Abstract
The purpose of this study is to examine the uses of affectivity in L1 and L2 in 10 bilingual mothers' interactions with their 30-month. The expressions of emotion, volition and epistemic stance were identified in 30 spontaneous mother-child interactions: i. 10 Spanish L1 mothers speaking in L1; ii. 10 Spanish L1 mothers speaking in English L2; and iii. 10 English L1 mothers speaking in L1. The results suggest that L2 uses differ from L1: expressions of volition and epistemic stance in English L2 resemble their use in English L1, whereas expressions of emotions in English L2 are similar to Spanish L1. These findings shed light on bilingual speakers' expressive language and are useful in determining the impact on language development.