The effect of multilingualism/multiculturalism on personality: no gain without pain for Third Culture Kids?

TLDR

The study examines how multilingualism, multiculturalism, and acculturation relate to personality traits among 79 London teenagers, including half who are Third Culture Kids. TCKs scored higher on open‑mindedness and cultural empathy but lower on emotional stability, and greater language dominance and multilingual proficiency further amplified these traits, confirming that social and biographical factors shape personality and that acculturation, though stressful, enhances cultural empathy and open‑mindedness. The study cites Pollock & Van Reken (2001) and is published by Nicholas Brealey Publishing/Intercultural Press.

Abstract

Abstract The present study investigates the link between multilingualism/multiculturalism, acculturation and the personality profile (as measured by the Multicultural Personality Questionnaire) of 79 young London teenagers, half of whom were born abroad and had settled down in London during their childhood 'Third Culture Kids' (TCKs; Pollock & Van Reken, 2001 Pollock, D.C. and Van Reken, R. 2001. Third culture kids, Yarmouth, ME: Nicholas Brealey Publishing/Intercultural Press. [Google Scholar]). Statistical analyses revealed that TCKs scored higher on the dimension of Openmindedness and Cultural Empathy and scored lower on Emotional Stability. Language dominance (first language (L1), L1 and one or two other languages (multidominance), or any language which is not the L1 (LX) had a significant effect on the participants' personality profile, with the multidominant group scoring significantly higher on Openmindedness, marginally higher on Cultural Empathy and significantly lower on Emotional Stability than participants dominant in one language only. The number of languages known by participants was also significantly linked to their personality profile, with functional multilinguals scoring significantly higher than incipient bilinguals on Openmindedness, marginally higher on Cultural Empathy and significantly lower on Emotional Stability. These findings confirm that personality is shaped by social and biographical factors. Acculturation is stressful but the experience of having to fit in and being in contact with different languages and cultures strengthens Cultural Empathy and Openmindedness.