Psychometric properties of the French version of the Zuckerman-Kuhlman Personality Questionnaire

Este estudio instrumental fue diseñado para investigar las propiedades psicométricas de la versión francesa y replicabilidad transcultural del Zuckerman-Kuhlman Personality Questionnaire (ZKPQ) en sus factores y facetas. El ZKPQ es un instrumento destinado a evaluar los cinco factores básicos del Alternative Five-Factor Model (AFFM). Los participantes fueron 843 suizos francófonos, principalmente estudiantes universitarios. Obtenidos los factores estos mostraron una fiabilidad entre 0,73 y 0,87, y sus facetas entre 0,57 y 0,77. Las diferencias entre géneros son similares a las informadas en la muestra americana. Las mujeres alcanzaron puntuaciones superiores en N-Anx, y puntuaciones más bajas en ImpSS y Act. El resultado de los análisis factoriales exploratorios respaldó la estructura de cinco factores y sus correspondientes facetas. Las correlaciones entre las escalas sostienen que los cinco factores básicos del AFFM son ortogonales. Los coeficientes de congruencia muestran la elevada eplicabilidad transcultural de los factores y sus facetas. Se puso a prueba el ajuste del modelo en sus factores y facetas mediante análisis factorial confirmatorio. Los resultados indican que la versión en lengua francesa del ZKPQ es un instrumento fiable y válido y posee buena replicabilidad transcultural.

Language Ability and Motivation among Foreigners in Survey Responding

With increasing migration and linguistic diversification in many countries, survey researchers and methodologists should consider whether data provided by individuals with variable levels of command of the survey language are of the same quality. This paper examines the question of whether answers from resident foreign respondents who do not master available survey languages may suffer from problems of comprehension of survey items, especially items that are more complicated in terms of content and/or form. In addition, it addresses the extent to which motivation may affect the response quality of resident foreigners. We analyzed data from two large-scale surveys conducted in Switzerland, a country with three national languages and a burgeoning foreign population, employing a set of dependent measures of response quality, including don't know responses, extreme responding, mid-5 responding, recency effects, and straight-lining. Results show overall poorer response quality among foreigners, and indicate that both reduced language mastery and motivation among foreigners are relevant factors. This is especially true for foreign groups from countries that do not share a common language with those spoken in Switzerland. A general conclusion is that the more distant respondents are culturally and linguistically from the majority mainstream within a country, the more their data may be negatively affected. We found that more complex types of questions do generally lead to poorer response quality, but to a much lesser extent than respondent characteristics, such as nationality, command of the survey language, level of education, and age.

Translation and psychometric evaluation of a French version of the Readiness for Hospital Discharge Scale.

AIMS AND OBJECTIVES: To evaluate the reliability and the factor structure of the Readiness for Hospital Discharge Scale - French version. BACKGROUND: The patient's perspective is essential when assessing risk for adverse events at hospital discharge. Developed in the USA, the Readiness for Hospital Discharge Scale is the only instrument that measures an individual's self-perception of readiness before leaving the hospital. A French version of the Readiness for Hospital Discharge Scale was developed and validated. DESIGN: Cross-sectional study. METHODS: A convenience sample of 265 older inpatients from four medical units was selected. The translation and cultural adaptation of the scale involved experts in gerontology and the French language and included back translation. The items were semantically evaluated and pretested in 10 older inpatients. The scale's psychometric properties were internally validated by using confirmatory and exploratory factor analyses. Reliability was assessed by examining the internal consistency of its items. RESULTS: Goodness-of-fit indices of the confirmatory factor analyses were not adequate, but reliability was acceptable (Cronbach's α = 0·80). Exploratory factor analysis of the French version provided results close to those described for the English version, with three similar subscales (physical and emotional readiness, coping with medical treatment and personal care), whereas the initially described Expected Support subscale was not identified in the French version. CONCLUSION: The Readiness for Hospital Discharge Scale - French version appears to be partially consistent with its original English version, but requires additional adaptation to fully take into account the Swiss context and culture to achieve its original aim. RELEVANCE TO CLINICAL PRACTICE: Assessing patient readiness for hospital discharge before leaving hospital could help nurses to improve the discharge planning process and achieve better patient preparedness and care coordination.

