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Adult word recognition and visual sequential memory

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Abstract

Two experiments were conducted investigating the role of visual sequential memory skill in the word recognition efficiency of undergraduate university students. Word recognition was assessed in a lexical decision task using regularly and strangely spelt words, and nonwords that were either standard orthographically legal strings or items made from words with internal transposed letters. Symbol memory was evaluated in a recognition procedure in which sequences of three to five unfamiliar complex symbols were presented, each followed by a subsequent array containing the symbols either in the same order or with an order transposition. In Experiment 1, there was no independent contribution of symbol memory to either word or nonword processing independently of the ability to discriminate the symbols from one another. In Experiment 2, although symbol memory made a significant contribution to word recognition independently of symbol discrimination and letter identification for two conditions—long strangely spelt words and short transposed-letter items, the effects were extremely small. It was concluded that non-verbal visual sequential memory skill does not play a central role in underpinning efficiency of word recognition in experienced adult readers.

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Acknowledgments

Thanks are due to Susannah Bellows for running participants in Experiment 1 and to Helen Miller and Sabrina Nemorin for running participants in Experiment 2. Gratitude is also extended to Meredith McKague for her support and to Anne Castles and Sachiko Kinoshita for helpful comments on an earlier version of the paper.

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Correspondence to V. M. Holmes.

Appendix: Set of Gurmukhu symbols used in the symbol memory task

Appendix: Set of Gurmukhu symbols used in the symbol memory task

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Holmes, V.M. Adult word recognition and visual sequential memory. Read Writ 25, 23–44 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11145-010-9245-z

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