Abstract
This chapter presents an overview of research conducted on multilingual language acquisition (i.e., third language (L3) and additional language learning) with an emphasis on its methodological design. Early research developments in the field of multilingual language acquisition focused on the role of prior language experience on subsequent language learning with studies conducted in laboratories and in bilingual programs. Recent contributions to the field include studies that explore crosslinguistic influence (CLI) from different perspectives (e.g., universal grammar [UG], psycholinguistics, functional linguistics). Additionally, laboratory studies such as The Latin Project have investigated the interaction between prior linguistic knowledge and learning conditions and include cognitive variables (e.g., attentional control and working memory capacity) as possible moderating variables. Quantitative cross-sectional studies are common under these approaches, but qualitative analyses are often included to provide a larger picture of the results obtained. This is also the nature of a recent holistic approach to multilingualism (e.g., Cenoz and Gorter Mod Lang J 95(3): 339–343, 2011), which focuses on the connections among the different languages of the learner. Promising work in progress is exploring the effects of language experience on subsequent language learning with online measures of neurocognitive processing (e.g., Grey A neurocognitive investigation of bilingual advantages at additional language learning. Unpublished doctoral dissertation. Georgetown University, Washington, DC, 2013). Also, longitudinal studies with schooled children and college students in bilingual areas (e.g., Catalonia and Basque Country in Spain) are trying to understand how instructional conditions affect subsequent language learning and how individual differences such as motivation interact with the effects observed. The last two sections of the chapter present problems that researchers may encounter in relation to sample, constructs, measurements, and analyses in conducting research on multilingual language acquisition. The chapter concludes with suggestions for future research in this area.
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Lado, B., Sanz, C. (2017). Methods in Multilingualism Research. In: King, K., Lai, YJ., May, S. (eds) Research Methods in Language and Education. Encyclopedia of Language and Education. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-02249-9_14
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