Language and Executive Functions: The Effect of Articulatory Suppression on Executive Functioning in Children

In the present study, the role of language in executive functioning was explored in 6- and 9-year-old children. The experimental paradigm of articulatory suppression (with tapping as a control condition) was used on three different tasks placing low (Flanker Task), middle (Cognitive Flexibility Task), and high (Complex Span Task) demands on memory. The extent to which articulatory suppression specifically impaired performance coincided with the memory demand of the tasks as it was strongest in the Complex Span, present in the Cognitive Flexibility, and absent in the Flanker Task. The impairment was larger in the 9-year-olds than in the 6-year-olds. Taken together, results suggest that the use of speech substantially contributes to developmental progression in executive functioning by supporting memory sustaining processes.