Validation of French and German versions of a Perceived Neighborhood Social Cohesion questionnaire among young Swiss males, and its relationship with substance use

This study main purpose was the validation of both French and German versions of a Perceived Neighborhood Social Cohesion Questionnaire. The sample group comprised 5065 Swiss men from the "Cohort Study on Substance Use Risk Factors." Multigroup Confirmatory factor analysis showed that a three-factor model fits the data well, which substantiates the generalizability of Perceived Neighborhood Social Cohesion Questionnaire factor structure, regardless of the language. The Perceived Neighborhood Social Cohesion Questionnaire demonstrated excellent homogeneity (α = 95) and split-half reliability (r = .96). The Perceived Neighborhood Social Cohesion Questionnaire was sensitive to community size and participants' financial situation, confirming that it also measures real social conditions. Finally, weak but frequent correlations between Perceived Neighborhood Social Cohesion Questionnaire and alcohol, cigarette, and cannabis dependence were measured.

First- and second-language phonological representations in the mental lexicon

Performance-based studies on the psychological nature of linguistic competence can conceal significant differences in the brain processes that underlie native versus nonnative knowledge of language. Here we report results from the brain activity of very proficient early bilinguals making a lexical decision task that illustrates this point. Two groups of SpanishCatalan early bilinguals (Spanish-dominant and Catalan-dominant) were asked to decide whether a given form was a Catalan word or not. The nonwords were based on real words, with one vowel changed. In the experimental stimuli, the vowel change involved a Catalan-specific contrast that previous research had shown to be difficult for Spanish natives to perceive. In the control stimuli, the vowel switch involved contrasts common to Spanish and Catalan. The results indicated that the groups of bilinguals did not differ in their behavioral and event-related brain potential measurements for the control stimuli; both groups made very few errors and showed a larger N400 component for control nonwords than for control words. However, significant differences were observed for the experimental stimuli across groups: Specifically, Spanish-dominant bilinguals showed great difficulty in rejecting experimental nonwords. Indeed, these participants not only showed very high error rates for these stimuli, but also did not show an error-related negativity effect in their erroneous nonword decisions. However, both groups of bilinguals showed a larger correctrelated negativity when making correct decisions about the experimental nonwords. The results suggest that although some aspects of a second language system may show a remarkable lack of plasticity (like the acquisition of some foreign contrasts), first-language representations seem to be more dynamic in their capacity of adapting and incorporating new information. &

A Case-based reasoning approach to validate grammatical gender and number agreement in Spanish language

Across Latin America 420 indigenous languages are spoken. Spanish is considered a second language in indigenous communities and is progressively introduced in education. However, most of the tools to support teaching processes of a second language have been developed for the most common languages such as English, French, German, Italian, etc. As a result, only a small amount of learning objects and authoring tools have been developed for indigenous people considering the specific needs of their population. This paper introduces Multilingual–Tiny as a web authoring tool to support the virtual experience of indigenous students and teachers when they are creating learning objects in indigenous languages or in Spanish language, in particular, when they have to deal with the grammatical structures of Spanish. Multilingual–Tiny has a module based on the Case-based Reasoning technique to provide recommendations in real time when teachers and students write texts in Spanish. An experiment was performed in order to compare some local similarity functions to retrieve cases from the case library taking into account the grammatical structures. As a result we found the similarity function with the best performance

El plan de lengua y cohesión social en Catañunya: primeros datos de una investigación = Language and Social Cohesion Plan in Catalonia: Initial research data

Los programas de inmersión lingüística han constituido y constituyen dentro del Sistema Educativo catalánla principal forma para que el alumnado de lengua familiar no-catalana aprenda una nueva lengua, el catalán,sin que, en su proceso de aprendizaje, vea mermado ni el desarrollo de su propia lengua ni su rendimientoacadémico. El éxito de la inmersión lingüística en las décadas anteriores ha sido frecuentemente utilizado comouno de los argumentos orientativos para justificar la política lingüística que se sigue en la escolarización de lainfancia extranjera. Sin embargo, los resultados obtenidos por investigaciones recientes parece que no avalanempíricamente dicho argumento. Este artículo analiza dichos resultados y expone, a partir del Plan para laLengua y Cohesión Social puesto en marcha por el Departamento de Educación de la Generalitat de Cataluña,cuáles son los retos que se presentan a su Sistema Educativo dentro del nuevo marco que supone el aumento de ladiversidad cultural y lingüística en la actual sociedad catalana

