Cover not available

Article published In: Translation, Cognition & Behavior
Vol. 4:1 (2021) ► pp.74–97

Get fulltext from our e-platform
JBE logo with link
PDF logo with download linkDownload PDF
authorization required

The potential benefits of subtitles for enhancing language acquisition and literacy in children

An integrative review of experimental research

ORCiD logo with link | University of East Anglia
Published online: 9 June 2021
DOI logo with link
https://doi.org/10.1075/tcb.00051.bla
Abstract
While a considerable body of experimental work has been conducted since the beginning of the 1980s to study whether subtitles enhance the acquisition of other languages in adults, research of this type investigating subtitles as a tool for enhancing children’s language learning and literacy has received less attention. This study provides an integrative review of existing studies in this area and finds extensive evidence that subtitled AV content can indeed aid the acquisition of other languages in children and adolescents, and that it can moreover enhance the literacy skills of children learning to read in their L1 or the official language of the country in which they live and receive schooling. Recommendations for future research are also made, and it is highlighted that further research using eye tracking to measure children’s gaze behaviour could shed new light on their attention to and processing of subtitled AV content.
Article outline
  • 1.Introduction
  • 2.Theoretical framework
    • 2.1Incidental language acquisition vs intentional language learning
    • 2.2Automatic subtitle processing and dual coding theory
  • 3.Materials and methods
  • 4.Data analysis and presentation
    • 4.1Subtitles as a tool for the incidental acquisition and intentional learning of other languages in children
    • 4.2Subtitles as a tool for enhancing children’s literacy skills
  • 5.Discussion
  • 6.Conclusion
  • Notes
  • References
References (68)
References
Angelone, Erik, Maureen Ehrensberger-Dow, and Gary Massey. 2016. “Cognitive processes.” In Researching Translation and Interpreting, edited by Claudia V. Angelelli, and Brian J. Baer, 43–57. Abingdon and New York: Routledge.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Bianchi, Francesca, and Tiziana Ciabattoni. 2008. “Captions and Subtitles in EFL Learning: an investigative study in a comprehensive computer environment.” In From Didactas to Ecolingua: An Ongoing Research Project on Translation and Corpus Linguistics, edited by Anthony Baldry, Maria Pavesi, Carol Taylor Toresello, and Christopher Taylor, 69–90. Trieste: EUT Edizioni Università di Trieste.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Bird, Stephen A., and John N. Williams. 2002. “The effect of bimodal input on implicit and explicit memory: An investigation into the benefits of within-language subtitling.” Applied Psycholinguistics 23 (4): 509–533. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Black, Sharon. 2020. “Could integrated subtitles benefit young viewers? Children’s reception of standard and integrated subtitles: a mixed methods approach using eye tracking.” Perspectives: Studies in Translation Theory and Practice. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Bravo, Maria da Conceição Condinho. 2008. Putting the reader in the picture: Screen translation and foreign-language learning. PhD Thesis, Universitat Rovira i Virgili. Retrieved from: [URL]
Caimi, Annamaria. 2006. “Audiovisual Translation and Language Learning: The Promotion of Intralingual Subtitles.” The Journal of Specialised Translation 61: 85–98.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
. 2011. “Cognitive insights into the role of subtitling in L2 learning.” In Audiovisual Translation in Close-up: Practical and Theoretical Approaches, edited by Adriana Şerban, Anna Matamala, and Jean-Marc Lavaur, 113–129. Bern: Peter Lang AG.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Cambra, Cristina, Aurora Leal, and Núria Silvestre. 2013. “The interpretation and visual attention of hearing impaired children when watching a subtitled cartoon.” The Journal of Specialised Translation 201: 134–146.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Cambra, Cristina, Olivier Penacchio, Núria Silvestre, and Aurora Leal. 2014. “Visual attention to subtitles when viewing a cartoon by deaf and hearing children: an eye-tracking pilot study.” Perspectives: Studies in Translatology 22 (4): 607–617. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Cooper, Harris. 1998. Synthesizing Research: A Guide for Literature Reviews. Thousand Oaks: Sage Publications.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Danan, Martine. 1992. “Reversed subtitling and dual coding theory: New directions for foreign language instruction.” Language Learning 42 (4): 497–527. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
. 2004. “Captioning and Subtitling: Undervalued Language Learning Strategies.” Meta 49 (1): 67–77. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Davey, Ronnie, and Faye Parkhill. 2012. “Raising adolescent reading achievement: The use of sub-titled popular movies and high interest literacy activities.” English in Aotearoa 781: 61–71.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
De Bot, Kees, John Jagt, Henk Janssen, Erik Kessels, and Erik Schils. 1986. “Foreign television and language maintenance.” Second Language Research 2 (1): 72–82.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
D’Ydewalle, Géry, and Wim De Bruycker. 2007. “Eye Movements of Children and Adults While Reading Television Subtitles.” European Psychologist 12 (3): 196–205. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
D’Ydewalle, Géry, and Ubolwanna Pavakanun. 1995. “Acquisition of a Second/Foreign Language by Viewing a Television Program.” In Psychology of Media in Europe. The State of the Art – Perspectives for the Future, edited by Peter Winterhoff-Spurk, 51–64. Opladen: Westdeutscher Verlag GmbH. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
