The linguistic constraints of precision of verbal working memory.

Working memory (WM) precision has received little interest in the verbal WM domain, contrary to the visual WM domain. The aim of this study was to assess the precision with which words can be maintained in verbal WM. A probe-recognition task was used, in which the amount of phonological overlap between target and probe items was varied (25-75%). In Experiment 1, we assessed WM precision in monolingual, French-speaking young adults. In Experiment 2, we assessed WM precision in multilingual speakers with variable levels of language proficiency in German (L1), French (L2), and English (L3) in order to determine the extent to which WM precision is determined by the quality of underlying language representations. In Experiment 1, we observed that WM precision at the single-phoneme level was limited, with recognition performance decreasing considerably for the 75% overlap trials in which the probe and the target differed by a single phoneme. At the same time, recognition performance stayed above chance. In Experiment 2, we showed in multilingual speakers that discrimination accuracy was further reduced when tested in a second language. This study shows that phonological WM precision at the single-phoneme level is limited and furthermore depends upon the precision of the lexical representations in the linguistic system. Overall, this study provides support for theoretical models considering that verbal WM is grounded in the language architecture.

The Impact of Language Switching Frequency on Attentional and Executive Functioning in Proficient Bilingual Adults.

Bilingual advantages in executive functions are well documented (see Bialystok, 2009; Dong & Li, 2015, for a review), but the specific aspects of bilingualism that underlie these advantages are unclear. The few studies conducted up until now on this subject (e.g., Hartanto & Yang, 2016; Prior & Gollan, 2011; Verreyt, Woumans, Vandelanotte, Szmalec, & Duyck, 2016) have suggested that the frequency of language switching may partially mediate this advantage. We further investigate the impact of oral language-switching frequency on the development of alerting, response inhibition and cognitive flexibility skills in proficient bilinguals. Two groups of proficient bilingual adults (21 low-frequency language switchers and 21 high-frequency language switchers), matched for age, gender, second-language proficiency and socio-cultural status, participated in the study. Tasks assessing alerting, response inhibition and cognitive flexibility were administered. Our results revealed that high-frequency language switchers responded more quickly in the task assessing cognitive flexibility. No group effect was found on the tasks assessing alerting and response inhibition. These results suggest that language-switching frequency is likely an underlying factor in the enhanced cognitive flexibility of proficient bilinguals.

The development of the abilities to acquire novel detailed orthographic representations and maintain them in long-term memory.

Previous studies have clearly demonstrated that the development of orthographic representations relies on phonological recoding. However, substantial questions persist about the remaining unexplained variance in the acquisition of word-specific orthographic knowledge that is still underspecified. The main aim of this study was to explore whether two cognitive factors-sensitivity to orthographic regularities and short-term memory (STM) for serial order-make independent contributions to the acquisition of novel orthographic representations beyond that of the phonological core component and the level of preexisting word-specific orthographic knowledge. To this end, we had children from second to sixth grades learn novel written word forms using a repeated spelling practice paradigm. The speed at which children learned the word forms and their long-term retention (1week and 1month later) were assessed. Hierarchical regression analyses revealed that phonological recoding, preexisting word-specific orthographic knowledge, and order STM explained a portion of the variance in orthographic learning speed, whereas phonological recoding, preexisting word-specific orthographic knowledge, and orthographic sensitivity each explained a portion of variance in the long-term retention of the newly created orthographic representations. A secondary aim of the study was to determine the developmental trajectory of the abilities to acquire novel orthographic word forms over the course of primary schooling. As expected, results showed an effect of age on both learning speed and long-term retention. The specific roles of orthographic sensitivity and order STM as independent factors involved in different steps of orthographic learning are discussed.

Relative Ease in Creating Detailed Orthographic Representations Contrasted with Severe Difficulties to Maintain Them in Long-term Memory Among Dyslexic Children.

