Bilinguals use language-control brain areas more than monolinguals to perform non-linguistic switching tasks

Abstract

We tested the hypothesis that early bilinguals use language-control brain areas more than monolinguals when performing/nnon-linguistic executive control tasks. We do so by exploring the brain activity of early bilinguals and monolinguals in a taskswitching/nparadigm using an embedded critical trial design. Crucially, the task was designed such that the behavioural/nperformance of the two groups was comparable, allowing then to have a safer comparison between the corresponding/nbrain activity in the two groups. Despite the lack of behavioural differences between both groups, early bilinguals used/nlanguage-control areas – such as left caudate, and left inferior and middle frontal gyri – more than monolinguals, when/nperforming the switching task. Results offer direct support for the notion that, early bilingualism exerts an effect in the/nneural circuitry responsible for executive control. This effect partially involves the recruitment of brain areas involved in/nlanguage control when performing domain-general executive control tasks, highlighting the cross-talk between these two/ndomains.