L2 Bilingualism Typed up

• What percentage of the world’s population speaks more than one language?

  Approximately 60%
• What is a disadvantage of bilingualism regarding vocabulary?

  Smaller vocabulary when tested in one language
• Why might bilingual children appear to underperform in vocabulary tests?

  They may know words in both languages
• What is a delayed milestone for bilingual children mentioned in the material?

  Delayed verbal intelligence test performance
• How do bilingual children’s language milestones compare to monolingual children?

  Bilinguals may take longer to speak in full sentences
• What happens to the disadvantages of bilingualism as children grow up?

  They typically disappear with increased proficiency
• What outdated view exists about bilingualism?

  Bilingualism is a source of difficulty
• What did Saer (1923) compare in his study?

  Welsh-English bilinguals with English monolinguals
• What flaw is noted in early studies of bilingualism?

  They tested students only in their non-dominant language
• What are the obvious advantages of bilingualism?

  • Speaking two languages
  • Increased employability
  • Access to diverse communities and cultures
  • Ability to watch media in both languages
  • Enhanced travel experiences
• What are the less obvious advantages of bilingualism?

  • Increased metalinguistic awareness
  • Better phonetic perception
  • Enhanced social cognition and perspective taking
• What is metalinguistic awareness?

  Understanding language as a system
• How does bilingualism enhance the ability to learn additional languages?

  It increases metalinguistic awareness
• What is better phonetic perception in bilinguals attributed to?

  Knowing more languages and speech sounds
• How does bilingualism affect social cognition?

  Bilinguals understand multiple perspectives better
• What is one contested advantage of bilingualism regarding creativity?

  More creative thinking is debated
• What cognitive process helps manage behaviors and decision-making?

  Executive function
• What are the three less controversial components of executive function?

  Inhibitory control, attentional control, cognitive flexibility

  
• How does bilingualism benefit executive function?

  It trains domain-general executive functions
• What is the Simon Task used to test?

  Executive functions like inhibition and attention

  
• How do bilinguals perform on the Simon Task compared to monolinguals?

  Bilinguals outperform monolinguals

  
• What does a lower reaction time (RT) indicate in the Simon Task?

  Faster performance and better inhibition
• What did Comishen et al. (2019) study about infants?

  Infants can predict object locations
• What did Bialystok et al. (2004) find about executive function in older adults?

  Bilinguals performed better than monolinguals
• Why is there a debate about bilingualism's effects on cognition?

  Results do not show clear advantages

  
• What factors confound bilingualism in studies?

  Socio-economic status and language exposure
• What are the key takeaways regarding bilingualism and child development?

  • Bilingualism does not impair development
  • Some positive effects on executive functions
  • Multilingualism opens many opportunities
  • Advice: Raise children bilingual/multilingual