The effects of bidialectalism on cognitive functioning among young and midlife adults in Austria

Abstract One of the most widely debated topics in bilingualism research pertains to the issue of the “bilingual advantage”, that is the idea that regular use of multiple languages can enhance cognitive abilities. A related notion is that control of two typologically very close languages such as a vernacular and standard language variety (i.e., bidialectalism) may foster cognitive control abilities due to the ubiquitous everyday usage of both varieties. We set out to investigate to what extent varying usage of and proficiency in standard German and the Austro-Bavarian vernacular correlate with three measures of cognitive functioning, namely working memory, divided attention, and alertness, among 39 young and midlife adults (aged 21–64). We found that, controlling for sociodemographic features, Austro-Bavarian-dominant bidialectals demonstrated superior performance on the working memory task, but not on the alertness or divided attention tasks. These findings shed new light on the effects of bidialectalism on cognitive functioning in adulthood.