Investigating multilingualism and its association with executive functioning: An exploratory study comparing bilingual, trilingual and quadrilingual college students in India

Garima Rajan; Nyanada Patil

doi:10.29038/eejpl.2023.10.2.raj

Authors

Garima Rajan * FLAME University, India
Nyanada Patil FLAME University, India

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.29038/eejpl.2023.10.2.raj

Keywords:

bilingualism, trilingualism, quadrilingualism, working memory, inhibitory control, problem solving, Indian population

Abstract

Multilingualism has both advantages and disadvantages. Past research has highlighted this dichotomy by exploring the impact of linguistic ability on individuals’ executive functioning. This study explores the relationship between individuals’ linguistic ability (number of languages spoken) and their executive functioning, specifically, working memory – measured using the Corsi Block-Tapping task (Mueller, 2011a), inhibitory control – measured using the Go/No-Go task (Mueller, 2011b) and problem solving – measured using the Tower of London task (Mueller, 2011c) among bilingual, trilingual and quadrilingual Indian colleges students. Results from a Kruskal Wallis test indicated non-significant results for problem solving among the three groups. However, significant differences were found between groups for working memory (p = 0.050) (particularly between bilinguals and quadrilinguals, and trilinguals and quadrilinguals) and inhibitory control (p = 0.020) (particularly between trilinguals and quadrilinguals). The mixed results indicate a need for further research in this domain within the vast and diverse population of India.

Disclosure Statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

* Corresponding author: Garima Rajan,

0000-0002-4874-2228 garima.rajan@flame.edu.in

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

References

Achaa-Amankwaa, P., Kushnereva, E., Miksch, H., Stumme, J., Hein, S., & Ebersbach, M. (2023). Multilingualism is associated with small task-specific advantages on cognitive performance of older adults. Scientific Reports, 13, 16912. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-023-43961-7

Anton, E., Carreiras, M. & Dunabeitia, J. A. (2019). The impact of bilingualism on executive functions working memory in young adults. Plos One.

https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0206770

Antoniou, K., Grohmann, K. K., Kambanaros, M., & Katsos, N. (2016). The effects of childhood bilectalism and multilingualism on executive control. Cognition, 149, 19-30. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cognition.2015.12.002

Antoniou, M. (2018). The advantages of bilingualism debate. The Annual Review of Linguistics, 5(1), 1 – 1.21. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-linguistics011718-011820

Baddeley, A., Sala, S. D., & Robbins, T. W. (1996). Working memory and executive control. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London. Series B, Biological Sciences, 351(1346), 1378–1388

Bailey, T. C., Eng, W., Frisch, M. B. & Snydert, C. R. (2007). Hope and optism as related to life satisfaction. The Journal of Positive Psychology, 2(3), 168-175. https://doi.org/10.1080/17439760701409546

Barac, R. & Bialystok, E. (2012). Bilingual effects on cognitive and linguistic development: role of language, cultural background, and education. Child Development, 83(2), p. 413-422. Retrieved from https://www.jstor.org/stable/41416093

Berg, W. K., & Byrd, D. L. (2002). The Tower of London spatial problem-solving task: Enhancing clinical and research implementation. Journal of Clinical and Experimental Neuropsychology, 24(5), 586–604.

Bialystok, E. & Craik, F. I. M. (2010). Cognitive and Linguistic processing in the bilingual mind. Current Directions in Psychological Sciences, 19(1), 19-23. https://www.jstor.org/stable/41038532

Bialystok, E. & Majumder, S. (1998). The relationship between bilingualism and the development of cognitive processes in problem solving. Applied Psycholinguistics, 19, 69-85. https://doi.org/10.1017/S014271640001084

Bialystok, E. (2008). Cognitive effect of bilingualism: How linguistic experience leads to cognitive change. International Journal of Bilingual Education and Bilingualism, 10(3), p. 210-223. https://doi.org/10.2167/beb441.0

Bialystok, E., Barac, R., Blaye, A. & Poulin-Dubois, D. (2010). World Mapping and executive functioning in young monolingual and bilingual children. Journal of Cognition and Development, 11(4), 485-508. https://doi.org/10.1080/15248372.2010.516420

