Immigrant youth’s disadvantages in second language proficiency are often linked to first language use within the family. Extending the scope of previous studies this paper additionally examines language use across three generations in further contexts of everyday live and examines how these patterns relate to second language competencies. Proficiency in the second language is seen as the result of varying exposure structures and learning motivation. Using data of the German National Educational Panel Study the analyses reveal that the first language is more often used with parents than with siblings. Adolescents predominantly use German to communicate with peers, but use media in both languages. Among pupils from Turkey first language use is more pronounced across all contexts than among pupils from Poland or the former Soviet Union. If German is the only language of communication with parents, this usually applies to other contexts as well. Adolescents who talk in a foreign language to their parents differ significantly with respect to their language use in further contexts. Using German with peers reduces linguistic deficits which are related to a non-German family language. © 2016, Springer Fachmedien Wiesbaden.

Language use immigrants Second language proficiency

Poland Turkey (republic) sibling immigrant USSR juvenile language panel study motivation human experiment human Learning exposure Adolescent