Most research into orthographic learning abilities has been conducted in English with typically developing children using reading-based tasks. In the present study, we examined the abilities of French-speaking children with dyslexia to create novel orthographic representations for subsequent use in spelling and to maintain them in long-term memory. Their performance was compared with that of chronological age (CA)-matched and reading age (RA)-matched control children. We used an experimental task designed to provide optimal learning conditions (i.e. 10 spelling practice trials) ensuring the short-term acquisition of the spelling of the target orthographic word forms. After a 1-week delay, the long-term retention of the targets was assessed by a spelling post-test. Analysis of the results revealed that, in the short term, children with dyslexia learned the novel orthographic word forms well, only differing from both CA and RA controls on the initial decoding of the targets and from CA controls on the first two practice trials. In contrast, a dramatic drop was observed in their long-term retention relative to CA and RA controls. These results support the suggestion of the self-teaching hypothesis (Share, 1995) that initial errors in the decoding and spelling of unfamiliar words may hinder the establishment of fully specified novel orthographic representations.

The Effects of Aging on the Components of Auditory - Verbal Short-Term Memory.

This study aimed at exploring the effects of aging on the multiple components of the auditory-verbal short-term memory (STM). Participants of 45-54, 55-64, 65-74 and 75-84 years of age were presented STM tasks assessing short-term retention of order and item information, and of phonological and lexical-semantic information separately. Because older participants often present reduced hearing levels, we sought to control for an effect of hearing status on performance on STM tasks. Participants' hearing thresholds were measured with a pure-tone audiometer. The results showed age-related effects on all STM components. However, after hearing status was controlled for in analyses of covariance, the age-related differences became non-significant for all STM processes. The fact that age-related hearing loss may in large part explain decreases in performance on STM tasks with aging is discussed.

Dissociable components of phonological and lexical-semantic short-term memory and their relation to impaired word production in aphasia.

This study assesses the dissociability of phonological and lexical-semantic short-term memory (STM) in two aphasic patients, B.N. and T.M., and explores the relationship between their STM deficits and their word production impairment. Picture naming performance suggests phonological language production impairment in B.N. and lexical-semantic language production impairment in T.M. On STM tasks, B.N. presented phonological STM impairment with preserved lexical-semantic STM, while T.M. presented the reverse profile. These results reveal a double dissociation between phonological and lexical-semantic STM capacities and suggest that our patients' STM impairment may be selectively related to their language production deficits.

Changes in naming and semantic abilities with aging from 50 to 90 years.

The aim of this study was to determine whether naming difficulties arise in individuals as young as their 50s. Participants of 25-35, 50-59, 60-69, and above 70 years of age were given a picture naming task. To uncover subtle naming difficulties, latencies were analyzed in addition to accuracy. To control whether the expected slower naming latencies could be due to a general slowing affecting all cognitive tasks, participants were also given an odd/even judgment task to assess cognitive processing speed. The results confirmed that participants in their 50s presented decline in naming performance, reflected by an increase in naming latencies, whereas adults in their 60s and their 70s showed both a decrease in accuracy and an increase in latency. Moreover, the increase in naming latencies remained significant even after controlling for odd/even judgment latencies, suggesting a degradation specific to the picture naming task. We assumed that these slower latencies may result from a language-specific impairment. As a further test for language-specific degradation, participants' semantic capacities were also assessed with a synonym judgment task and the Pyramids and Palm Trees test. The above-70 group showed semantic degradation. The contributions of multiple factors to naming difficulties in aging are discussed.

Cognitive abilities underlying second-language vocabulary acquisition in an early second-language immersion education context: a longitudinal study.

First-language (L1) and second-language (L2) lexical development has been found to be strongly associated with phonological processing abilities such as phonological short-term memory (STM), phonological awareness, and speech perception. Lexical development also seems to be linked to attentional and executive skills such as auditory attention, flexibility, and response inhibition. The aim of this four-wave longitudinal study was to determine to what extent L2 vocabulary acquired through the particular school context of early L2 immersion education is linked to the same cognitive abilities. A total of 61 French-speaking 5-year-old kindergartners who had just been enrolled in English immersion classes were administered a battery of tasks assessing these three phonological processing abilities and three attentional/executive skills. Their English vocabulary knowledge was measured 1, 2, and 3 school years later. Multiple regression analyses showed that, among the assessed phonological processing abilities, phonological STM and speech perception, but not phonological awareness, appeared to underlie L2 vocabulary acquisition in this context of an early L2 immersion school program, at least during the first steps of acquisition. Similarly, among the assessed attentional/executive skills, auditory attention and flexibility, but not response inhibition, appeared to be involved during the first steps of L2 vocabulary acquisition in such an immersion school context.

