Improved statistical learning abilities in adult bilinguals.
Open accessAbstract
Using multiple languages may confer distinct advantages in cognitive control, yet it is unclear whether bilingualism is associated with better implicit statistical learning, a core cognitive ability underlying language. We tested bilingual adults on a challenging task requiring simultaneous learning of two miniature grammars characterized by different statistics. We found that participants learned each grammar significantly better than chance and both grammars equally well. Crucially, a validated continuous measure of bilingual dominance predicted accuracy scores for both artificial grammars in a generalized linear model. The study thus demonstrates the first graded advantage in learning novel statistical relations in adult bilinguals.
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Degree of bilingual dominance in adulthood is associated with differential ability to learn a novel language.
“Thus, degree of bilingual dominance in adulthood is associated with differential ability to learn a novel language.”
From Plasticity, Variability and Age in Second Language Acquisition and Bilingualism (2018) · cites this paper as Onnis et al. (2018)
The Results report that language dominance predicted accuracy on a dual artificial-grammar task: more balanced adult bilinguals performed better. The General Discussion describes the task as learning two miniature grammars, so the finding supports an association with learning novel language-like patterns, but not the broader ability to learn a novel language. (LLM, conf=0.84)
Experimental — accuracy not yet measuredIn adult bilinguals, success in statistical learning of artificial grammars is predicted by the degree to which participants approach or depart from balanced bilingualism, as measured by BLP scores: balanced bilinguals perform better than those increasingly dominant in their first language.
“In this study, success in statistical learning of artificial grammars is predicted by the degree to which participants approach or depart from balanced bilingualism, as measured by BLP scores: balanced bilinguals perform better than those who are increasingly dominant in their first language.”
From Plasticity, Variability and Age in Second Language Acquisition and Bilingualism (2018) · cites this paper as Onnis et al. (2018)
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- Authors
- ONNIS, L., CHUN, W. E., & LOU-MAGNUSON, M.
- Affiliations
- Nanyang Technological University (SG)
- Corresponding author
- ONNIS, LUCA
- ORCID
- ONNIS, LUCA
- Venue
- Bilingualism: Language and Cognition
- Publisher
- Cambridge University Press (CUP)
- Published
- 2017-10-11
- Volume
- 21
- Issue
- 2
- Pages
- 427-433
- ISSN
- 1366-7289 (ISSN-L)
- 1469-1841
- OpenAlex
- W2761427779
- Cited by
- 31
- References
- 28
- Citations by year
- 2026: 3 · 2025: 1 · 2024: 2 · 2023: 9 · 2022: 4 · 2021: 2 · 2020: 3 · 2019: 3 · 2018: 4
- FWCI
- 1.57
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- green
- hdl.handle.net
- Locations
- Bilingualism Language and Cognition (publishedVersion)
- DR-NTU (Nanyang Technological University) (submittedVersion)
- CINECA IRIS Institutial Research Information System (University of Genoa) (submittedVersion)
- Topics
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Neurobiology of Language and Bilingualism
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Developmental and Educational Psychology › Language Development and Disorders
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Experimental and Cognitive Psychology › Categorization, perception, and language
- Keywords
- implicit statistical learning, bilingualism, artificial grammar learning, cognitive control, language acquisition, bilingual adults, grammar learning
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