. 1996. “Le sous-titrage à la télévision facilite-t-il l’acquisition des langues?” In Les transferts linguistiques dans les médias audiovisuels, edited by Yves Gambier, 217–223. Lille: Presses Universitaires du Septentrion.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
. 1997. “Could Enjoying a Movie Lead to Language Acquisition?” In New Horizons in Media Psychology, edited by Peter Winterhoff-Spurk, and Tom H. A. van der Voort, 145–155. Opladen: Westdeutscher Verlag GmbH. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
D’Ydewalle, Géry, Caroline Praet, Karl Verfaillie, and Johan Van Rensbergen. 1991. “Watching Subtitled Television: Automatic Reading Behaviour.” Communication Research 18 (5): 650–666. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
D’Ydewalle, Géry, and Marijke Van de Poel. 1999. “Incidental Foreign-Language Acquisition by Children Watching Subtitled Television Programs.” Journal of Psycholinguistic Research 28 (3): 227–244. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
D’Ydewalle, Géry, and Johan Van Rensbergen. 1989. “Developmental Studies of Text-Picture Interactions in the Perception of Animated Cartoons with Text.” In Knowledge Acquisition from Text and Pictures, edited by Heinz Mandl, and Joel R. Levin, 233–248. North Holland: Elsevier Science Publishers B.V. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Eysenck, Michael W., and Mark T. Keane. 2010. Cognitive Psychology: A Student’s Handbook. Hove and New York: Psychology Press.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Garza, Thomas J. 1991. “Evaluating the Use of Captioned Video Materials in Advanced Foreign Language Learning.” Foreign Language Annals 24 (3): 239–258. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Ghia, Elisa. 2011. “The acquisition of L2 syntax through audiovisual translation.” In Audiovisual Translation in Close-up: Practical and Theoretical Approaches, edited by Adriana Şerban, Anna Matamala, and Jean-Marc Lavaur, 95–112. Bern: Peter Lang AG.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Goldman, Milton, and Sandra Goldman. 1988. “Reading with close-captioned TV.” Journal of Reading 31 (5): 458–461.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Guillory, Helen G. 1998. “The Effects of Keyword Captions to Authentic French Video on Learner Comprehension.” Calico Journal 15 (1–3): 89–108. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Hulstijn, Jan H. 2001. “Intentional and incidental second language vocabulary learning: a reappraisal of elaboration, rehearsal and automaticity.” In Cognition and Second Language Instruction, edited by Peter Robinson, 258–286. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Jensema, Carl J. 2003. The Relation Between Eye Movement and Reading Captions and Print by School-Age Deaf Children. Wheaton: Institute for Disability Research and Training, Inc.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Koolstra, Cees M., and Johannes W. J. Beentjes. 1999. “Children’s Vocabulary Acquisition in a Foreign Language Through Watching Subtitled Television Programs at Home.” Educational Technology Research and Development 47 (1): 51–60. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Koolstra, Cees M., Tom H. A. van der Voort, and Leo J. T. van der Kamp. 1997. “Television’s impact on children’s reading comprehension and decoding skills: A 3-year panel study.” Reading Research Quarterly 32 (2): 128–152. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Koolstra, Cees M., Tom H. A. van der Voort, and Géry d’Ydewalle. 1999. “Lengthening the Presentation Time of Subtitles on Television: Effects on Children’s Reading Time and Recognition.” Communications 24 (4): 407–422. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Koskinen, Patricia S., Robert M. Wilson, Linda B. Gambrell, and Carl J. Jensema. 1986. “Using closed captioned television to enhance reading skills of learning disabled students.” In Solving problems in literacy: Learners, teachers, and researchers, edited by Jerome A. Niles, and Rosary V. Lalik, 61–65. Rochester: National Reading Conference.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
. 1991. “Captioned video technology and television-based reading instruction.” In Literacy: Issues and practices, edited by Suzanne Clewell, 39–47. Bethesda: Yearbook of the State of Maryland International Reading Association.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Koskinen, Patricia S., Robert M. Wilson, Linda B. Gambrell, and Susan B. Neuman. 1993. Captioned Video and Vocabulary Learning: An Innovative Practice in Literary Instruction. Athens: National Reading Research Center.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Koskinen, Patricia S., Robert M. Wilson, and Carl J. Jensema. 1985. “Closed-Captioned Television: A New Tool for Reading Instruction.” Reading World 24 (4): 1–7. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Kothari, Brij, and Tathagata Bandyopadhyay. 2014. “Same language subtitling of Bollywood film songs on TV: Effects on literacy.” Information Technologies and International Development 10 (4): 31–47.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Kothari, Brij, Joe Takeda, Ashok Joshi, and Avinash Pandey. 2002. “Same language subtitling: a butterfly for literacy?” International Journal of Lifelong Education 21(1): 55–66. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Krashen, Stephen D. 1982. Principles and Practice in Second Language Acquisition. Oxford: Pergamon Press.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Kuppens, An H. 2010. “Incidental foreign language acquisition from media exposure.” Learning, Media and Technology 35 (1): 65–85. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Linebarger, Deborah. 2001. “Learning to Read From Television: The Effects of Using Captions and Narration.” Journal of Educational Psychology 93 (2): 288–298. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Linebarger, Deborah, Jessica T. Piotrowski, and Charles R. Greenwood. 2010. “On-screen print: the role of captions as a supplemental literacy tool.” Journal of Research in Reading 33 (2): 148–167. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Markham, Paul. 1989. “The Effects of Captioned Television Videotapes on the Listening Comprehension of Beginning, Intermediate, and Advanced ESL Students.” Educational Technology 29 (10): 38–41.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
