Research Focus
Research Focus
Ellen Bialystok, Ph.D., FRSC, is Distinguished Research Professor of Psychology at York University and Associate Scientist at the Rotman Research Institute of the Baycrest Centre for Geriatric Care. She received her Ph.D. from the University of Toronto in 1976. Much of her research has focused on the effect of bilingualism on children’s language and cognitive development, showing accelerated mastery of specific cognitive processes for bilingual children. This research has recently been extended to investigations of adult processing and found that lifelong bilingualism protects older adults from cognitive decline with aging. Other research includes studies of literacy acquisition in young children, models of metalinguistic awareness and second-language acquisition, and the development of spatial cognition and its relation to other cognitive abilities. She is the author of 6 books and over 100 scientific papers in journals and books. Among her awards are a Killam Research Fellowship, Walter Gordon Research Fellowship, Dean’s Award for Outstanding Research, and Language Learning Distinguished Scholar in Residence. She has been invited to lecture in universities around the world, covering four continents and numerous countries.
Profile Link:
http://research.baycrest.org/ebialystok
Learn more about ongoing research