Do Bilinguals Have an Advantage in Theory of Mind? A Meta-Analysis
Abstract
Bilingualism might help children develop Theory of Mind, but the evidence is mixed. To address the disagreement in the literature, a meta-analysis was conducted on studies that compared bilingual and monolingual children on false belief and other Theory of Mind tests. The meta-analysis of 16 studies and 1,283 children revealed a small bilingual advantage (Cohen’s d=.22, p=.050). A secondary analysis was conducted on studies (k=8) that statistically adjusted the Theory of Mind scores to correct for a bilingual disadvantage in language proficiency. This secondary analysis indicated a medium-size bilingual advantage (Cohen’s d=.58, p<.001). There was no evidence for publication bias in either analysis. Taken together, the results provide support for a beneficial effect of acquiring two languages on mental state reasoning. Explanations for this bilingual advantage, which include bilingual-monolingual differences in executive functioning, metalinguistic awareness, and socio-pragmatic abilities, are discussed.
Cite this
Scott Ryan Schroeder (2018). Do Bilinguals Have an Advantage in Theory of Mind? A Meta-Analysis. Frontiers in Communication. https://doi.org/10.3389/fcomm.2018.00036
@article{ryan2018do,
title = {Do Bilinguals Have an Advantage in Theory of Mind? A Meta-Analysis},
author = {Schroeder, Scott Ryan},
year = {2018},
journal = {Frontiers in Communication},
doi = {10.3389/fcomm.2018.00036}
}Citations in this library
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