Cover not available
Article published In:
Linguistic Approaches to Bilingualism
Vol. 11:5 (2021) ► pp.611–639

Effects of bilingualism on statistical learning in preschoolers

| University of Amsterdam
| University of Amsterdam

Earlier work indicates that bilingualism may positively affect statistical learning, but leaves open whether a bilingual benefit is (1) found during learning rather than in a post-hoc test following a learning phase and (2) explained by enhanced verbal short-term memory skill in the bilinguals. Forty-one bilingual and 56 monolingual preschoolers completed a serial reaction time task and a nonword repetition task (NWR). Linear mixed-effect regressions indicated that the bilinguals showed a stronger decrease in reaction times over the regular blocks of the task than the monolinguals. No group differences in accuracy-based measures were found. NWR performance, which did not differ between the groups, did not account for the attested effect of bilingualism. These results provide partial support for effects of bilingualism on statistical learning, which appear during learning and are not due to enhanced verbal short-term memory. Taken together, these findings add to a growing body of research on effects of bilingualism on statistical learning, and constitute a first step towards investigating the factors which may underlie such effects.

Keywords: bilingualism, statistical learning, serial reaction time task, non-adjacent dependency learning, verbal short-term memory
Article outline
  • 1.Introduction
    • 1.1This study
  • 2.Method
    • 2.1Participants
    • 2.2Materials
      • 2.2.1Statistical learning experiment
      • 2.2.2Nonword repetition
    • 2.3Procedure
    • 2.4Variables and analyses
  • 3.Results
    • 3.1Comparing SRT performance between the monolingual and bilingual children
    • 3.2Comparing verbal short-term memory between the bilingual and monolingual groups
  • 4.Discussion
  • Acknowledgements
  • References
Published online: 11 February 2020
DOI logo
https://doi.org/10.1075/lab.18102.ver
References
Armon-Lotem, S., & Meir, N.
(2016) Diagnostic accuracy of repetition tasks for the identification of specific language impairment (SLI) in bilingual children: evidence from Russian and Hebrew. International Journal of Language and Communication Disorders, 511, 715–731. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Baguley, T.
(2012) Calculating and graphing within-subject confidence intervals for ANOVA. Behavior Research Methods, 441, 158–175. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Bartolotti, J., Marian, V., Schroeder, S. R., & Shook, A.
(2011) Bilingualism and inhibitory control influence statistical learning of novel word forms. Frontiers in Psychology, 21, 1–10. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Bates, D., Maechler, M., Bolker, B., & Walker, S.
(2015) Fitting linear mixed-effect models using lme4. Journal of Statistical Software, 671, 1–48. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Biedroń, A., & Szczepaniak, A.
(2012) Working memory and short-term memory abilities in accomplished multilinguals. The Modern Language Journal, 961, 290–306. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Blom, E., Küntay, A. C., Messer, M., Verhagen, J., & Leseman, P. P. M.
(2014) The benefits of being bilingual: Working memory in bilingual Turkish-Dutch children. Journal of Experimental Child Psychology, 1281, 105–119. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Boerma, T., Chiat, S., Leseman, P. P. M., Timmermeister, M., Wijnen, F., & Blom, E.
(2015) A quasi-universal nonword repetition task as a diagnostic tool for bilingual children learning Dutch as a second language. Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research, 581, 1747–1760. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Bonifacci, P., Giombini, L., Bellocchi, S., & Contento, S.
(2011) Speed of processing, anticipation, inhibition and working memory in bilinguals. Developmental Science, 141, 256–269. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
de Bree, E. H., Verhagen, J., Kerkhoff, A. O., Doedens, W. J., & Unsworth, S.
(2017) Language learning from inconsistent input: Bilingual and monolingual toddlers compared. Infant and Child Development, 261, e1996. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Bulgarelli, F., Lebkuecher, A. L. & Weiss, D. J.
(2018) Statistical learning in bilingualism. Language, Speech, and Hearing Services in Schools, 491, 740–753. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Chambers, J. M., Freeny, A. R., & Heiberger, R. M.
