Description
The primary aim of this study was to analyze Spanglish adaptations and sentential Code-Switching occurrences in problem-solving tasks employed by Spanish-English bilinguals at SDSU. In order to achieve this objective two integral steps were paramount: first, to investigate participants' self-reported language experiences and proficiency using the LEAP-Q. Second was to explore the incidences of code-switching, language shift (LS), and Spanglish manipulations in two problem-solving tasks (PST). To achieve these objectives, SDSU undergraduate students were invited through a recruitment announcement to take the LEAP-Q. Participants self assessed their language proficiencies, preferences, and experiences. Then, participants were paired up for two 15-minute problem-solving tasks, one in English and one in Spanish. The PSTs were recorded, transcribed, and analyzed for incidences of CS, LS, and Spanglish adaptations. Language preferences and experiences reported on the LEAP-Q were then used to analyze the languages participants used to solve the PSTs. The results showed an equal number of sentential switches and language shifts employed, however, inter-sentential CS occurred significantly much more than intrasentential. The study also revealed that SDSU bilinguals did not employ Spanish-English lexical adaptations.
