A “word length effect”for sign language: Further evidence for the role of language in structuring working memory

Immediate recall for sequences of short words is better than for sequences of long words. This word-length effect has been thought to depend on the spoken duration of the words (Baddeley, Thomson, & Buchanan, 1975) or their phonological complexity (Caplan, Rochon, & Waters, 1992). In Finnish both vowel and consonant quantity distinguish between words. Long phonemes behave like phoneme repetitions. In Experiment 1, subjects were presented with auditory lists of three kinds of pseudowords based on Finnish phonotactics: short CVCV-structures (e.g. / tepa/), long two-syllable items with long phonemes (e.g. / te: p: a/), and long three-syllable items with CVCVCV structures (e.g. / tepalo/). Although both kinds of long stimuli (of identical spoken length) took longer to read, only three-syllable items were more difficult to remember than the short stimuli. Experiment 2 contrasted the effect of number of syllables with number of different phonemes. The long two-syllable items were replaced by two-syllable items of equal spoken duration but containing six different phonemes (e.g. / tiempa/). These two-syllable items were as difficult to recall as were the three-syllable items. Experiment 3 controlled for the possibility that long stimuli might be rehearsed in a shorter form. It is concluded that aspects of phonological complexity are critical for word-length effects. Implications of this finding for working memory theory are discussed, and future work based on multi-layered phonological representations is proposed.

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Two Systems of Maintenance in Verbal Working Memory: Evidence from the Word Length Effect

PLoS ONE ◽

10.1371/journal.pone.0070026 ◽

2013 ◽

Vol 8 (7) ◽

pp. e70026 ◽

Cited By ~ 26

Author(s):

Gérôme Mora ◽

Valérie Camos

Keyword(s):

Working Memory ◽

Word Length ◽

Verbal Working Memory ◽

Length Effect ◽

Word Length Effect ◽

Two Systems

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Is There a Temporal Basis of the Word Length Effect? A Response to Service (1998)

The Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology Section A ◽

10.1080/713755905 ◽

2000 ◽

Vol 53 (3) ◽

pp. 647-660 ◽

Cited By ~ 11

Author(s):

Nelson Cowan ◽

Lara D. Nugent ◽

Emily M. Elliott ◽

Tara Geer

Keyword(s):

Working Memory ◽

Word Length ◽

Memory Model ◽

Length Effect ◽

Word Length Effect ◽

Word Duration ◽

Per Se ◽

Duration Effect ◽

Temporal Basis ◽

Working Memory Model

Service (1998) carried out a study of the word length effect with Finnish pseudowords in which short and long pseudowords were identical except for the inclusion of certain phonemes differing only in pronunciation length, a manipulation that is impossible in English. She obtained an effect of phonemic complexity but little or no word duration effect per se — a discrepancy from the expectations generated by the well-known working memory model of Baddeley (1986). In the present study using English words, we controlled for phonemic complexity differences by using the same words for the short- and long-word sets, but with instructions inducing shorter or longer pronunciation of the words. We obtained substantial word duration effects. Concerns raised by Service are addressed, and we conclude that both duration and complexity are likely to contribute to the word length effect in serial recall.

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Articulatory Length and Phonological Similarity in Span Tasks: A Reply to Baddeley and Andrade

The Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology Section A ◽

10.1080/14640749408401108 ◽

1994 ◽

Vol 47 (4) ◽

pp. 1055-1062 ◽

Cited By ~ 38

Author(s):

David Caplan ◽

Gloria S. Waters

Keyword(s):

Word Length ◽

Phonological Similarity ◽

Partial Replication ◽

Length Effect ◽

Word Length Effect ◽

Span Tasks

We report a partial replication of previous results by Caplan, Rochon, and Waters (1992), using methods that address objections raised by Baddeley and Andrade (this issue) and that improve on several techniques used by them. The results cast doubts on the role of articulation in determining the word length effect in span, and hence on the role of articulation in rehearsal.

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Reexamination of Word Length Effect: Immediate Serial Recall of Foreign Words

JALT Journal - JALT Journal 24.1 ◽

10.37546/jaltjj38.2-4 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 38 (2) ◽

pp. 149

Author(s):

Junichiro Takeno ◽

Ken Tamai ◽

Shigenobu Takatsuka

Keyword(s):

Working Memory ◽

Foreign Language ◽

Word Length ◽

Phonological Loop ◽

Length Effect ◽

Position Effects ◽

Serial Position Effects ◽

Immediate Serial Recall ◽

Word Length Effect ◽

Effective Use

In this study we examined the word length effect—one characteristic of the phonological loop of working memory—in a foreign language. Serial position effects, such as the primacy effect and the recency effect, were observed in the recall of foreign words, similar to results in L1 studies. Recall of long (one-syllable) and short (three-syllable) words in pure (all long or all short) and mixed (long and short) lists was compared. In pure lists, there was a tendency for long words to be more poorly remembered than short words, which we considered to be because of the word length effect. In mixed lists, both long and short words were recalled equally as well as short words were recalled in pure lists. These results indicate that we should pay more attention to item distinctiveness, which elicits the attention of the central executive in working memory, as well as the word length effect in regards to rehearsal speed. Effective use of the phonological loop in listening comprehension is also discussed. 本研究は、ワーキングメモリモデルの音韻ループに見られる語長効果について再検討を試みたものである。外国語の単語記銘においても、母国語話者を対象とした研究と同じように初頭効果や新近性効果が確認された。単純リストと混合リストにおける長い語と短い語の再生率を比較したところ、単純リストでは、長い語は短い語よりも再生率が悪くなるという語長効果の傾向が見られるものの、混合リストにおいては、長い語も短い語も単純リストにおける短い語と同程度の再生率であった。これらの結果は、短期記憶容量は決められた項目数ではなく復唱速度が重要な要因であるという語長効果に基づく説明に加えて、ワーキングメモリの中央実行系に注意喚起を促す、項目の示差性などによる説明の必要性があることを示している。本研究では、聴解における音韻ループの効果的な活用についても論じている。

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Item Identification Time and Rehearsal Rate as Predictors of Memory Span in Children

The Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology Section A ◽

10.1080/14640748908402368 ◽

1989 ◽

Vol 41 (2) ◽

pp. 321-337 ◽

Cited By ~ 62

Author(s):

G. J. Hitch ◽

M. S. Halliday ◽

J. E. Littler

Keyword(s):

Working Memory ◽

Word Length ◽

Articulatory Suppression ◽

Memory Span ◽

Developmental Differences ◽

Memory Model ◽

Length Effect ◽

Identification Time ◽

Word Length Effect ◽

Working Memory Model

According to the working memory model of Baddeley and Hitch (1974), the sensitivity of memory span to word length arises from the time taken to rehearse items in a speech-based “articulatory loop”. Alternatively, it has been suggested that the word-length effect may result from differences in the speed of perceptual processes of item identification. Changes in the speed of rehearsal and of item identification have also been claimed to contribute to the growth of memory span that is seen in development. In order to compare these two variables directly, groups of children aged 8 and 11 were assessed on memory span for words of one, two, and three syllables; span under articulatory suppression; rehearsal rate; and item identification time. Span was found to be a linear function of rehearsal rate across differences in both word length and age. The word-length effect was unrelated to item identification time and was diminished by articulatory suppression. These results show that the word-length effect reflects rehearsal and not item identification processes. However, the results also suggest that changes in item identification time contribute to developmental differences in span when articulation is suppressed. A distinction between item identification and rehearsal effects can be readily interpreted in terms of the working memory model if it is assumed that they indicate the efficiency of different subsystems involved in span.

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