Introduction

For many years, it was believed that knowing more than one language would lead to negative consequences such as mental retardation. However, research done by Peal and Lambert (1962) revealed that being bilingual can bring about positive benefits and outcomes. First language, or L1, is defined as the language that an individual acquires first and is usually equivalent to the native language mainly used in one’s community (Matthews, 2014). In the same way, second language is defined as the language that an individual acquires subsequent to their native language (Matthews, 2014), and is sometimes referred to as the foreign language or L2. Multilinguals, who are individuals that know more than one language, outnumber monolinguals in the world. More specifically, we will be referring them as bilinguals since we are focusing on acquisition of a second language.

Charlemagne, the great medieval ruler, once proclaimed that “to have a second language is to have a second soul” (Dold, 2011). That is, by acquiring a second language, new thought processes are created within an individual. Consequently, the direction of much research has been to investigate the effect of the L2 on one’s cognitive processes. The correlation between the two variables – L2 and cognitive processes, can be demonstrated by the Sapir-Whorf hypothesis, which was devised and coined by Hoijer (1954). The hypothesis states that language either determines or influences our cognitive thoughts and the ability to form conceptions of the world, with the former being the strong view and the latter being the weak view of the hypothesis. This thus leads to the question – with the addition of an L2, and the knowledge that comes with it, how would one’s cognitive ability be affected?

Parents, as well as potential second language learners, often express concern about acquiring a second language – whether it would have any effects on one’s L1. That is, would the cognitive load be too much for one to handle and would the acquisition of a second language be detrimental to the individual’s L1?

There has been extensive research done regarding these topics, such that interested readers are often overwhelmed with several differing opinions and conflicting evidence regarding the effects of second language acquisition on thought and language. Thus, this WikiChapter hopes to provide a clearer picture for readers through the summaries of relevant literature, as well as a general discussion of the implications of the findings.

This WikiChapter would be focusing on two main bodies of the topic. They are, specifically, how the acquisition of a second language may affect our cognitive processes, and how it may affect our first language.

Cognitive processes 

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