Borella, E. Carretti, B., Riboldi, F. & Beni, R. D. (2010). Working memory training in older adults: evidence of transfer and maintenance effects. Psychology and Aging, 25(4), 767-778. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0020683

Boumeester, M., Michel, M. C. & Fyndanis, V. (2019). Sequential multilingualism and cognitive abilities preliminary data on the contribution of language proficiency and use in different modalities. Behavioral Sciences, 9(9). https://doi.org/10.3390/bs9090092

Briellmann, R. S., Saling, M. M., Connell, A. B., Waites, A. B., Abbott, D. F., & Jackson, G. D. (2004). A high-field functional MRI study of quadri-lingual subjects. Brain and Language, 89(3), 531–542. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bandl.2004.01.008

Broadbent, D. E. (1958). Perception and communication. Pergamon.

Calvo, A. & Bialystok, E. (2014). Independent effects of bilingualism and socioeconomic status on language ability and executive functioning. Cognition, 130(3), p. 278-288. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cognition.2013.11.015

Catalano, I. (2018). The effects of multilingualism of executive functioning. Bachelor’s thesis, University of Nebraska – Lincoln. Digital Commons @University of Nebraska. Retrieved from https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/envstudtheses/241/?utm_source= digitalcommons.unl.edu%2Fenvstudtheses%2F241&utm_medium=PDF&utm_campaign=PDFCoverPages

Chan, R. C. K., Shum, D., Toulopoulou, T. & Chen, E. Y. H. (2008). Assessment of executive functioning: a review of instruments and identification of critical issues. Archives of Clinical Neuropsychology: The Official Journal of the National Academy of Neuropsychologists, 23(2), 201-216. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.acn.2007.08.010

Chan, S. W. Y. & Rao, N. (2022). Relation between executive function and early language and literacy development in Bengali, Chinese, and Hindi. Reading and Writing, 25, 2341-2364. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11145-022-10285-3

Chung-Fat-Yim, A., Hayakawa, S., & Marian, V. (accepted). Multilingualism and cognitive control in the brain. In J. Cabrelli, A. Chaouch-Orozco, J. González Alonso, S. M. Pereira Soares, E. Puig-Mayenco, & J. Rothman (Eds.), The Cambridge Handbook of Third Language Acquisition and Processing. Cambridge University Press.

Cockcroft, K., WAigdorowitz, M. & Liversage, L. (2019). A multilingual advantage in the components of working memory. Bilingualism: Language and Cognition, 22(1), 15-29. https://doi.org/10.1017/S1366728917000475

Corsi, P. M. (1972). Human memory and the medial temporal region of the brain. Unpublished PhD thesis. McGill University. Retrieved from https://scholar.google.com/scholar_lookup?title= Human%20memory%20and%20the%20medial%20temporal%20region%20of%20the%20brain&publication_year=1973&author=P.M.%20Corsi

Czapka, S. & Festman, J. (2021). Wisconsin card sorting test reveals a monitoring advantage but not a switching advantage in multilingual children. Journal of Experimental Child Psychology, 204. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jecp.2020.105038

Czapka, S., Klassert, A. & Festman, J. (2019). Executive functions and language: their differential influence on mono- vs. multilingual spelling in primary school. Frontiers in Psychology: Cognition, 10. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2019.00097

Daga, S., & Rajan, G. (2023). Investigating Linguistic Abilities and its Relationship with Empathy, Emotional Intelligence and Cognitive Flexibility. Psycholinguistics, 33(2), 57-89. https://doi.org/10.31470/2309-1797-2023-33-2-57-89

Denson, T. F., Capper, M. M., Oaten, & Friese, M. & Schofield, T. P. (2011). Self-control training decreases aggression in response to provocation in aggressive individuals. Journal of Research in Personality, 45(2), 252-256. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jrp.2011.02.001

Diamond, J. (2010). The benefits of Multilingualism. Social Science: Perspectives, 330, 332-333. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1195067

Diamond, A. (2013). Executive functions. Annual Review of Psychology, 64, 135-168. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-psych-113011-143750

Dick, A. S., Garcia, N. L., Pruden, S. M., Thompson, W. K., Hawes, S. W., Sutherland, M. T., Ridel, M. C., Laird, A. R. & Gonzalez, R. (2019). No evidence for bilingual executive function advantage in the ABCD study. Nature Human Behaviour, 3, 692-701. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41562-019-0609-3

Dumetz, J. & Vishnyakova, A. (2021). Unexpected Disadvantages of a Simultaneous Quadrilingual Upbringing, a Case Study. International Journal of Teaching and Education, 9(1). Retrieved from https://ssrn.com/abstract=3843645

Espi-Sanchis, G. & Cockcroft, K. (2021). Working memory and multilingualism: balanced language proficiency predicts verbal working memory. International Journal of Bilingual Education and Bilingualism, 25(8), 2976-2990. https://doi.org/10.1080/13670050.2021.1997901

Fernandez, M., Tartar, J. L., Padron, D. & Acosta, J. (2013). Neurophysiological marker of inhibition distinguishes language groups on a non-linguistic executive function test. Brain and Cognition, 83, 330-336. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.bandc.2013.09.010

Filippi, R., Ceccolini, A. & Bright, P. (2021). Trajectories of verbal fluency and executive functions on multilingual and monolingual children and adults: a cross-sectional study. Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology, 75(1). https://doi.org/10.1177/1747021821102679

Garcia-Madruga, J. A., Gomez-Veiga, I. & Vila, J. O. (2016). Executive Functions and the Improvement of Thinking Abilities: The Intervention in Reading Comprehension. Frontiers in Psychology, 7(58). https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2016.00058

Gilbert, S. J., & Burgess, P. W. (2008). Executive function. Current Biology, 18(3), R110-R114. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cub.2007.12.014

Giovannoli J, Martella D, Federico F, Pirchio S & Casagrande M (2020) The Impact of Bilingualism on Executive Functions in Children and Adolescents: A Systematic Review Based on the PRISMA Method. Frontiers in Psychology, 11. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2020.574789

Gordon, B. & Caramazza, A. (1982). Lexical decisions for open - and closed-class words: failure to replicate differential frequency sensitivity. Brain and Language, 15, 143-160.

Hsu, H. (2014). Effects of Bilingualism and Trilingualism in l2 production: evidence from error and self-repairs in early balanced Bilingual and Trilingual adults. Journal of Psycholinguistic Research, 43, 357-379. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10936-013-9257-3

Iyer, K. G. & Venkatesan, S. (2021). Working memory in bilingual versus trilingual children from urban high socioeconomic Indian families. Languages in India, 21(8). Retrieved from http://www.languageinindia.com/aug2021/iyerworkingmemorybilingualurbanindianchildrenfinal.html

Kaller, C. P., Unterrainer, J. M. & Stahl, C. (2012). Assessing planning ability with the tower of London task: psychometric properties of a structurally balanced problem set. Psychological Assessment, 24(1), 46-53. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0025174

Kavé, G., Eyal, N., Shorek, A., & Cohen-Mansfield, J. (2008). Multilingualism and cognitive state in the oldest old. Psychology and Aging, 23(1), 70-78. https://doi.org/10.1037/0882-7974.23.1.70

King, D. (2020). Effects of Multilingualism on Working Memory and Subjective Memory in Older Adults. Bachelor’s thesis. Lulea University of Technology. Retrieved from https://www.diva-portal.org/smash/get/diva2:1444201/FULLTEXT01.pdf

Köstering L, Schmidt CS, Egger K, Amtage F, Peter J, Klöppel S, Beume LA, Hoeren M, Weiller C & Kaller CP. (2015). Assessment of planning performance in clinical samples: reliability and validity of the tower of London task (TOL-F). Neuropsychologia, 75, 646-55. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2015.07.017

Kwon, Y. H., Yoo, K., Nguyen, H., Jeong, Y & Chun, M. M. (2021). Predicting multilingual effects on executive function and individual connectomes in children: an ABCD study. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 118(49), 1-11. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2110811118

Langenecker, S. A., Zubieta, J., Young, E. A., Akil, H. & Nielson, K. A. (2007). A task to manipulate attentional load, set-shifting, and inhibitory control: convergent validity and test-retest reliability of the parametric go/no-go test. Journal of Clinical and Experimental Psychology, 29(8), 842-853. https://doi.org/10.1080/13803390601147611

