Differences in executive function and creativity between bilinguals and monolinguals

Abstract

Previous research has suggested a bilingual advantage in executive function (EF) and creativity compared to monolinguals. It is theorized that bilinguals’ EF advantage stems from their constant practice of selecting one language while inhibiting the other language in conversation, thus strengthening their EF, which may facilitate more complex problem solving such as creative tasks. Eighty-three participants recruited from the university community participated in the two-part study. Both computer and pencil-and-paper tasks were used to assess the five proposed components of EF, as well as creative performance. Contrary to our initial hypotheses, preliminary findings indicate a monolingual instead of bilingual advantage on EF and creativity. Our findings are consistent with the lack of bilingual advantage recently reported in other studies. These results suggest that the language effect may not be as robust as once thought, or that other factors need to be taken into account when evaluating findings across studies.