Bilinguals: The Benefits Of Multilingual?

It is estimated that more than half of the world’s population is bilingual, according to Psychology Today. That means about 3.5 billion people use more than one language to communicate every day. There are commonly held benefits attributed to these people who were identified as bilingual or multilingual, the benefits are usually more concrete and personal. Here are a few firsthand accounts we gathered from multilinguals that help explain the daily benefits of being able to speak multiple languages.

Firstly, you can understand and appreciate cultural references and nuances. This is because most works of art and popular culture are more honestly represented in their native language. Listening to a song, reading a classic novel, watching a movie

For many, speaking another language keeps them connected to their families. As the popular saying goes, “you can’t know where you’re going until you know where you’ve been”. Interactions with people of different cultures go deeper. When you speak someone’s native language, you can talk about a lot more than the weather and other daily fillers. Building deep and meaningful relationships with foreign communities usually involves speaking and understanding, partially at least, the same

They tend to score better on standardized tests, especially in math, reading, and vocabulary as they are better at remembering lists or sequences. In learning grammatical rules and vocabulary, they are more perceptive to their surroundings and therefore better at focusing in on important information while weeding out misleading information. Cognitive traps or simple mistakes in spelling or comprehension that our brains tend to make when taking linguistic shortcuts are better avoided when one speaks multiple languages. Multi-linguals might also be better decision-makers. According to a new study, they are more resistant to conditioning and framing techniques, making them less likely to be swayed by such language in advertisements or political campaign speeches. When a multilingual uses one language, the other is functioning along. Their multilingual brain relies on executive functions, a regulatory system of general cognitive abilities that includes processes such as attention and inhibition. They need to use control mechanisms every time they speaks or listens. With a constant practice, it will strengthens the control mechanisms and alter the connected brain regions. Multilingual people often perform better than monolingual people whenever they encounter conflict management and at tasks that needs inhibitory control ability. Knowledge of various type of