Strategy training and working memory task performance

Abstract

Three experiments examined how strategy use influences working memory (WM) span performance and the correlation between WM span scores and higher cognitive function, using the operation span measure and the Nelson–Denny assessment of reading ability. Participants completed two versions of the operation span measure in a pre-/post-test design. In each study, half of the participants received strategy instructions prior to post-test. In Study 1, WM span scores increased as result of using a rehearsal strategy. In Study 2, three different strategies (rehearsal, imagery, and semantic) were compared. Low spans, in particular, benefited from using a rehearsal strategy. Also, the relationship between WM span scores and Nelson–Denny reading ability composite scores was enhanced, suggesting that strategy use, unless controlled for, can mask the “true” relationship between WM span and reading ability scores. In Study 3, time spent using the strategies described in Study 2 was controlled. Although no particular span group benefited from using any one strategy, WM span scores obtained while participants used the rehearsal strategy was, again, more predictive of reading ability. The importance of controlling for variation in strategy use during assessments of WM span is discussed.