Lehtonen, M., Soveri, A., Laine, A., Järvenpää, J., de Bruin, A., & Antfolk, J. (2018). Is bilingualism associated with enhanced executive functioning in adults? A meta-analytic review. Psychological Bulletin, 144(4), 394–425. https://doi.org/10.1037/bul0000142

Limber, B. K. & Buchweitz, A. (2014). The effects of bilingualism and multilingualism on executive functions. Forum Linguistico, 11(3), 261-277. https://doi.org/10.5007/1984-8412.2014v11n3p261

Madrazo, A. R., & Bernardo, A. B. I. (2012). Are three languages better than two? Inhibitory control in trilinguals and bilinguals in the Philippines. Philippine Journal of Psychology, 45(2), 225–46. Retrieved from http://ejournals.ph/form/cite.php?id=1200

Matilda, Selin, G. & James, C. (2021). A multilingual advantage, or a lack thereof? [Undergraduate thesis, Lulea University of Technology]. DIVA Portal. Retrieved from https://www.diva-portal.org/smash/get/diva2:1564711/FULLTEXT01.pdf

Mednick, S. A. (1968). The Remote Associates Test. The Journal of Creative Behavior, 2(3), 213–214.

Mehrani, M. B. & Zabihi, R. (2017). A comparative study of shifting ability, inhibitory control and working memory in Monolingual and Bilingual children. Psychological Studies, 43, 421-427. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12646-017-0432-8

Miller, G. E., Chen, E. & Parker, K. J. (2012). Psychological stress in childhood and susceptibility to the chronic diseases of aging; moving towards a model of behavioural and biological mechanisms. Psychology Bulletin, 137(6), 959-997. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0024768

Miyake, A. & Friedman, N. P. (2013). The Nature and Organization of Individual Differences in Executive Functions: Four General Conclusion. Current Directions in Psychological Sciences, 21(1), 8-14. https://doi.org/10.1177/0963721411429458

Miyake, A., Friedman, N. P., Emerson, M. J., Witzki, A. H., Howerter, A. & Wager, T. D. (2000). The unity and diversity of executive functions and their contributions to complex "Frontal Lobe" tasks: a latent variable analysis. Cognitive Psychology, 41(1), pp. 49-100. https://doi.org/10.1006/cogp.1999.0734

Mueller, S.T. (2011a). The PEBL Corsi Block Test. Computer Software received from https://pebl.sf.net

Mueller, S.T. (2011b). The PEBL Go/No-Go Test. Computer Software received from https://pebl.sf.net

Mueller, S.T. (2011c). The PEBL Tower of London Test. Computer Software received from https://pebl.sf.net

Orsini, A. (1994). Corsi’s block-tapping test: standardization and concurrent validity with WISC-R for children aged 11 to 16. Perpetual and Motor Skills, 79(3). https://doi.org/10.2466/pms.1994.79.3f.154

Oschwald, J.,Schattin, A., Bastian, C. C. V. & Souza, A. S. (2018). Bidialectism and bilingualism: exploring the role of language similarity as a link between linguistic ability and executive control. Frontiers in Psychology, 9. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2018.01997

Paula, J. J. d., Malloy-Diniz, L. F., Romano-Silva, M. A. (2016). Reliability of working memory assessment in neurocognitive disorders: a study of the digit span and corsi block-tapping tasks. Brazilian Journal of Psychiatry, 38(3), 262-263. https://doi.org/10.1590/1516-4446-2015-1879

Pfenninger, S. E. (2014). Quadrilingual advantages: do-support in bilingual vs. multilingual learners. International Journal of Multilingualism, 11(2), 143-163. https://doi.org/10.1080/14790718.2013.782032

Phillips, L. H. (1999). The role of memory on the tower of London task. Memory, 7(2), 209-231. https://doi.org/10.1080/741944066

Poarch, G. J. (2018). Multilingual language control and executive function: a replication study. Frontiers in Communication, 3(46), 1-11. https://doi.org/10.3389/fcomm.2018.00046

Poarch, G. J., & van Hell, J. G. (2012a). Cross-language activation in children’s speech production: evidence from second language learners, bilinguals, and trilinguals. Journal of Experimental Child Psychology, 111(3), 419–38. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jecp.2011.09.008

