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The Language Experience and Proficiency Questionnaire (LEAP-Q): Ten years later

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  15 April 2019

Margarita Kaushanskaya ,
Henrike K. Blumenfeld Open the ORCID record for Henrike K. Blumenfeld [Opens in a new window]  and
Viorica Marian
Margarita Kaushanskaya*
Affiliation:
University of Wisconsin-Madison
Henrike K. Blumenfeld
Affiliation:
San Diego State University
Viorica Marian
Affiliation:
Northwestern University
*
Author for correspondence: Margarita Kaushanskaya, E-mail: kaushanskaya@wisc.edu
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Abstract

The Language Experience and Proficiency Questionnaire (LEAP-Q) is a validated questionnaire tool for collecting self-reported proficiency and experience data from bilingual and multilingual speakers ages 14 to 80. It is available in over 20 languages, and can be administered in a digital, paper-and-pencil, and oral interview format. The LEAP-Q is used by researchers across various disciplines (Psychology, Neuroscience, Linguistics, Education, Communication Sciences & Disorders, etc.) to provide a comprehensive description of their bilingual participants, to substantiate a division of bilinguals into groups (e.g., early vs. late bilinguals), and to screen participants for adequate or threshold levels of language proficiency. Best practices for using the LEAP-Q include administration of the full questionnaire, consideration of acquisition and history of language use together with self-ratings of proficiency, and supplementation of self-reported data with objective language measures whenever possible. The LEAP-Q can be downloaded at no cost at https://bilingualism.northwestern.edu/leapq/.

Keywords

LEAP-Qquestionnaireself-reportvalidation
Type
Review Article
Information
Bilingualism: Language and Cognition , Volume 23 , Issue 5 , November 2020 , pp. 945 - 950
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Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2019

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