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In:Bridging Boundaries: Interdisciplinary perspectives on Hispanic Linguistics
Edited by Gregory L. Thompson and Scott M. Alvord
[Issues in Hispanic and Lusophone Linguistics 46] 2026
► pp. 224–249

Chapter 9
How long does it take to name a picture?

The effects of extralinguistic variables on lexical retrieval among Spanish heritage speakers

 | University of Illinois Chicago
 | University of Illinois Chicago
 | University of Illinois Chicago
 | University of Houston
This content is being prepared for publication; it may be subject to changes.
Abstract
This chapter investigates the relationship between several extralinguistic dimensions of the bilingual profile and lexical retrieval. Specifically, we tested the accuracy and timing of heritage Spanish-English speakers’ picture-naming abilities using a standardized assessment called the Multilingual Naming Task (MINT; Gollan et al., 2012). Participants provided information about their linguistic history and experiences through the Bilingual Language Profile (BLP; Birdsong et al., 2012), which quantifies language dominance, self-rated proficiency, language usage, and attitudes. Through a series of generalized mixed effects models (GLMM), these variables were examined as predictors in the speed of retrieval.
Article outline
  • 1.Introduction
  • 2.Literature review
    • 2.1Why lexical retrieval?
    • 2.2Conflicting hypotheses
    • 2.3Extralinguistic dimensions of the bilingual profile
      • 2.3.1Age of acquisition
      • 2.3.2Dominance and its subcomponents
  • 3.Research questions and hypotheses
  • 4.Method
    • 4.1Participants
    • 4.2Materials and procedures
      • 4.2.1Lexical retrieval task
      • 4.2.2Extralinguistic factors
  • 5.Results
  • 6.Discussion
    • 6.1Differences between monolingually raised and bilingual HSs
    • 6.2Extralinguistic factors in lexical retrieval
  • 7.Limitations and future directions
  • 8.Conclusion
  • Note
  • References
References (30)
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