Poarch, G. J. & Hell, J. G. (2012b). Executive functioning and inhibitory control in multilingual children: evidence from second-language learners, bilinguals, and trilinguals. Journal of Experimental Child Psychology, 113(4), 535-551. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jecp.2012.06.013

Poarch, G. J., & van Hell, J. G. (2014). Cross-language activation in same-script and different script trilinguals. International Journal of Bilingualism, 18(6), 693–716. https://doi.org/10.1177/1367006912472262

Poarch, G. J., Vanhove, J. & Berthele, R. (2018). The effects of bidialectalism on executive function. International Journal of Bilingualism, 23(2), 1-17. https://doi.org/10.1177/1367006918763132

Polczynska, M. M., Benjamin, C. F. A., Japardi, K., Frew, A. & Bookhiemer, S. Y. (2016). Language system organization in a quadrilingual with a brain tumor: implication for understanding of the language network. Neuropsychologica, 86, 167-175. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2016.04.030

Posner, M. I., & Snyder, C. R. R. (1975). Attention and cognitive control. In R. Solso (Ed.), Information processing and cognition: The Loyola symposium (pp. 55–85). Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.

Rafeekh, R., Krishna, P. P., Kapiley, K. & Mishra, R. K. (2021). The effects of short term L2 training on components of executive control in Indian bilinguals. Cognitive Processing, 22, 339-351. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10339-021-01014-9

Repo, E., Kivimaki, R., Kekki, N. & Alisaari, J. (2021). “We thought about it together and the solution came to our minds”: Languaging linguistic problem-solving in multilingual Finnish classrooms. International Review of Applied Linguistics in Language Teaching, 1-33. https://doi.org/10.1515/iral-2020-0179

Reyes, D. A. M. (2013). The effects of Multilingualism on Executive functions and memory in a sample of college educated older adults (3604972) [PhD thesis, Fuller Theological Seminary]. ProQuest. Retrieved from https://www.proquest.com/openview/f44721c71499f1251951c6583 cc2f684/1?cbl=18750&pq-origsite=gscholar&parentSessionId=HA0D7Y52bIw5IROT87fVa BfyQnQD59HO5dQV%2BGdL0gk%3D

Schroeder, S. R. & Marian, V. (2017). Cognitive consequences of trilingualism. International Journal of Bilingualism, 21(6), 754-773. https://doi.org/10.1177/1367006916637288

Siddi, S., Preti, A., Lara, E., Brebion, G., Vila, R., Iglesias, M., Cuevas-Estaban, J., Lopez-Carrilero, R., Butjosa, A. & Haro, J. M. (2020). Comparison of the touch-screen and traditional versions of the corsi block-tapping test in patients with psychosis and healthy controls. BMC Psychiatry, 20(329). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12888-020-02716-8

Simonis, R. (2018). Effects of multilingualism on executive processing [Master’s thesis, Stokholms Universitet]. Diva Portal. https://www.diva-portal.org/smash/get/diva2: 1222716/ FULLTEXT01.pdf

Slot, P. L. & Suchodoletz, A. (2018). Bidirectionality in preschool children’s executive functions and language skills: is one developing skill the better predictor of the other. Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 42(1), 205-214. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecresq.2017.10.005

Solano, V. L. T. (2020). The Contribution of Bilingualism to Cognitive Functioning and Biological Markers in the Progression of Normal and Abnormal Aging (27961771) [Doctoral Dissertation, Florida Atlantic University]. ProQuest LLC

Treffers-Daller, J., Ongun, Z., Hofweber, J. & Korenar, M. (2020). Explaining individual differences in executive functions performance in multilinguals: the impact of code-switching and alternating between multicultural identity styles. Frontiers in Psychology: Psychology of Languages, 11. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2020.561088

Tullock, B. D. & Fernandez-Villanueva, M. (2013). The Role of Previously Learned Languages in the Thought Processes of Multilingual Writers at the Deutsche Schule Barcelona. Research in the Teaching of English, 47(4), 420-441. https://www.jstor.org/stable/24397846

Sources

Census (2011). Primary Census Abstracts, Registrar General of India, Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India. Retrieved from http://www.censusindia.gov

IBM Corp. (2017). IBM SPSS Statistics for Windows, Version 25.0. IBM Corp.

Worldometer. (2023). India Population (live). Retrieved from www.Worldometers.info