Bilingualism Enhances Cognitive And Information Processing Abilities In Both Children And Adults

Although the impact of bilingualism in cognitive abilities is of high value, it is not the only positive effect of learning a new language that has been documented. In a study conducted with participation of 48 high school students from Chicago, bilingualism was found to have a strong correlation with an enhanced ability to process sounds. Because of the diversity of phonetic, phonological and grammatical structures that bilingual individuals are exposed to, their listening skills were significantly improved compared to those of monolingual individuals. This has many benefits, including in communication and music appreciation.

Having kids learn a new language is not only an investment in their professional future, but also in their health. In a combined effort of Spanish and Canadian researchers, a study published in early 2013 reveals that bilingual children can retrieve memories more quickly and with more accuracy than monolingual children. They have what is called a better working memory, in other words. Working memory is crucial to cognitive development, and its precocious development by bilingual children is important evidence for the developmental effects of experience.

Knowing more than one language enhance multiple brain functions associated with everyday activities

Bilingualism also helps aging individuals to maintain the youthful cognitive control abilities. This means that, in spite of the natural aging, individuals that speak two languages maintain a certain easiness and flexibility in adapting to new circumstances and have a task-switching reaction time advantageous in relation to their monolingual counterparts. In short, older people who know more than one language keep their cognitive flexibility until later in life.

Other skills are of immense help when people learn a new language.

Better writing and editing skills are a natural consequence of being more familiar with and being more aware of language and the ways it can be structured and manipulated.

See Also: Brain Scans Show Ages Two To Four As "Critical Window" For Language Development

The general observation that mentally active people have lower chances to suffer from dementia in the old age was made a long time ago. Evidence that emerged with new research suggest that learning a second language is one of the most efficient tools towards this aim. Learning foreign languages is a great exercise for the mind. It develops new areas of the brain and strengthens its ability to focus, process information and maintain good cognitive skills in general. As cognition is such an important element of the mind, it is easy to understand why exercising our cognitive abilities can help to maintain our mental health.

Beyond these researched benefits of learning a new language, it is also feasible that speaking more than one language helps to make us more resilient and adaptable, as well as allowing us to be more open-minded about other cultures. In a practical sense, languages open doors to friendships and experiences, which are key to mental health.