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The (Spatial) Memory Game: Testing the Relationship Between Spatial Language, Object Knowledge, and Spatial Cognition

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Biases in estimating self and others' second language vocabulary knowledge.

Dorit Segal¹, Yael Sidi¹

¹Department of Education and Psychology, Open University of Israel.

Journal of Experimental Psychology. General

|January 29, 2026

Summary

Bilinguals often misestimate others' vocabulary knowledge, especially when language backgrounds differ. Confidence in one's own knowledge significantly influences these estimations, impacting communication effectiveness.

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Area of Science:

Cognitive Psychology
Bilingualism Studies
Sociolinguistics

Background:

Accurate estimation of others' knowledge is crucial for effective communication.
Bilingual contexts present unique challenges for estimating others' vocabulary knowledge due to language background variations.
Limited research exists on how bilingual individuals estimate the second language vocabulary knowledge of others.

Purpose of the Study:

To investigate how bilinguals estimate their own and others' second language vocabulary knowledge.
To examine the influence of language background similarity on these estimations.
To determine if objective information affects knowledge estimation in bilinguals.

Main Methods:

Study 1 involved bilinguals estimating vocabulary knowledge under conditions of similar, unknown, or different language backgrounds.
Study 2 assessed the impact of providing objective information on these estimations.
Participants' confidence in their own knowledge was measured as a potential influencing factor.

Main Results:

Consistent biases were observed in knowledge estimation, significantly shaped by the similarity of language backgrounds.
Higher confidence in self-knowledge was a key predictor of how participants estimated others' knowledge.
Providing objective information did not alter the estimation biases.

Conclusions:

Language background similarity plays a critical role in how bilinguals estimate others' vocabulary knowledge.
Metacognitive factors, specifically confidence in self-knowledge, are central to understanding knowledge estimation processes in bilinguals.
The findings offer insights into metacognition and knowledge estimation, with implications for communication strategies in diverse linguistic settings.