Cognitive integration of language and memory in bilinguals: Semantic representation

Understanding cognitive research on the integration of 2 languages in bilin gual memory is difficult because of the different terminology, methodology, analysis, and interpretation strategies that scholars with different backg rounds bring to the research. These studies can be usefully categorized on 2 dimensions: memory for verbal experience versus linguistic knowledge, and systemwise versus pairwise issues. Experimental findings in this area conv erge on the conclusion that at the word meaning/conceptual level, both epis odic and linguistic memory can be characterized as shared at the systems le vel and at least partly shared at the pairwise translation-equivalent level . Interpretation problems that stem from weak hypothesis testing structure and from covert translation can be minimized by using appropriate design an d analysis techniques.