. 1999. “Captioned Videotapes and Second-Language Listening Word Recognition.” Foreign Language Annals 32 (3): 321–328. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Markham, Paul, and Lizette Peter. 2003. “The Influence of English Language and Spanish Language Captions on Foreign Language Listening/Reading Comprehension.” Journal of Educational Technology Systems 31 (3): 331–341. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Minucci, Michele V., and Maria S. Cárnio. 2010. “Movie subtitles reading skills of elementary school children.” Pró-Fono Revista de Atualização Científica 22 (3): 227–232. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Montero Pérez, Maribel, Elke Peters, and Piet Desmet. 2013. “Is less more? Effectiveness and perceived usefulness of keyword and full captioned video for L2 listening comprehension.” ReCALL 26 (1): 21–43. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Mora, Joan C., and Eva Cerviño-Povedano. 2019. “The Effects of Bimodal L2 Input on the Processing of Function Words by Spanish EFL Learners: An Eye-Tracking Study.” In Using Film and Media in the Language Classroom: Reflections on Research-led Teaching, edited by Carmen Herrero, and Isabelle Vanderschelden, 76–91. Bristol: Multilingual Matters. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Muñoz, Carmen. 2017. “The role of age and proficiency in subtitle reading. An eye tracking study.” System 671: 77–86. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Neuman, Susan B., and Patricia S. Koskinen. 1992. “Captioned Television as Comprehensible Input: Effects of Incidental Word Learning from Context for Language Minority Students.” Reading Research Quarterly 27 (1): 94–106. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Paivio, Allan. 1986. Mental Representations: A Dual Coding Approach. New York: Oxford University Press.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Parkhill, Faye, Jilaine Johnson, and Jane Bates. 2011. “Capturing literacy learners: Evaluating a reading programme using popular novels and films with subtitles.” Digital Culture & Education 3 (2): 140–156.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Pavakanun, Ubolwanna, and Géry d’Ydewalle. 1992. “Watching Foreign Television Programs and Language Learning.” In Cognitive modelling and interactive environments in language learning, edited by Frits L. Engel, Don G. Bouwhuis, Tom Bösser, and Géry d’Ydewalle, 193–198. Berlin: Springer-Verlag. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Perego, Elisa, Fabio del Missier, Marco Porta, and Mauro Mosconi. 2010. “The Cognitive Effectiveness of Subtitle Processing.” Media Psychology 131: 243–272. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Price, Karen. 1983. “Closed-captioned TV: an untapped resource.” MATSOL Newsletter 12 (2): 1&8.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Pujadas, Geòrgia, and Carmen Muñoz. 2020. “Examining adolescent EFL learners’ TV viewing comprehension through captions and subtitles.” Studies in Second Language Acquisition 42 (3): 551–575. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Schacter, Daniel L. 1992. “Priming and Multiple Memory Systems: Perceptual Mechanisms of Implicit Memory.” Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience 4 (3): 244–256. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Szarkowska, Agnieszka, and Olivia Gerber-Morón. 2019. “Two or three lines: a mixed-methods study on subtitle processing and preferences.” Perspectives: Studies in Translation Theory and Practice 27 (1): 144–164. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Tamayo, Anna. 2015. Estudio descriptivo y experimental de la subtitulación en TV para niños sordos: una propuesta alternativa. PhD Thesis, Universitat Jaume I. Retrieved from: [URL]
Tamayo, Anna, and Frederic Chaume. 2017. “Subtitling for d/Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing Children: Current Practices and New Possibilities to Enhance Language Development.” Brain Sciences 7 (7). Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Torraco, Richard J. 2016. “Writing Integrative Literature Reviews: Using the Past and Present to Explore the Future.” Human Resource Development Review 15 (4): 404–428. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Vanderplank, Robert. 1988. “The value of teletext sub-titles in language learning.” ELT Journal 42 (4): 272–281. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Van Lommel, Sven, Annouschka Laenen, and Géry d’Ydewalle. 2006. “Foreign-grammar acquisition while watching subtitled television programmes.” British Journal of Educational Psychology 76 (2): 243–258. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Vulchanova, Mila, Lisa M. Aurstad, Ingrid E. Kvitnes, and Hendrik Eshuis. 2015. “As naturalistic as it gets: subtitles in the English classroom in Norway.” Front Psychol 51: 1510. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Whittemore, Robin, and Kathleen Knafl. 2005. “The integrative review: Updated methodology.” Journal of Advanced Nursing 52 (5): 546–553. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Winke, Paula, Susan Gass, and Tetyana Sydorenko. 2010. “The effects of captioning videos used for foreign language listening activities.” Language Learning & Technology 14 (1): 65–86.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Zárate, Soledad. 2014. Subtitling for deaf children: Granting accessibility to audiovisual programmes in an educational way. PhD Thesis, University College London. Retrieved from: [URL]
Zárate, Soledad, and Joseph Eliahoo. 2014. “Word recognition and content comprehension of subtitles for television by deaf children.” The Journal of Specialised Translation 211: 133–152.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Cited by (8)

