Online Contact,Face-to-Face Contact,and Multilingualism: Young Swedish-Speaking Finns Develop Trilingual Identities

Based on the tenets of the social context model of second language acquisition, the present article examined the combined effect of online and face-to-face contact in developing multilingual skills and identities among young Swedish-speaking Finns (N = 304). The hypotheses were tested for Finnish as a second language and English as a third language using parallel models. The results were largely identical for both languages. Specifically, online contact enhanced language confidence which, in turn, contributed to language identity. However, online contact had a more substantial effect on confidence as well as identity among those who had little face-to-face contact with speakers of the given language. Findings and their implications are discussed.     

Early Play Arousal, Sex-Typed Play, and Activity Level as Precursors to Later Rough-and-Tumble Play

The present study compared two ways of measuring rough-and-tumble play (R&T) and examined three precursors to this play. Early parental socializing influences (particularly from fathers), "boy" sex-typed play preferences, and activity level were all hypothesized to be associated with later R&T. Objective measures of R&T at nursery school were moderately correlated with ratings of such play by parents and teachers at first grade. Arousal during play at 45 months and extent of R&T at 18 months by fathers, but not mothers, were found to correlate significantly with ratings of R&T at first grade. "Boy" sex-typed play was also significantly associated with first grade R&T. These correlations were similar for both boys and girls. There were no correlates with nursery school R&T that were similar for both sexes. Activity levels were not consistently associated with later R&T behaviors. Implications and limitations of these findings are discussed.