Conference Proceedings. Assessing Language and (Inter) cultural Competences in Higher Education. Evaluation des compétences langagières et (inter) culturelles dans l’enseignement supérieur

This epublication contains papers that were presented at the conference “Assessing Language and (Inter) cultural Competences in Higher Education” which took place at the University of Turku (Finland) on 30.8.1.9.2007. The online proceedings may be downloaded and used provided the source is acknowledged.

Neural correlates of language learning in adults

The human language-learning ability persists throughout life, indicating considerable flexibility at the cognitive and neural level. This ability spans from expanding the vocabulary in the mother tongue to acquisition of a new language with its lexicon and grammar. The present thesis consists of five studies that tap both of these aspects of adult language learning by using magnetoencephalography (MEG) and functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) during language processing and language learning tasks. The thesis shows that learning novel phonological word forms, either in the native tongue or when exposed to a foreign phonology, activates the brain in similar ways. The results also show that novel native words readily become integrated in the mental lexicon. Several studies in the thesis highlight the left temporal cortex as an important brain region in learning and accessing phonological forms. Incidental learning of foreign phonological word forms was reflected in functionally distinct temporal lobe areas that, respectively, reflected short-term memory processes and more stable learning that persisted to the next day. In a study where explicitly trained items were tracked for ten months, it was found that enhanced naming-related temporal and frontal activation one week after learning was predictive of good long-term memory. The results suggest that memory maintenance is an active process that depends on mechanisms of reconsolidation, and that these process vary considerably between individuals. The thesis put special emphasis on studying language learning in the context of language production. The neural foundation of language production has been studied considerably less than that of perceptive language, especially on the sentence level. A well-known paradigm in language production studies is picture naming, also used as a clinical tool in neuropsychology. This thesis shows that accessing the meaning and phonological form of a depicted object are subserved by different neural implementations. Moreover, a comparison between action and object naming from identical images indicated that the grammatical class of the retrieved word (verb, noun) is less important than the visual content of the image. In the present thesis, the picture naming was further modified into a novel paradigm in order to probe sentence-level speech production in a newly learned miniature language. Neural activity related to grammatical processing did not differ between the novel language and the mother tongue, but stronger neural activation for the novel language was observed during the planning of the upcoming output, likely related to more demanding lexical retrieval and short-term memory. In sum, the thesis aimed at examining language learning by combining different linguistic domains, such as phonology, semantics, and grammar, in a dynamic description of language processing in the human brain.

Conference Proceedings. Academic Mobility Blending Perspectives - Mobilité Académique Perspectives croisées

