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Individual differences in bilingual experience modulate executive control network and performance: behavioral and structural neuroimaging evidence

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  11 September 2020

Federico Gallo Open the ORCID record for Federico Gallo [Opens in a new window] ,
Nikolay Novitskiy Open the ORCID record for Nikolay Novitskiy [Opens in a new window] ,
Andriy Myachykov  and
Yury Shtyrov
Federico Gallo*
Affiliation:
Centre for Cognition and Decision Making, Institute for Cognitive Neuroscience, National Research University Higher School of Economics, Moscow, Russian Federation Centre for Neurolinguistics and Psycholinguistics, Vita-Salute San Raffaele University, Milan, Italy
Nikolay Novitskiy
Affiliation:
Department of Linguistics and Modern Languages, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China Brain and Mind Institute, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China
Andriy Myachykov
Affiliation:
Centre for Cognition and Decision Making, Institute for Cognitive Neuroscience, National Research University Higher School of Economics, Moscow, Russian Federation Northumbria University, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, United Kingdom
Yury Shtyrov
Affiliation:
Centre for Cognition and Decision Making, Institute for Cognitive Neuroscience, National Research University Higher School of Economics, Moscow, Russian Federation Center of Functionally Integrative Neuroscience, Aarhus University, Aarhus, Denmark
*
Address for correspondence: Federico Gallo, E-mail: fgallo@hse.ru
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Abstract

Dual/multiple language use has been shown to affect cognition and its neural substrate, although the replicability of such findings varies, partially due to neglecting the role of interindividual variability in bilingual experience. To address this, we operationalized the main bilingual experience factors as continuous variables, investigating their effects on executive control performance and neural substrate deploying a Flanker task and structural magnetic resonance imaging. First, higher L2 proficiency predicted better executive performance. Second, neuroimaging results indicated that bilingualism-related neuroplasticity may peak at a certain stage of bilingual experience and eventually revert, possibly following functional specialization. Importantly, experienced bilinguals optimized behavioral performance independently of volumetric variations, suggesting a degree of performance gain even with lower GMV. Hence, the effects of bilingualism on cognition may evolve with experience, with improvements in functional efficiency eventually replacing structural changes. We conclude that individual differences in bilingual experience modulate cognitive and neural consequences of bilingualism.

Keywords

bilingualismbilingual experience factorsexecutive controlstructural MRIregion-based-morphometry
Type
Research Article
Information
Bilingualism: Language and Cognition , Volume 24 , Issue 2 , March 2021 , pp. 293 - 304
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Copyright
Copyright © The Author(s), 2020. Published by Cambridge University Press

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