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The Blessings of Bilingualism
A recent study suggests that multilingualism has more than simply material benefits; but how far-reaching are the consequences?
Dans un monde où de plus en plus d’entreprises, sorry, in a world where more and more businesses, media and international organisations operate on a multilingual level, it is increasingly important (and common) to be able to string together a few key phrases in several languages. Gone are ye old times when the absence of notions such as globalisation or the EU meant that only royalty, the intellectual elite and perhaps the Pope spoke more than simply the vernacular; nowadays languages and their study occupy a significant position in schools and universities throughout the planet.
However, what if being bilingual (or indeed trilingual, quadrilingual, and so on) brought with it not only obvious employment and travel opportunities but also scientifically substantiated health benefits? This is exactly what a recent study, led by Ellen Bialystock, a psychologist at York University in Toronto, has attempted to show. The study, which carries on from similar work in the field in recent years, claims that bilingualism boosts the all-round performance of the brain, leading to increased cognitive skills, improved multitasking and even a delay in the onset of Alzheimer’s disease.
According to Bialystock and co., who analysed a group of 211 Alzheimer’s sufferers (roughly half being monolingual and the other half bilingual), it turns out that speaking more than one language on a frequent basis can delay old-age induced deterioration of the mind and the subsequent onset of dementia by up to 4 years. Thus, simply put, not being monolingual sharpens the mind and dusts down the brain’s cognitive highways, allowing cranial traffic to flow more smoothly, more effectively, and ultimately for longer.
Which is nice, say the trilinguals among you who were brought up speaking 2 languages at home with your dual-nationality parents and another in school in your adopted country. But what about those of us whose limited language chops amount to what we’ve picked up when not sleeping in secondary-school French or German class? Does the awesome ability to (just about) manage to order a plate of moule-frites or to shout Scheiße in a stereotypical Deutsch accent mean that we will cheat Alzheimer’s for an extra four years in the future?
Unfortunately, knowing a few expletives in several languages and gleefully using them whenever on holidays in their corresponding country does not equate to bilingualism. This is another field of research unto itself, but a basic dictionary definition of a bilingual person would be someone who is able to speak two languages fluently, or more specifically, with the fluency of a native speaker. Thus, even if prolonged study, exposure to and practicing of another language or languages could mean that one becomes highly capable (and even fluent) in speaking the tongue, becoming a fully-fledged, proficient polyglot is altogether less evident; one generally has to be born into a multilingual household or live in a society that speaks a different language from a young age to achieve this properly.
This said, although the term “bilingual” is bandied around much too recklessly these days by those able to ask for directions to the nearest toilets in a couple of European tongues, the report does say that those who learn a second language but are not necessarily polyglots can benefit from the same advantages, although to a lesser extent. The message is slightly vague in this respect, although it seems that “every little helps” when it comes to attacking Alzheimer’s with the baton of bilingualism, albeit with more advantages for those who speak a third language on a daily basis. So although the study may not be as significant a breakthrough as its champions would have us believe (the proportion of full, dictionary-defined polyglots in the world can’t be staggeringly significant, can it?) perhaps there is nevertheless hope for dabblers.
The report also serves to dispel the relatively common but ultimately unfounded idea that bilingual children are simply confused by the different languages which are directed at them, and consequently develop more into muddled maniacs rather than masters of multitasking. However, such problems are more likely to arise from an improper approach to raising a bilingual child: massive care must be taken to ensure that the nipper receives adequate exposure to both languages and that parents do not switch willy-nilly between tongues; one parent per language is the general rule which has to be strictly adhered to in order to avoid the scenario of a child becoming so confused that he develops Alzheimer’s by the age of 8, let alone 80.
However, is all of this science or simply common sense? If Alzheimer’s disease essentially implies the breakdown of cognitive performance and hence deterioration in the efficacy of the brain, surely keeping the noggin active in any way could help keep the malady at bay? As the old adage goes, the brain is a muscle just like the biceps and must be exercised and kept fit accordingly. Thus playing chess, daily Sudoku or Dr. Kawashima’s Brain Training (it’s a game for the Ninendo DS console, which leads to the ironic fact that more kids use it to ward off dementia than Old Age Pensioners) could surely provide similar benefits. However, until this type of conjecture is backed up by cold hard scientific fact it is useless, whereas the study by Bialystock et al at least gives us some concrete confirmation that monolingualism, or even the relatively regular practice of more than one language, is good for head health to some extent. So if Sudoku isn’t for you, dust off your old French book from secondary school and get studying before it’s too late.