Why Some Bilinguals Are Better Than Others
Why Some Bilinguals Are Better Than Others
Short-Term Memory May Help in Acquiring a Second Language
Oct. 4, 2004 -- There may be a good reason why some people have a knack for picking up foreign languages. A new study suggests subtle differences in parts of the brain that regulate short-term memory may make some people better bilinguals than others.
Researchers found fluent bilinguals had more activity in the regions of the brain that control the type of short-term memory used to remember a series of letters, words, or numbers like a telephone number than people who had a harder time picking up a second language.
Previous studies have shown that this type of memory, known as phonological working memory or PWM, is involved in language learning and temporarily storing unfamiliar sounds while other regions of the brain are involved in putting language into long-term memory.
In the study, which appears in the current issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, researchers analyzed brain activation in two groups of bilingual adults. English was the first language of all participants, but one group was considered "equal bilingual" and were nearly equally fluent in both English and Chinese. The other group was less adept at their second language.
Using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), researchers scanned the brains of the participants as they performed a task that required them to remember a number of unfamiliar French words.
The results showed that both groups performed the task equally well, but the equal bilinguals showed more activation in the region involved in short-term memory.
Researchers also found that another region of the brain was deactivated in the less adept bilinguals, which meant they had to devote more resources in the brain to complete the task.
Researchers say the results suggest that better bilinguals were able to more effectively activate their short-term memory, which may make it easier for them to acquire foreign languages.
Why Some Bilinguals Are Better Than Others
Short-Term Memory May Help in Acquiring a Second Language
Oct. 4, 2004 -- There may be a good reason why some people have a knack for picking up foreign languages. A new study suggests subtle differences in parts of the brain that regulate short-term memory may make some people better bilinguals than others.
Researchers found fluent bilinguals had more activity in the regions of the brain that control the type of short-term memory used to remember a series of letters, words, or numbers like a telephone number than people who had a harder time picking up a second language.
Previous studies have shown that this type of memory, known as phonological working memory or PWM, is involved in language learning and temporarily storing unfamiliar sounds while other regions of the brain are involved in putting language into long-term memory.
In the study, which appears in the current issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, researchers analyzed brain activation in two groups of bilingual adults. English was the first language of all participants, but one group was considered "equal bilingual" and were nearly equally fluent in both English and Chinese. The other group was less adept at their second language.
Using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), researchers scanned the brains of the participants as they performed a task that required them to remember a number of unfamiliar French words.
The results showed that both groups performed the task equally well, but the equal bilinguals showed more activation in the region involved in short-term memory.
Researchers also found that another region of the brain was deactivated in the less adept bilinguals, which meant they had to devote more resources in the brain to complete the task.
Researchers say the results suggest that better bilinguals were able to more effectively activate their short-term memory, which may make it easier for them to acquire foreign languages.