Les 21, 22 et 23 septembre 2006, le Département d’Études Françaises de l’Université de Turku (Finlande) a organisé une conférence internationale et bilingue (anglais et français) sur le thème de la mobilité académique ; le but de cette rencontre était de rendre possible la tenue d’un forum international et multidisciplinaire, susceptible d’être le siège de divers débats entre les différents acteurs de la mobilité académique (c’estàdire des étudiants, des chercheurs, des personnels enseignants et administratifs, etc.). Ainsi, ont été mis à contribution plus de cinquante intervenants, (tous issus de domaines aussi variés que la linguistique, les sciences de l’éducation, la didactique, l’anthropologie, la sociologie, la psychologie, l’histoire, la géographie, etc.) ainsi que cinq intervenants renommés1. La plupart des thèmes traités durant la conférence couvraient les champs suivants : l’organisation de la mobilité, les obstacles rencontrés par les candidats à la mobilité, l’intégration des étudiants en situation d’échange, le développement des programmes d’études, la mobilité virtuelle, l’apprentissage et l’enseignement des langues, la prise de cosncience interculturelle, le développement des compétences, la perception du système de mobilité académique et ses impacts sur la mobilité effective. L’intérêt du travail réalisé durant la conférence réside notamment dans le fait qu’il ne concentre pas uniquement des perspectives d’étudiants internationaux et en situation d’échange (comme c’est le cas de la plupart des travaux de recherche déjà menés sur ce sujet), mais aussi ceux d’autres corps : enseignants, chercheurs, etc. La contribution suivante contient un premier corpus de dixsept articles, répartis en trois sections : 1. Impacts de la mobilité étudiante ; 2. Formation en langues ; 3. Amélioration de la mobilité académique. À l’image de la conférence, la production qui suit est bilingue : huit des articles sont rédigés en français, et les neuf autres en anglais. Certains auteurs n’ont pas pu assister à la conférence mais ont tout de même souhaité apparaître dans cet ouvrage. Dans la première section de l’ouvrage, Sandrine Billaud tâche de mettre à jour les principaux obstacles à la mobilité étudiante en France (logement, organisation des universités, démarches administratives), et propose à ce sujet quelques pistes d’amélioration. Vient ensuite un article de Dominique Ulma, laquelle se penche sur la mobilité académique régnant au sein des Instituts Universitaires de Formation des Maîtres (IUFM) ; elle s’est tout particulièrement concentrée sur l’enthousiasme des stagiaires visàvis de la mobilité, et sur les bénéfices qu’apporte la mobilité Erasmus à ce type précis d’étudiant. Ensuite, dans un troisième article, Magali Hardoin s’interroge sur les potentialités éducationnelles de la mobilité des enseignantsstagiaires, et tâche de définir l’impact de celleci sur la construction de leur profil professionnel. Après cela arrive un groupe de trois articles, tous réalisés à bases d’observations faites dans l’enseignement supérieur espagnol, et qui traitent respectivement de la portée qu’a le programme de triple formation en langues européennes appliquées pour les étudiants en mobilité (Marián MorónMartín), des conséquences qu’occasionne la présence d’étudiants étrangers dans les classes de traductions (Dimitra Tsokaktsidu), et des réalités de l’intégration sur un campus espagnol d’étudiants américains en situation d’échange (Guadalupe Soriano Barabino). Le dernier article de la section, issu d’une étude sur la situation dans les institutions japonaises, fait état de la situation des programmes de doubles diplômes existant entre des établissements japonais et étrangers, et tente de voir quel est l’impact exact de tels programmes pour les institutions japonaises (Mihoko Teshigawara, Riichi Murakami and Yoneo Yano). La seconde section est elle consacrée à la relation entre apprentissage et enseignement des langues et mobilité académique. Dans un premier article, Martine Eisenbeis s’intéresse à des modules multimédia réalisés à base du film « L’auberge espagnole », de Cédric Klapish (2001), et destinés aux étudiants en mobilité désireux d’apprendre et/ou améliorer leur français par des méthodes moins classiques. Viennent ensuite les articles de Jeanine Gerbault et Sabine Ylönen, lesquels traitent d’un projet européen visant à supporter la mobilité étudiante par la création d’un programme multimédia de formation linguistique et culturelle pour les étudiants en situation de mobilité (le nom du projet est EUROMOBIL). Ensuite, un article de Pascal Schaller s’intéresse aux différents types d’activités que les étudiants en séjour à l’étranger expérimentent dans le cadre de leur formation en langue. Enfin, la section s’achève avec une contribution de Patricia KohlerBally, consacrée à un programme bilingue coordonné par l’Université de Fribourg (Suisse). La troisième et dernière section propose quelques pistes de réflexion destinées à améliorer la mobilité académique des étudiants et des enseignants ; dans ce cadre seront donc évoquées les questions de l’égalité face à la mobilité étudiante, de la préparation nécessitée par celleci, et de la prise de conscience interculturelle. Dans un premier chapitre, Javier Mato et Bego

Discerning Cultural Depictions and Mistakes in Kafe Piter, a Russian Language Textbook for Finnish Students

