Bilingualism is an experience that varies across a continuum and can change across the lifespan. Psychometric research is an underexplored avenue with the potential to further our understanding of the mechanisms and traits underlying bilingual experiences. Here, we developed and validated a social network questionnaire to measure sociolinguistic features in 212 individuals via personal social network. Confirmatory factor analysis examined the measurement structure of the variables. Compared to a one-factor model, the best fitting model was a two-factor model in which the language experience of the individual (i.e., ego) and the language experience of the individual's network (i.e., alters) were correlated latent factors under which aspects of the bilingual experience loaded. Additional analyses revealed other potential ways to examine the data in future analyses. These results provide the first measurement model of bilingual experiences, and provide support for theoretical accounts suggesting differential neuropsychological outcomes based on individual bilingual variability. The results also support the use of social network tools to capture differences in bilingualism.

中文翻译：

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使用潜变量分析捕捉双语语言体验的个体差异

双语是一种在整个连续体中变化的体验，并且可以在整个生命周期中发生变化。心理测量研究是一个尚未被探索的途径，有可能进一步加深我们对双语体验背后的机制和特征的理解。在这里，我们开发并验证了一份社交网络调查问卷，通过个人社交网络测量 212 人的社会语言特征。验证性因素分析检查了变量的测量结构。与单因素模型相比，最佳拟合模型是双因素模型，其中个体的语言体验（即自我）和个体网络的语言体验（即改变者）是相关的潜在因素，在该模型下双语体验加载的各个方面。其他分析揭示了在未来分析中检查数据的其他潜在方法。这些结果提供了第一个双语体验的测量模型，并为基于个体双语变异性的不同神经心理学结果的理论解释提供了支持。研究结果还支持使用社交网络工具来捕捉双语差异。