Examining the Relationship Between Bilingualism and Social Capital: A Case Study of Citizens Aged Between 18 to 60 in Kermanshah

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

1 Assistant Professor in Sociology, Department of Social Sciences, Faculty of Social Sciences, Payame Noor University, Tehran, Iran.

2 Assistant Professor in Linguistics, Department of Linguistics and Foreign Languages, Faculty of Literature, Payame Noor University, Tehran, Iran

Abstract

The relationship between bilingualism and social capital is a significant topic in sociological and linguistic research. This article aims to examine the correlation between these two variables in line with the question of whether bilingualism has a correlation with social capital, in other words, whether bilingual individuals have higher social capital than monolinguals. This research was conducted with a survey method on 385 statistical samples of citizens of Kermanshah city. The data collection method was a questionnaire and the PPS sampling method was used for sampling. The findings show a statistically significant difference between monolingualism and bilingualism; bilingualism and multilingualism; monolingualism, bilingualism and multilingualism in terms of social capital. The general result of the research indicates that there is a relatively strong correlation between bilingualism and social capital, but the meaning of this relationship is not that bilingualism necessarily guarantees higher social capital, but it provides linguistic and cultural tools for people to gain it by facilitating the development of social networks and resources, which are the main components of social capital.
Introduction
Bilingualism and multilingualism, whether it is accidental or planned, create ability in a person that can greatly help his success in life. In a cross-sectional study, bilinguals performed better than monolinguals in executive tasks (Bialystok et al., 2008). In a longitudinal study, bilingualism was associated with better memory and executive function (Zahodne et al., 2014). The relationship between bi/multilingualism and social capital is another significant topic in sociolinguistic research. Hence, this article seeks to analyze and explain the relationship between bi/multilingualism and the category of social capital to answer the question whether there is a correlation between bilingualism and social capital. In other words, do bi/multilinguals have higher social capital than monolingual individuals? To do this, the authors conducted research in the city of Kermanshah which is one of the multi-ethnic and multilingual metropolises in Iran in the west of the country, with a population of over one million people.
Research hypotheses:

There is a statistically significant difference between monolingual and bilingual individuals in terms of social capital.
There is a statistically significant difference between monolingual, bilingual and multilingual individuals in terms of the amount of social capital.
There is a statistically significant difference between bilingual and multilingual individuals in terms of social capital.

Methods
The method of this research is a survey. The reason for choosing this method is the expansion of the statistical population the need to obtain accurate results about a metropolis. The technique used to collect information in this research is a questionnaire. The statistical population of this research research includes all citizens of Kermanshah aged between 18 and 60 years. In this research, the cluster sampling method with probability proportionate to size (PPS) was used. The city of Kermanshah was divided into clusters and in each cluster; a number of questionnaires were completed based on the cluster’s population size. To determine the sample size, the Krejcie and Morgan table was used, and the final statistical sample size was 385 individuals.
SPSS software has been used for data analysis. In the SPSS environment, tables, graphs, and central and dispersion indicators such as mean, median, mean, variance, and standard deviation are used in order to check the descriptive statistics according to the measurement level of each variable. For inferential statistics, t-test statistics of two independent groups and one-way analysis of variance have been used in accordance with specific measurement levels.
Results
     This research was conducted on a statistical sample of 385 individuals, whose average age was 33.46; the median is 33 years and the mode or maximum frequency was 32 years. In terms of gender, 52.5% of the statistical sample were men and 47.5% were women. In terms of the number of languages that the respondents are familiar with and can speak, they were divided into three categories: monolingual (11.7%), bilingual (73.5%), and multilingual (14.8%).
     The hypotheses sought to determine whether there is a statistically significant difference between monolingual and bilingual individuals in terms of the amount of social capital. Is this difference significant between bilingual and multilingual individuals? And in the case of comparing these three groups together, i.e. monolinguals, bilinguals, and multilinguals, their average social capital is statistically different from each other. The first hypothesis was evaluated through the t-test of two independent groups, the result of which indicated that there is a statistically significant difference between these two groups, and the research hypothesis is confirmed. For the second hypothesis, a one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used to compare the three groups. The results showed that the difference among the groups was significant, confirming the hypothesis To test the third hypothesis, a parametric independent samples t-test was conducted. The results indicated a statistically significant difference between the bilingual and multilingual groups, confirming the hypothesis. Therefore, there is a difference in social capital levels between bilingual and multilingual individuals, with multilinguals showing higher levels of social capital.
     In general, the results of the data indicated that there is a statistically significant difference between monolinguals and bilinguals. This also holds true for bilinguals and multilinguals—that is, multilingual individuals have higher levels of social capital than bilinguals. It appears that with the acquisition of each additional language, an individual’s social capital tends to increase.
Conclusion
     This research aims to investigate the effect of bi/multilingualism on social capital. Results show that individuals’ social capital increases by the number of the languages they have learned or acquired. In the analysis of these results, it can be said that the important point about bi/multilingualism from a sociological point of view is that bi/multilingualism goes beyond the scope and realm of individual culture and language and causes intercultural understanding. By learning the language of other cultures and societies, a person gets acquainted with a new set of cultural elements and experiences not only bilingualism, but likely biculturalism as well. Bilingualism connects individuals to broader social networks, thereby enhancing their social capital.
Social capital, in turn, transforms a person's life in many ways by strengthening their social ties and providing them with a network of relationships that can be used to achieve personal and professional goals. By creating strong social connections, a person can access valuable resources such as information, support, and greater opportunities, which significantly increases their overall well-being and success. However, the relationship between bi/multilingualism and social capital is complex and context-dependent. In some cases, if there are social barriers to intercultural communication, bilingualism and multilingualism may not lead to an increase in social capital. Therefore, although, there is a relatively strong correlation between bi/multilingualism and social capital, this relationship does not mean that bi/multilingualism necessarily guarantees higher social capital. At the same time, bilingualism and multilingualism provide people with linguistic and cultural tools that can facilitate the development of social networks and resources, which are the main components of social capital.
Ethical Considerations
Not applicable
Funding
Not applicable
Conflict of interest
The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Keywords

Main Subjects

References

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Research in Western Iranian Languages and Dialects
Volume 13, Issue 2
June 2025
Pages 1-17

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