Spatial Memory for Chinese and English

Reading Chinese logographs relies relatively more on visual cognitive processes than does reading alphabetic English words, whereas the latter relies relatively more on phonological cognitive processes. As a consequence of this differential involvement, memory for the spatial location of words learned scattered across a single display was hypothesized to be better for Chinese logographs than for alphabetic English words. This prediction was supported using native speakers and bilinguals. Experiment 1 found that relative to a picture control condition, the spatial location of Chinese logographs was better remembered than the spatial location of alphabetic English words. Experiment 2 replicated this result using nonsense words and abstract symbols. Experiment 3 found that script differences were specific to spatial memory and did not affect the free recall of words. The results suggest that writing systems, which are a core element of many cultures, can affect the representation of verbal information in memory.