Verbal Working Memory but Not Attention Is Related to Language Proficiency: Evidence from Multilingual Speakers.

Marion Bouffier,Steve Majerus,Cristina Barbu

doi:10.5334/pb.525

Marion Bouffier, Steve Majerus + Show 1 more

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https://doi.org/10.5334/pb.525

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Abstract

Numerous studies have shown a consistent relationship between verbal working memory (WM) and native-language as well as non-native language learning abilities. However, the role of attentional abilities has been rarely explored, although these abilities have been shown to be associated both with verbal working memory and oral language proficiency. This study investigated the association between WM, attention and language proficiency in young adults raised with three different languages (Luxembourgish, German and French). Auditory-verbal WM abilities were assessed via an immediate serial recall task. Attentional abilities were assessed via auditory-verbal and visuo-spatial attentional tasks. Using a Bayesian correlational approach, we observed robust evidence for an association between auditory-verbal WM abilities and non-native language proficiency. At the same time, we observed no reliable evidence in favor of an association between language proficiency and auditory-verbal/visuo-spatial attentional measures. These results suggest that auditory-verbal WM and non-native language proficiency are strongly linked in young multilingual adults, irrespective of auditory-verbal or visuo-spatial attentional abilities.

Highlights

Verbal working memory (WM) is defined as the ability to temporarily store verbal information, with or without further manipulation of this information, in order to fulfill cognitive tasks such as language processing or reasoning (Baddeley, 1992)
Verbal working memory abilities are dependent upon auditory attention abilities, the latter potentially being involved in language learning (e.g., Majerus, Heiligenstein, Gautherot, Poncelet, & Van der Linden, 2009)
The aim of this study is to advance our understanding of the links between verbal WM, attention and the outcome of language learning; namely language proficiency, by examining the extent to which the link between verbal working memory and oral language proficiency reflects an association with attentional abilities, and this for both native and non-native language proficiency

Summary

Introduction

Verbal working memory (WM) is defined as the ability to temporarily store verbal information, with or without further manipulation of this information, in order to fulfill cognitive tasks such as language processing or reasoning (Baddeley, 1992). Studies distinguishing between item (the linguistic identity of individual memoranda) and serial order (the order of presentation of memoranda) showed that it is the linguistic aspect of the memoranda (item information) that explains the association between verbal WM performance and language abilities, and the need to maintain and recall the memoranda in correct serial order (Majerus et al, 2008; Majerus & Boukebza, 2013; Majerus, Poncelet, Elsen, & Van der Linden, 2006; Majerus, Poncelet, Greffe, & Van der Linden, 2006; Ordonez Magro, Attout, Majerus, & Szmalec, 2018) The latter findings indicate that the link between verbal WM and language measures cannot be only explained by the fact that both measures probe verbal levels of processing, but that serial order maintenance, a more specific aspect of verbal WM tasks, exerts an important role (Leclercq & Majerus, 2010). These findings support theoretical models of WM that distinguish linguistic components directly depending on the language system and specific serial order WM mechanisms (e.g., Burgess & Hitch, 1999, 2006; Hartley, Hurlstone, & Hitch, 2016; Majerus, 2019)

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