The role of bilingual interactional contexts in predicting interindividual variability in executive functions: A latent variable analysis

• Main Author: HARTANTO, Andree
• Format: text
• Language: English
• Published: Institutional Knowledge at Singapore Management University 2018
• Subjects: Bilingualism; Executive functions; Interactional Contexts; Latent variable analysis; Task-switching; Inhibitory control; Applied Behavior Analysis; Bilingual, Multilingual, and Multicultural Education; Social Psychology and Interaction
• Online Access: https://ink.library.smu.edu.sg/etd_coll/153; https://ink.library.smu.edu.sg/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1154&context=etd_coll
• Institution: Singapore Management University

Despite a huge number of studies examining bilingual advantages in executive functions (EFs), the research findings with regards to the relations between bilingualism and EFs are mostly inconsistent and mixed. In order to shed light on these inconsistent findings, the current research aimed to tackle on both conceptual and methodological limitations that are prevalent in previous studies, namely: (a) failure to consider bilingual experiences in assessing bilingual advantages, and (b) task impurity due to substantial influence of non-EFs processes on EFs task performance. Based on Adaptive Control Hypothesis and Control Process Model of Code-switching, a theory-driven multisession study coupled with a latent variable approach was conducted to systematically examine the relations between bilingual interactional contexts and EFs, measured by nine different EFs tasks. The study found that dual-language context significantly predicted latent variable of task-switching, while dense code-switching context significantly predicted latent variable of inhibitory control and goal maintenance. The findings remained robust even taking into account potential confounds of demographics, socioeconomic status, intelligence, and unintended language-switching tendency. The current study identified bilingual interactional contexts as the key language experiences that could modulate the manifestation of bilingual advantages in EFs