Cited by eight other publications

Domagała-Zyśk, Ewa
2025. Subtitling for Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing Children: Not Only Functionality but Art. Anglica An International Journal of English Studies 34:2 ► pp. 46 ff. DOI logo
You, Zihao
2025. Companion Publication of the 2025 Conference on Computer-Supported Cooperative Work and Social Computing, ► pp. 26 ff. DOI logo
Zabrodzka, Monika
2025. Mapping the Evolving Landscape of Audiovisual Translation and Media Accessibility. Anglica An International Journal of English Studies 34:2 ► pp. 5 ff. DOI logo
Gesa, Ferran & Imma Miralpeix
2024. Extensive viewing and L2 vocabulary learning. ITL - International Journal of Applied Linguistics 175:2 ► pp. 187 ff. DOI logo
Hu, Bei
2024. Using media accessibility as a stimulus for teaching audio-visual translation: a Singapore case study. The Interpreter and Translator Trainer 18:4 ► pp. 618 ff. DOI logo
S., Nikhil. R., Pranav S., Pruthvi Harithas, Shivani S. & M. L. J. Shruthi
2023. 2023 IEEE 15th International Conference on Computational Intelligence and Communication Networks (CICN), ► pp. 727 ff. DOI logo
Montero Perez, Maribel
2022. Second or foreign language learning through watching audio-visual input and the role of on-screen text. Language Teaching 55:2 ► pp. 163 ff. DOI logo
Xu, Yilan, Eoin Jordan & Yuanzhe Li
2022. Chinese EFL Teachers' Perceptions of Subtitles' Effects on English Comprehension and Vocabulary Acquisition. International Journal of Computer-Assisted Language Learning and Teaching 12:1 ► pp. 1 ff. DOI logo

This list is based on CrossRef data as of 5 december 2025. Please note that it may not be complete. Sources presented here have been supplied by the respective publishers. Any errors therein should be reported to them.

Mobile Menu Logo with link to supplementary files background Layer 1 prag Twitter_Logo_Blue