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Abstract
The present study explores the interplay among bilingualism, executive functions and creativity in problem solving among adult male university students. In this context, the associations between two factors critical for understanding the topic, i.e. type of bilingualism (i.e. balanced versus non-balanced bilingualism) and type of creative thinking (i.e. convergent versus divergent thinking) are examined, as well. 28 Russian/Hebrew/English trilinguals (balanced Russian/Hebrew bilinguals), and 25 non-balanced Hebrew/English bilinguals participated in the study. All participants performed several standard tasks on executive functions (Wisconsin Card Sorting Test, Eriksen flanker task, digit span test, Corsi block-tapping test) and two tests on creativity: Torrance Tests of Creative Thinking (Figural Form A) and Remote Associates Test (in appropriate languages). The findings showed that the Russian-speaking participants performed better on the Torrance Tests of Creative Thinking, particularly in flexibility and fluency measures. On the Remote Associates Test, balanced bilinguals outperformed non-balanced bilinguals in the English version and exhibited the same results in the Hebrew version of the test. In this case, there were significant correlations between the Remote Associates Test results in all three languages in the Russian group. Thus, balanced bilingualism seems to be also characterized by a well-organized language system in which all of the individual’s languages are interconnected. This appears to be a significant factor in the performance of balanced bilinguals on the Remote Associates Test in the different languages. In addition, the findings seem to confirm the hypothesis that balanced bilingualism positively influences divergent thinking. The hypothesis that performance of bilinguals on creativity tasks is linked to distinctions in the development of their executive functions was not confirmed.
Highlights
Over the last few decades, research into the field of bilingualism has accumulated growing evidence demonstrating that knowledge of two or more languages has a positive influence on the development of high-order cognitive functions
In the context of above-mentioned consideration, we proposed that the contribution of such executive functions as working memory, inhibition and cognitive flexibility to the solving of creative problems would vary in different groups of bilinguals and for different types of creative tasks
The present study explored the interrelationship between the type of bilingualism and between convergent and divergent thinking as expressed in various creativity tasks in a sampling of 53 adult male university students
Summary
Over the last few decades, research into the field of bilingualism has accumulated growing evidence demonstrating that knowledge of two or more languages has a positive influence on the development of high-order cognitive functions. The enhanced cognitive functions of bilinguals account for (among other factors) their superiority in creativity, i.e., in creative potential (Runco & Acar, 2012) or creative thinking ability (Kaufman & Beghetto, 2009) This view, has been called into question in some other research studies due to inconsistencies in the obtained findings on improved executive functions in bilinguals (Adesope et al, 2010; Andoni Duñabeitia & Carreiras, 2015; Paap & Greenberg, 2013; Woumans & Duyck, 2015) as well as in balanced bilingualism compared with unbalanced bilingualism or monolingualism (Carlson & Meltzoff, 2008; Rosselli et al, 2016; Poarch & Hell, 2012; Verreyt et al, 2016). Opposite findings were shown for certain other cognitive functions, including inhibition and creative thinking ability (Birke Hansen et al, 2016; Kharkhurin, 2012; Leikin, M., 2013; Bastian et al, 2016)
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