2019 Fiscal Year Final Research Report
Possibilities of non-native speakers as speech partner: A brain science approach
Project/Area Number |
16K13260
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Research Category |
Grant-in-Aid for Challenging Exploratory Research
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Allocation Type | Multi-year Fund |
Research Field |
Foreign language education
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Research Institution | Nagoya University |
Principal Investigator |
KINOSHITA Toru 名古屋大学, 人文学研究科, 教授 (90177890)
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Project Period (FY) |
2016-04-01 – 2020-03-31
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Keywords | 脳科学 / 不安 / 緊張 / 英語母語話者 / 学習者 |
Outline of Final Research Achievements |
This study investigated the influence of speech partners’ (native speakers of English [NS] versus Japanese speakers) characteristics on college-level Japanese learners of English in terms of subjective indices, including tension and anxiety. This influence was measured using a questionnaire and objective indices concerning brain blood levels at the frontal cortex measured using fNIRS. One initial hypothesis was that NS would cause more tension and anxiety than Japanese speakers. Some participants supported the hypothesis, yet the opposite was also reported. Another result indicated that when participants felt greater anxiety, the brain’s blood level at the right channel of fNIRS on their forehead also increased. In contrast, when participants experienced lower levels of anxiety, the left channel showed a higher blood level, which may suggest that, in such situations, mental resources might be used for language-related purposes more than for psychological purposes.
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Free Research Field |
英語教育学、応用言語学
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Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements |
英語学習者のスピーキング課題で、相手が英語母語話者と日本人英語学習者の場合の、不安・緊張度と脳活性状態(前額部)を比較した。前者は質問紙、後者は簡易型fNIRSを用いた。今回の測定部位は左チャンネルは、言語野を含む左半球の傾向を反映し、同様に、右チャンネルは、感情面に関連が深いとされる右半球の傾向を反映すると想定した。不安・緊張度が相対的に高いときは、右チャンネルの賦活が高まった結果は、この想定が、少なくとも部分的に正しい可能性があることを示唆し、また、緊張・不安度が低い場合、左チャンネルの賦活が相対的に高まったことは認知資源が言語活動により多く使用されている可能性があるように思われる。
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