(1992) Analysis of variance; designed experiments. In Chambers, J. M., & Hastie, T. J. (Eds.), Statistical Models in S. Wadsworth & Brooks/Cole.Google Scholar
le Clercq, C. M. P., van der Schroeff, M. P., Rispens, J. E., Ruytjens, L., Goedegebure, A., van Ingen, G., & Franken, M-C.
(2017) Shortened nonword repetition task (NWR-S): A simple, quick and less expensive outcome to identify children with combined specific language and reading impairment. Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research, 601, 2241–2248. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Delcenserie, A., & Genesee, F.
(2017) The effects of age of acquisition on verbal memory in bilinguals. International Journal of Bilingualism, 211, 600–616. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Duncan, T. S., & Paradis, J.
(2016) English language learners’ nonword repetition performance: The influence of age, L1 vocabulary size, length of L2 exposure, and L1 phonology. Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research, 591, 39–48. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Dutilh, G., Vandekerckhove, J., Forstmann, B. U., Keuleerst, E., Brysbaert, M., & Wagenmakers, E-J.
(2012) Testing theories of post-error slowing. Attention, Perception and Psychophysics, 741, 454–465. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Erickson, L. C., & Thiessen, E. D.
(2015) Statistical learning of language: Theory, validity, and predictions of a statistical learning account of language acquisition. Developmental Review, 371, 66–108. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Franco, A., Eberlen, J., Destrebecqz, A., Cleeremans, A., & Bertels, J.
(2015) Rapid serial auditory presentation: A new measure of statistical learning in speech segmentation. Experimental Psychology, 621, 346–351. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Fernandes, M. A., Craik, F. I. M., Bialystok, E., & Kreuger, S.
(2007) Effects of bilingualism, aging, and semantic relatedness on memory under divided attention. Canadian Journal of Experimental Psychology, 611, 128–141. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Gathercole, S. E.
(2006) Keynote article: Nonword repetition and word learning: The nature of the relationship. Applied Psycholinguistics, 271, 513–543. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Grama, I. C., Kerkhoff, A. O., & Wijnen, F. N. K.
(2016) Gleaning structure from sound: The role of prosodic contrast in learning non-adjacent dependencies. Journal of Psycholinguistic Research, 451, 1427–1449. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Hautus, M. J.
(1995) Corrections for extreme proportions and their biasing effects on estimated values of d’ . Behavior Research Methods, 271, 46–51.Google Scholar
Hirosh, Z., & Degani, T.
(2017) Direct and indirect effects of multilingualism on novel language learning: An integrative review. Psychonomic Bulletin Review, 251, 892–916. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Hunt, R. H., & Aslin, R. N.
(2001) Statistical learning in a serial reaction time task: Access to separable statistical cues by individual learners. Journal of Experimental Psychology, 1301, 658–680. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Jaeger, T. F.
(2010) Post to HLP/Jaeger lab blog. [URL], accessed September 2019.
Kapa, L. L., & Colombo, J.
(2014) Executive function predicts artificial language learning. Journal of Memory and Language, 761, 237–252. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Kaushanskaya, M.
(2012) Cognitive mechanisms of word learning in bilingual and monolingual adults: The role of verbal short-term memory. Bilingualism: Language & Cognition, 151, 470–489. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Keuleers, E., Brysbaert, M., & New, B.
(2010) SUBTLEX-NL: A new frequency measure for Dutch words based on film subtitles. Behavior Research Methods, 421, 643–650. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Kovács, A. & Mehler, J.
(2009) Flexible learning of multiple speech structures in bilingual infants. Science, 3251, 611–612. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Kuo, L. J., & Anderson, R. C.
(2010) Beyond cross-language transfer: Reconceptualizing the impact of early bilingualism on phonological awareness. Scientific Studies of Reading, 141, 365–385. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
(2012) Effects of early bilingualism on learning phonological regularities in a new language. Journal of Experimental Child Psychology, 1111, 455–467. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Kuznetsova, A., Brockhoff, P. B., & Christensen, R. H. B.
