Projects per year
Abstract
Recent evidence suggests a positive impact of bilingualism on cognition, including later onset of dementia. However, monolinguals and bilinguals might have different baseline cognitive ability. We present the first study examining the effect of bilingualism on later-life cognition controlling for childhood intelligence. We studied 853 participants, first tested in 1947 (age=11 years), and retested in 2008-2010. Bilinguals performed significantly better than predicted from their baseline cognitive abilities, with strongest effects on general intelligence and reading. Our results suggest a positive effect of bilingualism on later-life cognition, including in those who acquired their second language in adulthood.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 959-963 |
Number of pages | 5 |
Journal | Annals of Neurology |
Volume | 75 |
Issue number | 6 |
Early online date | 2 Jun 2014 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | E-pub ahead of print - 2 Jun 2014 |
Keywords / Materials (for Non-textual outputs)
- LOTHIAN BIRTH COHORTS
- ONSET
- AGE
- MULTILINGUALISM
- DEMENTIA
- DELAYS
- BRAIN
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Dive into the research topics of 'Does Bilingualism Influence Cognitive Aging?'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.Projects
- 7 Finished
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Centre for Cognitive Ageing and Cognitive Epidemiology Phase 2.
Maclullich, A. (Principal Investigator)
1/09/13 → 31/08/19
Project: Research
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RA2661 Centre for Cognitive Ageing and Cognitive Epidemiology Phase 2. Main Budget.
Deary, I. (Principal Investigator), Gale, C. (Co-investigator), Holmes, M. (Co-investigator), Logie, P. (Co-investigator), Maclullich, A. (Co-investigator), Porteous, D. (Co-investigator), Seckl, J. (Co-investigator), Starr, J. (Co-investigator), Wardlaw, J. (Co-investigator) & Okely, J. (Researcher)
1/09/13 → 31/08/19
Project: Research
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Profiles
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Thomas Bak
- School of Philosophy, Psychology and Language Sciences - Reader
- Centre for Clinical Brain Sciences
- Edinburgh Neuroscience
Person: Academic: Research Active