Executive neural processing modulations related to bilingualism in older adults

Abstract

Identifying factors that contribute to enhancing cognition and delaying the onset of dementia in the older adults is vital. Yet, many recent investigations have failed to replicate the alleged bilingual advantage in executive functioning. This inability to replicate an advantage may be related to ceiling effects in performance due to participants’ high cognitive reserve (CR), low-difficulty tasks, the prevalence of visual tasks, or the low sensitivity of behavioural measures. To test these possibilities, older adults, who were monolinguals and bilinguals with low and high CR, will perform four executive tasks testing inhibitory and attentional control, featuring low/high difficulty, in both visual and auditory modalities. We will use electroencephalography to analyse event-related potentials (ERPs), specifically the P3b as well as previously neglected components (e.g., negativity central and posterior contralateral). Bilingual advantage in inhibitory and attentional control would be revealed by faster reaction times and/or ERP latencies on conflict trials