How essentialist reasoning about language acquisition relates to educational myths and policy endorsements

Cognitive Research: Principles and Implications

Original Article

Shaylene E. Nancekivell¹  Priti Shah²  Susan A. Gelman²  Xin Sun³ 

[1] University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, MB, Canada;University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA;University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA;Department of Psychology, University of British Columbia, 2136 West Mall, V6T1Z4, Vancouver, BC, Canada;

关键词: Language acquisition;    Psychological essentialism;    Bilingualism;    Multilingualism;    Educational policy;    Neuromyths;   

DOI  :  10.1186/s41235-023-00481-2

 received in 2022-12-10, accepted in 2023-04-19,  发布年份 2023

来源: Springer

【 摘 要 】

How people conceptualize learning is related to real-world educational consequences across many domains of education. Despite its centrality to the educational system, we know little about how the public reasons about language acquisition, and the potential consequences for their thinking about real-world issues (e.g., policy endorsements). The current studies examined people’s essentialist beliefs about language acquisition (e.g., that language is innate and biologically based), then investigated how individual differences in these beliefs related to the endorsement of educational myths and policies. We probed several dimensions of essentialist beliefs, including that language acquisition is innate, genetically based, and wired in the brain. In two studies, we tested specific hypotheses regarding the extent to which people use essentialist thinking when reasoning about: learning a specific language (e.g., Korean), learning a first language more generally, and learning two or more languages. Across studies, participants were more likely to essentialize the ability to learn multiple languages than one’s first language, and more likely to essentialize the learning of multiple languages and one’s first language than the learning of a particular language. We also found substantial individual differences in the degree to which participants essentialized language acquisition. In both studies, these individual differences correlated with an endorsement of language-related educational neuromyths (Study 1 and pre-registered Study 2), and rejection of educational policies that promote multilingual education (Study 2). Together, these studies reveal the complexity of how people reason about language acquisition and its corresponding educational consequences.

【 授权许可】

CC BY   
© The Author(s) 2023