Bimodal Communication, Signing Skill & Tenseness

Bimodal communication (BC), the introduction of individual signs into a spoken English interaction or of individual English words into a signed conversation is related both to code-switching and to simultaneous communication. To determine rate of BC use I videotaped hearing females possessing a range of signing abilities during their performances of scenarios and during the discussions they had between scenarios. Analysis of the tapes shows that varying signing ability affects signers’ BC rate. Between scenarios, there was a linear relationship between signing ability and BC rate. Within scenarios, when the subjects were self-conscious and on their best behavior, the relationship was that of an inverse ‘U’. The skilled signers adapted the amount of BC they used to the social situation. Even when limiting their BC usage, however, the advanced signers still used more BC during the scenarios than did the non-signers and the beginners.