The contribution of short-term memory for serial order to early reading acquisition: evidence from a longitudinal study.

Early reading acquisition skills have been linked to verbal short-term memory (STM) capacity. However, the nature of this relationship remains controversial because verbal STM, like reading acquisition, depends on the complexity of underlying phonological processing skills. This longitudinal study addressed the relation between STM and reading decoding acquisition by distinguishing between STM for item information and STM for order information based on recent studies showing that STM for item information, but not STM for order information, recruits underlying phonological representations. If there is a specific link between STM and reading decoding acquisition, STM for order information should be an independent predictor of reading decoding acquisition. Tasks maximizing STM for serial order or item information, measures of phonological abilities, and reading tests were administered to children followed from kindergarten through first grade. We observed that order STM capacity, but not item STM capacity, predicted independent variance in reading decoding abilities 1 year later. These results highlight the specific role of STM for order in reading decoding acquisition and argue for a causal role of order STM capacity in reading acquisition. Mechanisms relating STM for order information and reading acquisition are discussed.

Evidence for a specific impairment of serial order short-term memory in dyslexic children.

In order to better understand the nature of verbal short-term memory (STM) deficits in dyslexic children, the present study used the distinction between item and serial order retention capacities in STM tasks. According to recent STM models, storage of verbal item information depends very directly upon the richness of underlying phonological and semantic representations. On the other hand, storage of serial order information appears to reflect a language-independent system. Hence, if there is a fundamental STM deficit in dyslexia that is not to be explained only by the poor phonological processing abilities that characterize dyslexia, then difficulties in serial order STM should also be observed in dyslexic children. We administered tasks maximizing either serial order or item retention capacities to dyslexic children and reading age (RA) and chronological age (CA) matched controls. Dyslexic children performed significantly poorer than the CA controls on the item STM measure. Furthermore, the dyslexic group obtained inferior performance than both CA and RA control groups on the serial order STM measure. These findings highlight a severe impairment of STM for serial order information in dyslexia that cannot be reduced to a phonological processing impairment. Implications of serial order retention deficits for reading acquisition and dyslexia are discussed.

Early bilingual immersion school program and cognitive development in French-speaking children: Effect of the second language learned (English vs. Dutch) and exposition duration (2 vs. 5 years).

The results of studies targeting cognitive and academic advantages in children frequenting early bilingual immersion school programs (CLIL) have been contradictory. While the impact of the amount of CLIL experience has already been studied, the role of the second language learned has been little studied to account for differences among study findings. The link between executive skills (EF) and scholar abilities (e.g., mathematics) in the CLIL context has also been little investigated. The purpose of the present study was to determine if the impact of CLIL on EF and academic performances varies depending on the immersion language and the duration of CLIL experience. The sample included a total of 230 French-speaking children attending second (141) and fifth (89) grade classes. Within each grade, there were three matched language groups composed of children respectively immersed in English, immersed in Dutch, and non-immersed controls. The children were administered tasks assessing executive functions [alerting, cognitive flexibility, and working memory], as well as arithmetic abilities. In second grade, we detected no difference in EF between the language groups. On the other hand, in fifth grade, the two immersed groups outperformed the non-immersed group on the cognitive flexibility task but did not differ between them. Moreover, only the Dutch immersed group outperformed the control group on the working memory task. Arithmetic performances also differed depending on the language learned; in second grade, Dutch learners performed better than the monolingual group. In fifth grade, Dutch learners outperformed the two other groups. These results suggest that the impact of CLIL on executive skills and arithmetic performances might be modulated by the amount of CLIL experience and the second language learned in immersion.

Do serial order short-term memory and long-term learning abilities predict spelling skills in school-age children?

Compared to most human language abilities, the cognitive mechanisms underlying spelling have not been as intensively investigated as reading and therefore remain to this day less well understood. The current study aims to address this shortcoming by investigating the contribution of serial order short-term memory (STM) and long-term learning (LTL) abilities to emerging spelling skills. Indeed, although there are several reasons to assume associations between serial order memory and spelling abilities, this relationship has hardly been investigated empirically. In this study, we hypothesized that serial order STM plays an important role in spelling novel words, for which children are supposed to rely on a sequential nonlexical spelling procedure. Serial order LTL was hypothesized to be involved in the creation of more stable orthographic representations allowing children to spell (regular and irregular) words by using a lexical spelling strategy based on the direct access to orthographic representations stored in long-term memory. To assess these hypotheses, we conducted a longitudinal study in which we tested a sample of 116 French-speaking children at first grade and two years later at third grade of primary school. At first grade, we administered tasks that were specifically designed to maximize STM and LTL abilities for serial order information. At third grade, we assessed spelling abilities using irregular word, regular word, and pseudoword writing-to-dictation tasks. Bayesian regression analyses showed that pseudoword, but also irregular word spelling was best predicted by serial order STM, while regular word spelling was similarly predicted by both serial order STM and LTL.

Investigating the Effects of Language-Switching Frequency on Attentional and Executive Functioning in Proficient Bilinguals.

Recent studies have proposed that the executive advantages associated with bilingualism may stem from language-switching frequency rather than from bilingualism per se (see, for example, Prior and Gollan, 2011). Barbu et al. (2018) showed that high-frequency switchers (HFLSs) outperformed low-frequency switchers (LFLSs) on a mental flexibility task but not on alertness or response inhibition tasks. The aim of the present study was to replicate these results as well as to compare proficient (HFLSs and LFLSs) to a control group of monolingual participants. Two groups of proficient bilingual adults (30 HFLSs and 21 LFLSs) and a group of 28 monolinguals participated in the study. The results showed superior mental flexibility skills in HFLSs compared to (LFLSs) and monolinguals; furthermore, the two latter groups showed no difference in mental flexibility skills. These results provide novel support for the hypothesis that the so-called bilingual advantage is, in fact, a result of language-switching habits.

Exploration of Attentional and Executive Abilities in French-Speaking Children Immersed in Dutch Since 1, 2, 3, and 6 Years.

Advantages in diverse aspects of cognitive functioning have been reported in early bilinguals (Bialystok, 2011) as well as in children frequenting an early bilingual immersion school program (Nicolay and Poncelet, 2015). However, during the last decade, some studies failed to replicate these advantages. Currently, the presence of cognitive benefits in children frequenting an immersion program remains debated. The lack of consistency between the studies could come from the fact that time spent by children within the immersion program is variable from one study to the other and that studies used different tasks to assess the same cognitive function. The main aim of the present study was to determine how time spent in immersion affects the emergence of cognitive advantages along the primary schooling. We compared 196 immersed Dutch-speaking children since they were 5 years old and 195 non-immersed French-speaking children, from different grades of the primary schooling (i.e., at 6, 7, 8, and 12 years old) by using the same attentional and executive tasks as those used in previous studies having shown a bilingual advantage. Furthermore, these groups were matched on a set of variables known to influence cognitive functioning. After 1, 2, and 3 years of enrolment in this program, performances of immersed compared to non-immersed children did not differ for any task. However, after 6 years, immersed children outperformed non-immersed children on the cognitive flexibility and the working memory tasks. These results show that, in French-speaking children immersed in Dutch, cognitive advantages could depend on the length of time spent in immersion since they are not present at the beginning (after 1, 2, and 3 years) but seem to emerge at the end of it (after 6 years). In contrast, in previous studies conducted in English immersion, advantages appear at the beginning of the primary schooling but are absent at the end of it. Furthermore, these results suggest that the emergence of cognitive advantages may vary depending on the second language learned. The results are discussed in terms of linguistic characteristics and status of the languages at stake.

Correction: Cognitive Advantage in Children Enrolled in a Second-Language Immersion Elementary School Program for One Year.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.5334/pb.469.].

The contribution of serial order short-term memory and long-term learning to reading acquisition: A longitudinal study.

There is increasing evidence for an association between both serial order short-term memory (STM) and the long-term learning (LTL) of serial order information and reading abilities. In this developmental study, we examined the hypothesis that STM for serial order supports online grapheme-to-phoneme conversion processes during the initial stages of reading acquisition, whereas the LTL of serial order serves reading abilities at later stages, when reading starts to rely on more stable, long-term orthographic representations. We followed a sample of 116 French-speaking children from first (Time 1 [T1]) grade of primary school through second (Time 2 [T2]) and third (Time 3 [T3]) grade. Their serial order STM and LTL abilities as well as their reading abilities were assessed. Overall, we observed that early reading abilities were only predicted by serial order STM performance, while more advanced reading abilities were predicted by both serial order STM and LTL performance. These results point toward a predictive role of serial order memory performance in reading acquisition and suggest that serial order STM and LTL support reading at different stages of acquisition. We further discuss our findings in the light of advancing knowledge about the relationship between memory and reading. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2020 APA, all rights reserved).

