A Tribute to Wallace (Wally) Earl Lambert / Un Hommage à Wallace (Wally) Earl Lambert

On August 23, 2009, Wallace (Wally) Earl Lambert (1922–2009) passed away. Wally was a professor in the Psychology Department at McGill University from 1954 to 1990. Throughout his career he received numerous awards including, in 2006, the Gold Medal Award for Distinguished Lifetime Contribution to Canadian Psychology from the Canadian Psychological Association. A pioneer in the field of bilingualism, Wally’s contributions shaped the way people have conducted second language research to this day.

Wally made wide-ranging and groundbreaking contributions. He pioneered research into linguistic dominance, published on aphasia among bilinguals and on motivation in language learning. He introduced the matched guise technique for studying attitudes towards speakers of other languages. His 1962 study with Elizabeth Peal on bilingualism and intelligence opened the door to studying the cognitive benefits of bilingualism. He introduced the distinction between additive and subtractive bilingualism. He investigated the cognitive organization of the bilingual’s two languages. He pioneered studies on French immersion when it was first introduced in the 1960s in St. Lambert, Québec. In 1972 he published two books that became classics—one on attitudes and motivation in second language learning with Robert Gardner, and the other on the language immersion experiment with Dick Tucker, contributions that continue to hold a prominent place in the field. Throughout his career Wally published important theoretical contributions to the social psychology of bilingualism.

Everyone who worked with Wally remembers him as a very special person. He had a unique sense of humour, frequently challenging accepted wisdom in a playful yet thought-provoking manner. Wally had a gift for creating an open and collaborative atmosphere for all his students. We, and all those fortunate enough to have been mentored by him, continue to think about his style of training young researchers as a model to follow. Above all, Wally inspired those around him by his deeply held conviction that differences in language and culture need not be barriers dividing people but can be sources of enrichment and liberation. He believed that bilingualism is an asset for enjoying these benefits, a vision he practiced and lived daily through his bilingual and bicultural family.

Wallace (Wally) Earl Lambert (1922–2009) est décédé le 23 août 2009. Il a été professeur au département de psychologie de l’Université McGill de 1954 à 1990. Durant sa carrière, il a reçu de nombreux prix, notamment la médaille d’or de la Société canadienne de psychologie pour sa contribution remarquable à la psychologie canadienne. Pionnier dans le domaine du bilinguisme, il a façonné la manière dont la recherche en langue seconde a été entreprise jusqu’à ce jour.

Les contributions de M. Lambert ont été de grande envergure. Il a été un pionnier de la recherche en dominance linguistique, et rédigé des articles sur l’aphasie chez les personnes bilingues et sur la motivation dans l’apprentissage de la langue. Il a introduit la technique du locuteur masqué (matched guise technique) pour l’étude des attitudes envers les sujets parlant d’autres langues. Son étude de 1962 avec Elizabeth Peal sur le bilinguisme et l’intelligence a ouvert la voie à l’étude des avantages cognitifs du bilinguisme. Il a introduit la distinction entre le bilinguisme additif et soustractif. Il a examiné l’organisation cognitive des deux langues du bilingue. Il a été pionnier des études sur les programmes d’immersion française quand elles ont été introduites dans les années 1960 à St-Lambert, au Québec. En 1972, il a publié deux livres qui sont devenus des classiques, l’un sur les attitudes et la motivation dans l’apprentissage d’une langue seconde avec Robert Gardner, et l’autre sur les programmes d’immersion avec Dick Tucker, des contributions qui demeurent à l’avant-garde dans le domaine. Durant toute sa carrière, il a publié d’importantes contributions théoriques à la psychologie sociale du bilinguisme.

Tous ceux qui ont travaillé avec M. Lambert le considéraient comme une personne très sp...