Assessment of comprehension abilities in young children. InS. Stahl & S. Paris (Eds.), Children’s reading comprehension and assessment (pp.107–130). Mahwah, N.J.: Erlbaum.
     [Google Scholar]
  62. Van Dongen, R., & Westby, C. E.
    (1986) Building the narrative mode of thought through children’s literature. Topics in Language Disorders, 7(1), 70–83. 10.1097/00011363‑198612000‑00009
     https://doi.org/10.1097/00011363-198612000-00009 [Google Scholar]
  63. Viberg, Å.
    (2001) Age-related and L2-related features in bilingual narrative development in Sweden. InL. Verhoeven & S. Strömqvist (Eds.), Narrative development in a multilingual context (pp.87–128). Amsterdam: John Benjamins. 10.1075/sibil.23.04vib
     https://doi.org/10.1075/sibil.23.04vib [Google Scholar]
  64. Westby, C. E.
    (2005) Assessing and remediating text comprehension problems. InH. W. Catts & A. G. Kamhi (Eds.), Language and reading disabilities. (2nd edition, pp.157–232). Boston, MA: Pearson.
     [Google Scholar]
http://instance.metastore.ingenta.com/content/journals/10.1075/lab.20020.lin
Loading
How do age, language, narrative task, language proficiency and exposure affect narrative macrostructure in German-Swedish bilingual children aged 4 to 6?
Linguistic Approaches to Bilingualism 12, 479 (2022); https://doi.org/10.1075/lab.20020.lin
/content/journals/10.1075/lab.20020.lin
/content/journals/10.1075/lab.20020.lin
Loading

Data & Media loading...

  • Article Type: Research Article
Keyword(s): German; Multilingual Assessment Instrument for Narratives (MAIN); story structure; Swedish; vocabulary

Most Cited

This is a required field
Please enter a valid email address
Approval was successful
Invalid data
An Error Occurred
Approval was partially successful, following selected items could not be processed due to error