The Bidirectional in Bilingual: Cognitive, Social and Linguistic Effects of and on Third-Age Language Learning
Bilingualism has been put forward as a life experience that, similar to musical training or being physically active, may boost cognitive performance and slow down age-related cognitive decline. In more recent years, bilingualism has come to be acknowledged not as a trait but as a highly individual e...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2019-09-01
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| Series: | Behavioral Sciences |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-328X/9/9/98 |
| _version_ | 1818430638922924032 |
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| author | Anna Pot Joanna Porkert Merel Keijzer |
| author_facet | Anna Pot Joanna Porkert Merel Keijzer |
| author_sort | Anna Pot |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Bilingualism has been put forward as a life experience that, similar to musical training or being physically active, may boost cognitive performance and slow down age-related cognitive decline. In more recent years, bilingualism has come to be acknowledged not as a trait but as a highly individual experience where the context of use strongly modulates any cognitive effect that ensues from it (cf. van den Noort et al., 2019). In addition, modulating factors have been shown to interact in intricate ways (Pot, Keijzer and de Bot, 2018). Adding to the complexity is the fact that control processes linked to bilingualism are bidirectional—just as language control can influence cognitive control, individual differences in cognitive functioning often predict language learning outcomes and control. Indeed, Hartsuiker (2015) posited the need for a better understanding of cognitive control, language control as well as the transfer process between them. In this paper, we aim to shed light on the bidirectional and individual cognitive, social and linguistic factors in relation to bilingualism and second language learning, with a special focus on older adulthood: (1) we first show the intricate clustering of modulating individual factors as deterministic of cognitive outcomes of bilingual experiences at the older end of the lifespan; (2) we then present a meta-study of work in the emergent field of third-age language learning, the results of which are related to lifelong bilingualism; (3) objectives (1) and (2) are then combined to result in a blueprint for future work relating cognitive and social individual differences to bilingual linguistic outcomes and vice versa in the context of third-age language learning. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-14T15:36:36Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-3aed4290abdc4140a48955eda053f934 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2076-328X |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-14T15:36:36Z |
| publishDate | 2019-09-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Behavioral Sciences |
| spelling | doaj.art-3aed4290abdc4140a48955eda053f9342022-12-21T22:55:43ZengMDPI AGBehavioral Sciences2076-328X2019-09-01999810.3390/bs9090098bs9090098The Bidirectional in Bilingual: Cognitive, Social and Linguistic Effects of and on Third-Age Language LearningAnna Pot0Joanna Porkert1Merel Keijzer2Faculty of Humanities, University of Amsterdam, 1012 WX Amsterdam, The NetherlandsDepartment of Applied Linguistics, University of Groningen, 9712EK Groningen, The NetherlandsDepartment of Applied Linguistics, University of Groningen, 9712EK Groningen, The NetherlandsBilingualism has been put forward as a life experience that, similar to musical training or being physically active, may boost cognitive performance and slow down age-related cognitive decline. In more recent years, bilingualism has come to be acknowledged not as a trait but as a highly individual experience where the context of use strongly modulates any cognitive effect that ensues from it (cf. van den Noort et al., 2019). In addition, modulating factors have been shown to interact in intricate ways (Pot, Keijzer and de Bot, 2018). Adding to the complexity is the fact that control processes linked to bilingualism are bidirectional—just as language control can influence cognitive control, individual differences in cognitive functioning often predict language learning outcomes and control. Indeed, Hartsuiker (2015) posited the need for a better understanding of cognitive control, language control as well as the transfer process between them. In this paper, we aim to shed light on the bidirectional and individual cognitive, social and linguistic factors in relation to bilingualism and second language learning, with a special focus on older adulthood: (1) we first show the intricate clustering of modulating individual factors as deterministic of cognitive outcomes of bilingual experiences at the older end of the lifespan; (2) we then present a meta-study of work in the emergent field of third-age language learning, the results of which are related to lifelong bilingualism; (3) objectives (1) and (2) are then combined to result in a blueprint for future work relating cognitive and social individual differences to bilingual linguistic outcomes and vice versa in the context of third-age language learning.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-328X/9/9/98bilingualismagingthird-age language learning |
| spellingShingle | Anna Pot Joanna Porkert Merel Keijzer The Bidirectional in Bilingual: Cognitive, Social and Linguistic Effects of and on Third-Age Language Learning Behavioral Sciences bilingualism aging third-age language learning |
| title | The Bidirectional in Bilingual: Cognitive, Social and Linguistic Effects of and on Third-Age Language Learning |
| title_full | The Bidirectional in Bilingual: Cognitive, Social and Linguistic Effects of and on Third-Age Language Learning |
| title_fullStr | The Bidirectional in Bilingual: Cognitive, Social and Linguistic Effects of and on Third-Age Language Learning |
| title_full_unstemmed | The Bidirectional in Bilingual: Cognitive, Social and Linguistic Effects of and on Third-Age Language Learning |
| title_short | The Bidirectional in Bilingual: Cognitive, Social and Linguistic Effects of and on Third-Age Language Learning |
| title_sort | bidirectional in bilingual cognitive social and linguistic effects of and on third age language learning |
| topic | bilingualism aging third-age language learning |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-328X/9/9/98 |
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