Arab World English Journal (AWEJ) Volume 13. Number 4 December 2022 Pp.468-485
DOI: https://dx.doi.org/10.24093/awej/vol13no4.31
Verbal and Visuospatial Working Memory in Arabic-English Female Bilinguals: Is There
an Advantage?
Lubna Abdullah Alazzaz
Department of Linguistics
College of Languages and Translation
King Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
Fatimah Almutrafi
Department of English Language and Translation
College of Languages and Translation
King Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
Corresponding author: falmutrafi@ksu.edu.sa
Received:06/27/2022 Accepted:11/25/2022 Published: 12/15/2022
Abstract:
This study sheds light on the effect of bilingualism on working memory performance. It aims to investigate whether bilingual speakers have an advantage over monolingual speakers in performing visual-spatial working memory tasks. The present study attempts to be a contribution to the discussion of how working memory performance is affected by bilingualism. It tries to find out whether Arabic-English bilingual speakers have advantages over Arabic monolingual speakers in performing visual-spatial working memory tasks. Two experiments were conducted to test the working memory performance of bilinguals and monolinguals by using verbal and non-verbal tasks. The two measures were completed online; the non-verbal measure involved a picture memorization task, whereas the verbal measure involved word retrieval. Eighty female college students voluntarily participated in the study. Half were Arabic-English bilinguals, and the other half were Arabic monolinguals. Both groups were divided into two subgroups; half performed a non-verbal working memory task, and the other half participated in a verbal working memory task. The results showed no advantages for bilinguals in the picture memorization task. However, a bilingual advantage was found in the verbal working memory task in which bilingual speakers performed better in word retrieval compared to monolingual speakers. The findings indicate a positive effect of bilingualism on working memory performance, particularly in the visual-spatial component.
Keywords: bilingualism, bilingual-advantage, visual-spatial, working-memory
Cite as: Alazzaz, L. A., & Almutrafi, F. (2022). Verbal and Visuospatial Working Memory in Arabic-English Female Bilinguals: Is There an Advantage? Arab World English Journal, 13 (4) 468-485.
DOI: https://dx.doi.org/10.24093/awej/vol13no4.31
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