Research Proves Further Benefits of being Bilingual

The ability to speak two languages has often been cited has a desirable trait amongst the population. For employment purposes or even just to be social, being bilingual is seen has highly desirable. In America today it is estimated that between 20-25% of the population is considered bilingual, many of which grew up speaking two languages naturally. New research has emerged that suggests yet another benefit of being able to speak two languages. The research shows that the brains of bilingual people tend to stay sharper as they age. Simply put, bilingual brains are more efficient than their monolingual cousins.

The Test Groups

The research has been carried out at the University of Kentucky in Lexington. The initial research wanted to test why the brains of some people appear to not age as rapidly as others. As people age, the brain naturally slows down at being able to go back and forth between tasks. Additionally, it is less able to not focus on unwanted tasks or distractions. While some evidence already existed showing that people who can speak more than one language have less of a decline, researchers in Kentucky wanted to find out why exactly this happens and in particular, what part of the brain is being affected in the process. The study was conducted amongst 15 bilingual people and 15 people who could only speak their native language. Furthermore, the bilingual people needed to have been speaking two languages since the age of 10. Finally, both groups needed to have a similar background in education and socioeconomic status. Once these two groups were established, it was found that the median age between all of the people was 63 and the experiments could begin.

Carrying out the Experiment

The initial stage of the experiment asked the participants to identify shapes and colors as they appeared on a screen in front of them. Additionally, they would need to switch back and forth between the tasks at a rapid pace. It was shown that the people with multi-language ability were able to perform at a faster rate. After completing this experiment, the study was redone with two additional groups of people who were all in their 20s. It is proven that younger people will perform better at these tasks, however the older bilingual test group put up reaction times that were significantly closer to their younger peers as did the monolingual test subjects.

The Results

It was shown that brain structure is not significantly different between the different groups. It is believed that a person who switches between two languages more commonly develops a more effective brain and that skill translates to other tasks. Although it is yet to be proven, researchers believe that the data may point towards a delaying dementia amongst bilingual people. Finally, it is also unclear at what point you need to learn the second language by to experience the benefit. However, it is clear that an individual needs to be quite proficient and use the 2nd language on a regular basis to gain the benefits that come from it. As the world becomes more and more connected, it seems that there is yet another reason to begin learning a foreign language.