Perhaps the main advantage of being bilingual is the capacity to communicate with interlocutors that have different language backgrounds. In the life of a bilingual, switching interlocutors hence sometimes involves switching languages. We know that the capacity to switch from one language to another is supported by control mechanisms, such as task-set reconfiguration. This study investigates whether similar neurophysiological mechanisms support bilingual switching between different listeners, within and across languages. A group of 48 unbalanced Dutch-English bilinguals named pictures for two monolingual Dutch and two monolingual English life-size virtual listeners in an immersive virtual reality environment. In terms of reaction times, switching languages came at a cost over and above the significant cost of switching from one listener to another. Analysis of event-related potentials showed similar electrophysiological correlates for switching listeners and switching languages. However, it was found that having to switch listeners and languages at the same time delays the onset of lexical processes more than a switch between listeners within the same language. Findings are interpreted in light of the interplay between proactive (sustained inhibition) and reactive (task-set reconfiguration) control in bilingual speech production. It is argued that a possible bilingual advantage in executive control may not be due to the process of switching per se. This study paves the way for the study of bilingual language switching in ecologically valid, naturalistic, experimental settings.

中文翻译：

---

语言和听众之间的双语切换：沉浸式虚拟现实的见解。

双语的主要优势也许是与具有不同语言背景的对话者交流的能力。因此，在双语者的生活中，切换对话者有时涉及切换语言。我们知道，控制机制（例如任务集重新配置）支持从一种语言切换到另一种语言的功能。这项研究调查了类似的神经生理机制是否支持在不同听者之间，语言内和语言之间的双语切换。一组48位不平衡的荷兰语-英语双语者为沉浸式虚拟现实环境中的两个荷兰语和两个英语般大小的虚拟听众命名了图片。就响应时间而言，切换语言的成本要高于从一个侦听器切换到另一个侦听器的巨大成本。对事件相关电位的分析显示，切换听者和切换语言的电生理相关性相似。但是，已经发现，必须同时切换侦听器和语言，而不是在同一语言内的侦听器之间进行切换，这更延迟了词法处理过程的开始。根据双语语音产生中主动（持续抑制）和被动（任务集重新配置）控制之间的相互作用来解释发现。有人认为，执行控制中可能的双语优势可能不是由于转换过程本身造成的。这项研究为在生态有效，自然主义的实验环境中研究双语语言切换铺平了道路。