Engaging proactive control: Influences of diverse language experiences using insights from machine learning

We used insights from machine learning to address an important but contentious question: is bilingual language experience associated with executive control abilities? Specifically, we assess proactive executive control for over 400 young adult bilinguals via reaction time on an AX continuous performance task (AX-CPT). We measured bilingual experience as a continuous, multidimensional spectrum (i.e., age of acquisition, language entropy, and sheer second language exposure). Linear mixed effects regression analyses indicated significant associations between bilingual language experience and proactive control, consistent with previous work. Information criteria (e.g., AIC) and cross-validation further suggested that these models are robust in predicting data from novel, unmodeled participants. These results were bolstered by cross-validated LASSO regression, a form of penalized regression. However, the results of both cross-validation procedures also indicated that similar predictive performance could be achieved through simpler models that only included information about the AX-CPT (i.e., trial type). Collectively, these results suggest that the effects of bilingual experience on proactive control, to the extent that they exist in younger adults, are likely small. Thus, future studies will require even larger or qualitatively different samples (e.g., older adults or children) in combination with valid, granular quantifications of language experience to reveal predictive effects on novel participants.

本研究运用机器学习的洞见，针对一个重要且颇具争议的问题进行探讨：双语语言经验是否与执行控制能力相关联？具体而言，我们通过AX连续操作任务（AX-CPT）的反应时间，对超过400名年轻双语者的主动执行控制能力进行了评估。我们将双语经验视为一个连续的、多维度的光谱（即习得年龄、语言熵以及第二语言的实际接触量）。线性混合效应回归分析表明，双语语言经验与主动控制之间存在显著关联，这与先前的研究结果相一致。信息准则（例如，AIC）和交叉验证进一步表明，这些模型在预测新型、未经建模的参与者数据方面具有稳健性。这些结果通过交叉验证的LASSO回归（一种惩罚回归形式）得到了加强。然而，两种交叉验证程序的结果也显示，通过仅包含AX-CPT信息（即试验类型）的简单模型也能达到类似的预测性能。综合这些结果，我们认为，在年轻成人中，双语经验对主动控制的影响，如果确实存在，则可能是微小的。因此，未来的研究将需要更大或性质上不同的样本（例如，老年人或儿童），并结合对语言经验的精确、细致的量化，以揭示对新型参与者的影响。