(2017) lmerTest Package: Tests in Linear Mixed Effects Models. Journal of Statistical Software, 821, 1–26. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Lammertink, I., van Witteloostuijn, M., Boersma, P., Wijnen, F., & Rispens, J.
(2019) Auditory statistical learning in children: Novel insights from an online measure. Applied Psycholinguistics, 401, 279–302. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Lum, J. A. G., Conti-Ramsden, G., Morgan, A. T., & Ullman, M. T.
(2014) Procedure learning deficits in specific language impairment (SLI): a meta-analysis of serial reaction time task performance. Cortex, 511, 1–10. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Macmillan, N. A., & Creelman, C. D.
(2005) Detection theory: A user’s guide (2nd edition). Mahwah, New Jersey: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.Google Scholar
McKean, C., Letts, C., & Howard, D.
(2013) Developmental change is key to understanding primary language impairment: The case of phonotactic probability and nonword repetition. Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research, 561, 1579–1594. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Messer, M. H., Leseman, P. P. M., Boom, J., & Mayo, A. Y.
(2010) Phonotactic probability effect in nonword recall and its relationship with vocabulary in monolingual and bilingual preschoolers. Journal of Experimental Child Psychology, 1051, 306–323. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Misyak, J. B., & Christiansen, M. H.
(2012) Statistical language and language: An individual differences study. Language Learning, 621, 302–331. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Nissen, M. J., & Bullemer, P.
(1987) Attentional requirements of learning: evidence from performance measures. Cognitive Psychology, 191, 1e32. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Onnis, L., Chun, W. E., & Lou-Magnuson, M.
(2017) Improved statistical learning abilities in adult bilinguals. Bilingualism: Language and Cognition, 211, 427–433. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Parra, M., Hoff, E., & Core, C.
(2011) Relations among language exposure, verbal short-term memory, and language development in Spanish-English bilingually developing two-year-olds. Journal of Experimental Child Psychology, 1081, 113–125. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Park, J. S., Miller, C., Rosenbaum, D. A., Sanjeevan, T., van Hell, J. G., Weiss, D. J., & Mainela-Arnold, E.
(2018) Bilingualism and procedural learning in typically developing children and children with language impairment. Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research, 611, 634–644. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Perruchet, P. & Tillmann, B.
(2010) Exploiting multiple sources of information in learning an artificial language: Human data and modeling. Cognitive Science, 341, 255–285. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Poepsel, T. J., & Weiss, D.
(2016) The influence of bilingualism on statistical word learning. Cognition, 1521, 9–19. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Powell, M. J. D.
(2009) The BOBYQA algorithm for bound constrained optimization without derivatives (Report). Department of Applied Mathematics and Theoretical Physics, Cambridge University. [URL], accessed September 2019.
R Core Team
(2015) R: A language environment for statistical computing. R Foundation for Statistical Computing, Vienna, Austria.Google Scholar
Rispens, J., & Baker, A.
(2012) Nonword repetition: the relative contributions of phonological short-term memory and phonological representations in children with language and hearing impairment. Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research, 551, 683–694. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Stanislaw, H., & Todorov, N.
(1999) Calculation of signal detection measures. Behavior Research Methods, Instruments and Computers: A Journal of the Psychonomic Society, 311, 137–149. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Thiessen, E. D.
(2017) What’s statistical about learning? Insights from modelling statistical learning as a set of memory processes. Philosophical transactions of the Royal Society B, 3721, 1711. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Vicari, S., Marotti, L., Menghini, D., Molinari, M., & Petrosini, L.
(2003) Implicit learning deficit in children with developmental dyslexia. Neuropsychologica, 411, 108–114. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Wang, T., & Saffran, J. R.
(2014) Statistical learning of a tonal language: the influence of bilingualism and previous linguistic experience. Frontiers in Psychology, 51, 953. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Weiss, D., Gerfen, C., & Mitchel, A.
(2009) Speech segmentation in a simulated bilingual environment: A challenge for statistical learning? Language Learning and Development, 51, 30–49. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Yim, D., & Rudoy, J.
(2013) Implicit statistical learning and language skills in bilingual children. Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research, 561, 310–323. DOI logoGoogle Scholar