Memory for spatial and temporal order in deaf children.

Abstract

Profoundly deaf pupils attending a special school were tested to determine their preference for spatial or temporal organization of pictures they were asked to remember. Their performance on four other cognitive tasks was also obtained. Spatial-temporal memory was measured in a free recall and a probed-recognition condition; the deaf were contrasted with Grade 4 (age equivalent) and Grade 2 hearing children in both conditions. Results showed that the deaf pupils did not recall spatial order better than temporal. Compared to the hearing pupils, the deaf pupils were not less competent in probed recognition. However, the deaf pupils made fewer recognitions in temporal-probe than in spatial-probe conditions. One of the cognitive tests, serial recall of words, was found to be positively correlated with temporal recall and recognition. A developmental study of deaf children's spatial-temporal memory and its relation to item order and item identification was suggested.