Serial order short-term memory capacities and specific language impairment: no evidence for a causal association.

This study re-explored the nature of verbal short-term memory (STM) deficits in children with specific language impairment (SLI), by distinguishing item and serial order STM processes. Recent studies have shown serial order STM capacity to be a critical determinant of language development, relative to item STM. In Experiment 1, 12 children with SLI, 12 age-matched children and 12 language-matched children were administered serial order recognition and reconstruction tasks. Experiment 2 assessed implicit serial learning abilities via a Hebb learning task. The SLI group showed impaired performance for the serial order reconstruction and recognition tasks, relative to language-matched and/or age-matched control groups. However, normal serial position effects were observed in all SLI children in the serial order reconstruction task, suggesting normal coding of serial position information. Similarly, performance on the Hebb serial learning task was at chronological age appropriate levels. Experiment 3 showed that the group differences observed for the serial order STM tasks in Experiment 1 disappeared when the SLI group was compared to a mental age-matched control group. Experiment 4 showed similar performance levels in the SLI group and the mental age-matched control group for a nonword recognition task assessing item STM capacities. This study shows that children with SLI have no specific impairments for serial order and item STM components but that poorer general cognitive efficiency is related to functional limitations in verbal STM tasks. The data are in line with limited information processing accounts of SLI.

Impact of auditory selective attention on verbal short-term memory and vocabulary development.

This study investigated the role of auditory selective attention capacities as a possible mediator of the well-established association between verbal short-term memory (STM) and vocabulary development. A total of 47 6- and 7-year-olds were administered verbal immediate serial recall and auditory attention tasks. Both task types probed processing of item and serial order information because recent studies have shown this distinction to be critical when exploring relations between STM and lexical development. Multiple regression and variance partitioning analyses highlighted two variables as determinants of vocabulary development: (a) a serial order processing variable shared by STM order recall and a selective attention task for sequence information and (b) an attentional variable shared by selective attention measures targeting item or sequence information. The current study highlights the need for integrative STM models, accounting for conjoined influences of attentional capacities and serial order processing capacities on STM performance and the establishment of the lexical language network.

Cognitive Advantage in Children Enrolled in a Second-Language Immersion Elementary School Program for One Year.

Early bilingualism has been shown to improve attentional and executive functioning. Nicolay and Poncelet (2013a, 2015) have shown that an early immersion program in school of 3 years improves the completion of tasks assessing these skills. This study aimed to determine whether similar benefits might be present after only 1 year of immersion education. The study also observed whether these potential advantages might also have a positive effect on the academic achievement. Participants included 59 immersed children and 57 monolingual controls. The two groups were compared using the same tasks as those employed by Nicolay and Poncelet (2015). The immersed children showed faster responses in comparison to monolinguals on the selective auditory task. No significant differences were observed on the other attentional, executive, or academic tasks. These outcomes suggest that a period of immersion education as short as 1 year can yield cognitive advantages associated with bilingualism.

Lexical learning in bilingual adults: the relative importance of short-term memory for serial order and phonological knowledge.

Studies of monolingual speakers have shown a strong association between lexical learning and short-term memory (STM) capacity, especially STM for serial order information. At the same time, studies of bilingual speakers suggest that phonological knowledge is the main factor that drives lexical learning. This study tested these two hypotheses simultaneously in participants with variable levels of English-French bilingual proficiency. A word-nonword paired-associate learning task was administered, with nonwords obeying French phonotactic patterns. French phonological knowledge was estimated by a composite French proficiency score summarizing productive and receptive French vocabulary knowledge as well as quantitative and qualitative measures of French exposure. STM measures maximized retention of order information (serial order reconstruction) or retention of phonological item information (single nonword delayed repetition). The French proficiency score and the serial order STM measure independently predicted performance on the paired-associate learning task. These results highlight the conjoined role of phonological knowledge and serial order STM in lexical learning. Importantly, serial order STM remains a strong predictor of lexical learning, even for bilingual individuals who have broad phonological knowledge.