New insights on what leads bilinguals to be able to name some pictures only in their nondominant language: Immersion, dominance reversal, and balanced bilingualism.

objectiveThe present study asked if bilinguals who are immersed in their nondominant language are more likely to know some words only in their nondominant language.

methodThe either-language scoring benefit (ELSB) reflects how many more points bilinguals get when credited for pictures named regardless of which language is used. We asked if the ELSB varies with self-rated proficiency level of the nondominant language in young English-dominant (

resultsSpanish-dominant bilinguals showed a larger ELSB than English-dominant bilinguals (in both young and older groups), but simple correlations showed that the degree of Spanish dominance was associated with a higher ELSB only in young bilinguals. Additionally, the ELSB was larger for bilinguals with more years of immersion and for more balanced bilinguals, whether measured by naming scores or self-rated balance (in both age groups). Nearly half (

conclusionsEither-language scoring benefits bilinguals with higher proficiency level in the nondominant language, which is more likely in bilinguals with extended immersion in the nondominant language, who also tend to be more balanced bilinguals, and for young adult bilinguals who may be in the process of a switch in which language is dominant.