This thesis presents the results of an analysis of the content in the series of Russian textbooks Kafe Piter, which is widely used in Finnish educational institutions for adult learners at the time that the research is conducted. The purpose of this study is to determine and describe how a textbook may purvey an image of a foreign country (in this case, Russia). Mixed-methods research with a focus on the qualitative content analysis of Kafe Piter is performed. The guidelines for textbook evaluation of cultural content proposed by Byram (1993) are used in this study as the basis for creating a qualitative analysis checklist, which is adopted according to the needs of the current research. The selection of the categories in the checklist is based on major themes where direct statements about Russia, Russian people and culture appear in the textbook. The cultural content and the way in which it is presented in Kafe Piter are also compared to the intercultural competence objectives of the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages. Because the textbook was not written by a native Russian speaker, it was also important to investigate the types of mistakes found in the books. A simple quantitative analysis in the form of descriptive statistics was done, which consisted of counting the mistakes and inaccuracies in Kafe Piter. The mistakes were categorized into several different groups: factual or cultural, lexicosemantic, grammatical, spelling and punctuation mistakes. Based on the results, the cultural content of Kafe Piter provides a rich variety of cultural information that allows for a good understanding of the Russian language and Russian culture. A sufficient number of cross-cultural elements also appear in the textbook, including cultural images and information describing and comparing Russian and Finnish ways of life. Based on the cultural topics covered in Kafe Piter, we conclude that the textbook is in line with the intercultural competence objectives set out in the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages. The results of the study also make it clear that a thorough proofreading of Kafe Piter is needed in order to correct mistakes - more than 130 cultural and linguistic mistakes and inaccuracies appear in the textbook.

Using dramatic activity to enhance Junior Core French students' motivation and oral communication skills /

Junior Core French students' motivation to learn a second language and students' French oral communication skills relating to drama instruction were investigated in this study. Students' increased and improved motivation and oral acquisition were measured by several forms of data collection including journals, questionnaires and surveys, interviews, outside observer and teacher observations, and anecdotal comments. The results indicated that as a result of drama integration in the Junior Core French classroom, grade 5 students, both male and female, were more motivated to participate in second language instruction, thereby increasing and improving their oral communication skills. The findings showed that more males than females reported that drama integration allowed them the opportunity to use their French speaking skills. Research shows that interactive approaches to teaching such as drama give students the motivation and enthusiasm to learn.

Identifying language needs of ESL students in a Canadian university based intensive English language program

This study investigated the needs of adult ESL learners intending to pursue higher education in Canada. Its chief purpose was to enable educators and administrators to design ESL programs that would prepare students to function at optimal levels in academic and social settings during their university studies. The study adopted a mixed research method that was predominantly qualitative in its orientation and narrative in its implementation. It focused on an Intensive English Language Program (IELP) offered at an Ontario university. Using a holistic approach, the study sought to represent the various perspectives of all the participants in the program: the students, the instructors, and the administrators. Analysis of both qualitative and quantitative data gathered from 17 students, 6 instructors, and 1 administrator in the IELP showed that to a large extent the academic needs ofESL learners in the IELP were generally not being met. Most notably, the study found that learners were not receiving sufficient training in speaking and listening skills, a factor that contributed to their sense of insecurity and lack of confidence in their ability to communicate successfully in academic and social settings. The study also revealed that the solutions to many of the problems it identified lay not in the classroom but in the way the ESL program was structured administratively. One major recommendation to come out of the study is that programs like the IELP should be restructured so as to give them greater flexibility in meeting individual needs. While the study labored under certain limitations and did not achieve all of its goals, it did succeed in creating awareness ofthe problems and in establishing a methodological approach that can serve as a framework within which future research may be conducted in this somewhat neglected area.

Oral French Communication in French Immersion Canadian and World Studies Classrooms: A Primer for Educators

This project presents a primer for secondary French Immersion teachers that facilitates the use of French oral communicative activities in secondary Canadian and World Studies courses. The primer supports collaborative and inclusive teaching strategies that invite students to speak and develop their oral French communication skills. The primer is divided into 2 main components: (a) Rationale for the Primer, and (b) the Strategies themselves, comprising succinct descriptions as well as potential uses and suggestions. A critical content analysis of various Ontario Ministry of Education documents was undertaken in order to explore the importance of oral communication in second-language learning in Ontario secondary schools. Furthermore, holistic and invitational education perspectives were examined in order to define the advantages of collaborative learning. Moreover, research in the stream of French Immersion studies was also referenced to frame the relevance of second-language learning and the significant role the French Immersion teacher plays. The aforementioned research contributes to the advancement of theory and practice regarding the importance of opportunities for oral French communication in secondary Canadian and World Studies courses.