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Involvement of Executive Functions in Idiom Comprehension: A Life-Span Perspective
Agnès Lacroix1, Nolwenn Troles1, Mélissa Burgevin1
1Laboratoire de Psychologie du Comportement, Cognition et Communication (EA 1285), University of Rennes 2, 35000 Rennes, France.
Brain Sciences
|November 27, 2024
Summary
Idiom comprehension improves with age, with executive functions like inhibition and cognitive flexibility playing key roles. These cognitive processes are particularly important during adolescence for understanding figurative language.
Area of Science:
- Cognitive Psychology
- Developmental Neuroscience
- Linguistics
Background:
- Idiom comprehension is crucial for language proficiency but the underlying cognitive mechanisms are not fully understood.
- Previous research focused on developmental aspects, with limited insight into executive functions.
- Working memory and inhibitory control are implicated in processing figurative language.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the role of executive functions in idiom comprehension across a lifespan.
- To examine how cognitive processes like inhibition and flexibility contribute to understanding idioms.
- To explore age-specific patterns in executive function involvement during idiom processing.
Main Methods:
- A cohort of 109 participants aged 6 to adulthood completed an idiom comprehension task.
- Executive function tests were administered to assess cognitive abilities.
- Data were analyzed to correlate executive functions with idiom comprehension across age groups.
Main Results:
- Idiom comprehension showed significant improvement across all tested age groups.
- Inhibitory control and cognitive flexibility were identified as key executive functions.
- The involvement of these executive functions varied with age, peaking in adolescence.
Conclusions:
- Executive functions, particularly inhibition and cognitive flexibility, are integral to idiom comprehension.
- Adolescence represents a critical period for the development of these executive functions in relation to figurative language.
- Understanding these cognitive underpinnings can inform educational and therapeutic interventions for language development.
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