Psychological topics, Vol. 19 No. 1, 2010.
Review article
The Structure of Working Memory and its Role in Language Processing
Barabara Rončević Zubković
orcid.org/0000-0002-0276-8326
; Odsjek za psihologiju, Filozofski fakultet Sveučilišta u Rijeci
Abstract
The aim of this review article is to raise the awareness of theoretical and methodological issues in measuring and defining working memory, in order to contribute to understanding of its structure and its role in complex processes like reading. The paper commences with a brief historical overview of memory theories, with intention to illustrate growing interest for the short-term and working memory assessments. The Baddeley's model (Baddeley i Hitch, 1974; Baddeley, 2000) is described and further compared to the other working memory models. In doing that, functional organization of the working memory system and the role of its subsystems in language processing are described, while the special emphasis is given to the role of the phonological loop and the central executive in reading. Conceptual issuses are discussed, especially concerning the relationship between verbal short-term and verbal working memory, as well as methodological problems in assessing these capacities. The paper ends with a discussion on the implications long-term memory factors (i.e. meaning processing and strategies employment) have on verbal working memory scores.
Keywords
working memory; short-term memory; language processing; reading
Hrčak ID:
56827
URI
Publication date:
30.6.2010.
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