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Phonological working memory: A critical building block for reading development and vocabulary acquisition?

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Abstract

In this article we review findings from a recent longitudinal study of the contribution of phonological working memory to vocabulary acquisition and reading development. A total of 80 children were tested initially at school entry at the age of four years, and were tested in three further waves at ages 5, 6, and 8 years. The results indicate that phonological memory skills constrain vocabulary growth during the first year or so in school but that subsequently, vocabulary knowledge is a pacemaker in the development relationship with memory. Phonological memory skill in prereading children was found to be significantly linked with scores on a reading test at age 8 which encourages the use of a phonological recoding strategy. The theoretical and practical implications of the findings, and important areas for future research, are discussed.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. University of Bristol, 8, Woodland road, BS8 1TN, Bristol, United Kingdom

    Susan E. Gathercole

  2. Applied Psychology Unit, MRC, 15 Chaucer Road, CB2 2EF, Cambridge, UK

    Alan D. Baddeley

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  1. Susan E. Gathercole
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  2. Alan D. Baddeley
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Additional information

The research reported in this article was supported by the Medical Research Council and the Economic and Social Research Council. Requests for reprints should be sent to Susan E. Gathercole, University of Bristol, 8 Woodland Road, Bristol BS8 1TN, UK.

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Gathercole, S.E., Baddeley, A.D. Phonological working memory: A critical building block for reading development and vocabulary acquisition?. Eur J Psychol Educ 8, 259–272 (1993). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03174081

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