Contribution of Multilingualism to Creativity – Science Report
FULL PRESS RELEASE 
Re: The Contribution of Multilingualism to Creativity – Science Report
For: European Year of Creativity & Innovation 2009
Published by: European Commission (October 2009)
This release prepared by: Research Team Coordinator, David Marsh, University of Jyväskylä, Finland
Focus: Knowledge of more than one language (multilingualism) realising potential for enhanced creativity and innovation.
Overview: This macro study examined scientific evidence which reveals benefits of multilingualism for the brain and subsequent human performance.
Multilingualism is the ability of societies, groups and individuals to engage, on a regular basis, with more than one language in their day-to-day lives.
The study reports six major benefits:
• Enhanced Learning Capacity (The Learning Mind)
Knowledge of languages can lead to superior memory function, especially short-term ‘working’ memory. This enables the brain to hold information for longer whilst the thinking processes are engaged. Enhanced memory can have a profound impact on cognitive function. One implication is the positive impact of languages on the learning of other subjects in education.
• Enhanced Mental Flexibility (The Flexible Mind)
Seeing the world through ‘different lenses’ opens up pathways to more options and avenues for thought. Knowledge of more than one language leads to added value which goes beyond language itself, and which enables the development of special multi-competences. This may be significant for developing certain types of skills in thinking and communication (digital literacy) for the Information Age.
• Enhanced Problem Solving Capability (The Problem-solving Mind)
Superior performance in problem solving that is cognitively demanding, including abstract thinking skills, higher concept formation skills, and creative hypothesis formulation. These build people’s capacity to identify, understand and solve problems.
A key skill in problem solving is the ability to ignore distracting and irrelevant information. This form of inhibitory control, acts like a filter enabling the individual to focus on a given task. This can be considered a ‘key competence enabler’ when handling information-rich internet environments and gaming.
• Enhanced Interpersonal Ability (The Interpersonal Mind)
Multilingualism can enhance interpersonal communication awareness and skills through helping people to better perceive the communicative needs of others; to be more insightful in ‘reading’ situations through contextual sensitivity; and to develop interactional multi-skills in communication. A superior potential for social communication can be a powerful ingredient in enhancing personal creativity.
• Expanded Metalinguistic Ability (The Metalinguistic Mind)
Metalinguistic ability leads to greater understanding of how language is used to achieve specific goals in life, and how to achieve deeper understanding of how language functions. Multilingualism promotes a deeper understanding of ‘how to go beyond the words’, enriching the use of any language, and helps the person become a more skilled communicator.
• Reduced Age-related Mental Diminishment (The Ageing Mind)
Multilingualism is linked to a slowdown of age-related mental diminishment such as certain forms of dementia. It appears to slow down the rate of decline of certain cognitive processes as a person ages, by helping the brain to tolerate pathologies.
The multilingual mind’s ability to resist neuropathological damage is considered to be in the range of 2-4 years. Delays in mental decline of even up to six months are viewed as having considerable implications for public health and for society. The link to creativity is the greater potential for cognitive health amongst the older age groups.