ABSTRACT
In the realm of Cultural-Historical Theory, A. Luria suggested writing as a model of a complex system of higher mental function, since that function is based on various psycho-physiological mechanisms, including processing of audial and visual information; and as a complex system of the frontal lobe functions of overcoming perseveration, and creation and control of the writing program. Subsequent research on these topics has shown a close association between the level of development of executive functions (EF) and writing skills. Nevertheless, the question of which parts of EF influence which aspects of writing, remains unresolved. In addition, there are few longitudinal studies of EF's influence on writing. In this article, we focus on the results of a longitudinal study of the influence of EF in children 6.3 years old on their mastery of basic writing skills at the age of 7.5. The results of regression model construction showed that all the aspects of executive functions strongly influenced the children's transcription skills, while the greatest impact on the development of the graphomotor component and spelling skills was exerted by working memory and inhibition control. These results are consistent with studies that have shown a correlation between the development of writing skills and EF. These results also confirm A. Luria's views on the importance of functions responsible for processing audial and visual information in the process of writing, and the importance of suppressing irrelevant stimuli and perseverations. Our research shows the importance of the development of EF in preschool childhood.
ABSTRACT
Background: The phenomenon of multilingualism and its impact on child development are in the spotlight of latter-day psychology, and of utmost importance both for theory and practice. Language development is a strong predictor of psychological readiness for school and further academic success. At the same time, children's mastery of written and oral speech in school education in a multilingual environment has several distinctive features. This study was dedicated to examining the influence of executive functions on the development of the vocabulary aspects of speech (both active and passive vocabulary) of mono- and bilingual children growing up in a bilingual environment. Objective: We aimed to analyze the relationship between bilingualism and language development (vocabulary and verbal fluency) and determine which executive functions may help overcome the resulting difficulties at preschool age. Design: Both monolingual and bilingual children participated in the study (n = 137 and n = 81, respectively). The children's ages ranged from 6 to 7 years (M = 78.7 months, SD = 5.87). Two independent General Linear Models (GLM) were built to define which executive functions influenced the vocabulary and verbal fluency of the mono- and bilingual subjects (controlling for age, gender, and non-verbal intelligence as well). Results: The results confirmed that bilingualism is negatively related to language development, but showed that verbal working memory significantly helps bilinguals compensate for difficulties in developing vocabulary and verbal fluency. Conclusion: The study demonstrated that the ability to preserve and reproduce verbal information was of more significance for children's vocabulary and verbal fluency than their language group (mono- or bilingual).
