Examining the role of the visuospatial sketchpad in children's math calculation skills using Baddeley and Hitch's model of working memory.

Autor: McGonnell M; Faculty of Education, Mount Saint Vincent University, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada., Orr M; Department of Psychiatry, Dalhousie University, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada., Backman J; Izaak Walton Killam Health Centre, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada., Johnson SA; Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, Dalhousie University, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada., Davidson F; Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, Dalhousie University, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada., Corkum P; Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, Dalhousie University, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. Electronic address: penny.corkum@dal.ca.
Jazyk: angličtina
Zdroj: Acta psychologica [Acta Psychol (Amst)] 2024 Jun; Vol. 246, pp. 104246. Date of Electronic Publication: 2024 Apr 13.
DOI: 10.1016/j.actpsy.2024.104246
Abstrakt: Math difficulties (MDs) occur in about 3-7 % of children and have been associated with academic, health, and occupational challenges. To date, findings about the role of working memory in MDs have been conflicting. The Automated Working Memory Assessment Battery (AWMA), which assesses all components of Baddeley and Hitch's model of working memory, was used to investigate which component of the model was most related to math calculation skills in elementary-school children. Participants were 94 (52 male) children (M age = 9 years 1 month; Range = 6 years 0 months to 11 years 8 months). As hypothesized, math calculation scores were correlated with all four working memory components (phonological loop, visuospatial sketchpad, verbal and visuospatial central executive). After accounting for age, phonological processing, and attention, the visuospatial sketchpad was the only memory component that contributed to the prediction of math calculation scores, explaining an additional 10.2 % of unique variance. Short-term visuospatial memory should be assessed in children having difficulty with math and children could benefit from interventions that include attention to the development of both visuospatial memory and math calculation skills. This study did not use a longitudinal design and so we cannot conclude that weak visuospatial memory impedes the development of math calculation skills. Future research should use longitudinal designs and investigate other types of math skills.
Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest None.
(Copyright © 2024 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)
Databáze: MEDLINE
Externí odkaz: