Distinct brain state dynamics of native and second language processing during narrative listening in late bilinguals
Xiangrong Tang,
Juan Zhang,
Lanfang Liu,
Menghan Yang,
Shijie Li,
Jie Chen,
Yumeng Ma,
Jia Zhang,
Haiyi Liu,
Chunming Lu,
Guosheng Ding
Affiliations
Xiangrong Tang
State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning & IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China
Juan Zhang
State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning & IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China; Beijing Institute of Graphic Communication, Beijing 102600, China
Lanfang Liu
Department of Psychology, Faculty of Arts and Sciences, Beijing Normal University at Zhuhai, Zhuhai 519087, China; Center for Cognition and Neuroergonomics, State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning, Beijing Normal University at Zhuhai, Zhuhai 519087, China; Corresponding author.
Menghan Yang
State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning & IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China; Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Dartmouth College, Hanover NH 03755, USA
Shijie Li
State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning & IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China
Jie Chen
State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning & IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China; Faculty of Psychology, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China
Yumeng Ma
Department of Neuroscience, Physiology and Pharmacology, University College London, London WC1E 6BT, UK; Department of Psychology, Emory University, Atlanta GA 30322, USA
Jia Zhang
State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning & IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China; School of Psychology, Beijing Language and Culture University, Beijing 100083, China
Haiyi Liu
State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning & IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China
Chunming Lu
State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning & IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China
Guosheng Ding
State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning & IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China; Corresponding author.
The process of complex cognition, which includes language processing, is dynamic in nature and involves various network modes or cognitive modes. This dynamic process can be manifested by a set of brain states and transitions between them. Previous neuroimaging studies have shed light on how bilingual brains support native language (L1) and second language (L2) through a shared network. However, the mechanism through which this shared brain network enables L1 and L2 processing remains unknown. This study examined this issue by testing the hypothesis that L1 and L2 processing is associated with distinct brain state dynamics in terms of brain state integration and transition flexibility. A group of late Chinese-English bilinguals was scanned using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) while listening to eight short narratives in Chinese (L1) and English (L2). Brain state dynamics were modeled using the leading eigenvector dynamic analysis framework. The results show that L1 processing involves more integrated states and frequent transitions between integrated and segregated states, while L2 processing involves more segregated states and fewer transitions. Our work provides insight into the dynamic process of narrative listening comprehension in late bilinguals and sheds new light on the neural representation of language processing and related disorders.
