Document Type
Senior Honors Project
Publication Date
4-2012
Abstract
The purpose of this study is to examine levels of executive functioning among a group of children who were referred to a pediatric neuropsychology outpatient clinic, and to compare these executive functioning scores between children living in bilingual homes with children living in monolingual homes. One-hundred and fifty children (61% male, mean age = 10.3 years) referred to a pediatric neuropsychology clinic were grouped into 1 of 2 groups based on parent report: English-only homes (N=121, 61% male, mean age = 10.5 years) and bilingual homes (N=29, 61% male, mean age = 9.4 years). Executive functioning was assessed using the Working Memory Index of the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children (WISC-IV), Tests of Variables of Attention (TOVA), and parent- and teacher-ratings on the Behavior Rating Inventory of Executive Functioning (BRIEF). Results indicated that children from bilingual homes have less executive functioning impairment than children from English-only homes according to teacher-ratings of overall executive functioning. In contrast, groups did not differ on parent-ratings and performance-based measures (WISC or TOVA). These results, if replicated, may call for new norms in executive functioning assessment for bilingual exposed children along with supporting the value of a bilingual environment for the developing child.
Recommended Citation
Hermodson-Olsen, Teresa, "Comparisons of the Effects of Monolingual and Bilingual Exposure on Executive Functioning Among Neurodevelopmentally Vulnerable Children" (2012). Antonian Scholars Honors Program. 11.
https://sophia.stkate.edu/shas_honors/11
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