A Dynamic CiteSpace Analysis of Research on Foreign Language Effect Abroad
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.58557/(ijeh).v5i4.373Keywords:
CiteSpace, Foreign language effect, Visual analysisAbstract
Research on the foreign language effect—how using a non-native language influences cognition and decision-making—has gained increasing scholarly attention in recent years. However, there is still limited comprehensive mapping of its development trajectory and thematic evolution on a global scale. This study aims to investigate the research trends, knowledge structures, and emerging hotspots in the field of foreign language effects over the past decade. Utilizing CiteSpace visual analysis software, the study analyzes articles indexed in the Web of Science Core Collection from 2013 to 2023. The analysis focuses on the annual publication trends, geographical distribution of research output, co-citation networks, and keyword clustering. Results indicate a general upward trend in the number of publications, despite fluctuations across years. The dominant research themes revolve around moral psychology, reduced emotionality, dishonesty, and decision-making. The United States, Europe, and East Asia appear as major contributors to this field. These findings suggest that while the foreign language effect has become a prominent interdisciplinary topic, its development in China remains comparatively limited. The study underscores the need to strengthen theoretical frameworks, adopt advanced digital tools such as visual analytics, expand interdisciplinary integration, and deepen empirical exploration within the Chinese context. These implications can inform future research directions and policy decisions aimed at enhancing foreign language education and psychological studies in multilingual settings
References
Alempaki, D., Doğan, G., & Yang, Y. (2020). Lying in a foreign language? Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, 185, 946–961. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jebo.2020.10.027
Alkhammash, R., Asiri, Y. A., Alqarni, I. R., & others. (2023). Can language influence health decisions? The role of foreign language and grammatical structure. Journal of Psycholinguistic Research, 52, 957–974. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10936-022-09918-z
Bereby-Meyer, Y., Hayakawa, S., Shalvi, S., Corey, J. D., Coast, A., & Keysar, B. (2020). Honesty speaks a second language. Topics in Cognitive Science, 12(2), 632–643. https://doi.org/10.1111/tops.12360
Corey, J. D., Hayakawa, S., Foucart, A., Aparici, M., Botella, J., Costa, A., & Keysar, B. (2017). Our moral choices are foreign to us. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition, 43(7), 1109–1128. https://doi.org/10.1037/xlm0000356
Costa, A., Caramazza, A., & Sebastián-Gallés, N. (2000). The cognate facilitation effect: Implications for models of lexical access. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition, 26(5), 1283–1296. https://doi.org/10.1037/0278-7393.26.5.1283
Costa, A., Duñabeitia, J. A., & Keysar, B. (2019). Language context and decision-making: Challenges and advances. Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology, 72(1), 1–2. https://doi.org/10.1177/17470218189799
Costa, A., Foucart, A., Arnon, I., Aparici, M., & Apesteguia, J. (2014). “Piensa” twice: On the foreign language effect in decision making. Cognition, 130(2), 236–254. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cognition.2013.11.010
Costa, A., Foucart, A., Hayakawa, S., Aparici, M., Apesteguia, J., Heafner, J., & Keysar, B. (2014). Your morals depend on language. PLoS ONE, 9(4), e94842. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0094842
Da Silva, C. S., & Leach, A.-M. (2013). Detecting deception in second-language speakers. Legal and Criminological Psychology, 18(1), 115–127. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.2044-8333.2011.02030.x
Duñabeitia, J. A., & Costa, A. (2015). Lying in a native and foreign language. Psychonomic Bulletin & Review, 22(4), 1124–1129. https://doi.org/10.3758/s13423-014-0781-4
Feng, C., Liu, C., & Nolasco, E. E. (2023). Revisiting the foreign language effect on moral decision-making: A closer look at the role of perverse responses. Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development. https://doi.org/10.1080/01434632.2023.2237936
Fernández-Sanz, C., Romero-Rivas, C., & Rodriguez-Cuadrado, S. (2023). Child, would you sacrifice yourself? A study on the foreign language effect in children. Bilingualism: Language and Cognition, 26(2), 446–455. https://doi.org/10.1017/S1366728922000578
Geipel, J., Hadjichristidis, C., & Surian, L. (2015a). The foreign language effect on moral judgment: The role of emotions and norms. PLoS ONE, 10(7), e0131529. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0131529
Geipel, J., Hadjichristidis, C., & Surian, L. (2015b). How foreign language shapes moral judgment. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 59, 8–17. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jesp.2015.02.001
Geipel, J., Hadjichristidis, C., & Surian, L. (2016). Foreign language affects the contribution of intentions and outcomes to moral judgment. Cognition, 154, 34–39. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cognition.2016.05.013
Hayakawa, S., & Keysar, B. (2018). Using a foreign language reduces mental imagery. Cognition, 173, 8–15. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cognition.2018.01.010
Hayakawa, S., Tannenbaum, D., Costa, A., Corey, J. D., & Keysar, B. (2017). Thinking more or feeling less? Explaining the foreign-language effect on moral judgment. Psychological Science, 28(10), 1387–1397. https://doi.org/10.1177/0956797617720944
Ortigosa, I., Jaén, I., Costumero, V., & García-Palacios, A. (2023). The effect of a foreign language on cognitive reappraisal during exposure to a phobic stimulus. Bilingualism: Language and Cognition, 1–10. https://doi.org/10.1017/S1366728923000810
Yavuz, M., Küntay, A. C., & Brouwer, S. (2023). The effect of foreign language and psychological distance on moral judgment in Turkish–English bilinguals. Bilingualism: Language and Cognition, 1–13. https://doi.org/10.1017/S1366728923000706
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2025 Jichen Wu
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
