Skip to content
The lingwist

The lingwist

The Lingwist is the home for everyone who is passionate about language and linguistics. Feel free to share, discuss, and comment. The Lingwist's motto is " Learn & have fun"

  • Home
  • Diagnostic Test
  • Composition
  • Business Communication
  • English
    • Grammar
    • Vocabulary
    • Functions
  • Privacy Policy!
  • About us
  • Contact Us!
  • Applied Linguistics
  • Core Linguistics
  • Discourse Analysis
  • Toggle search form
istockphoto 1326478840 612x612 1

Blind People Remember Language Better Than Sighted People: A Study Reveals

Posted on May 2, 2022July 14, 2022 By The Lingwist No Comments on Blind People Remember Language Better Than Sighted People: A Study Reveals

General Statement

According to a new study by Johns Hopkins University and the University of California, Irvine, Blind people can remember speech and language better than sighted people. The reason behind that according to the study is that blind people use language as a mental tool to remember information.

Study

Marina Bedny, an associate professor of psychology and brain sciences at Johns Hopkins, said that “It’s interesting that people who are blind only showed an advantage with verbal memory. Blind people may use language like a mental tool to remember information.”

Based on an article published in neuroscience news, researchers conducted two memory tests with 20 blind adults and 22 blindfolded sighted adults. They wondered if blind participants would outperform sighted ones at remembering spoken sounds.

Steps

First, participants listened to a series of letters, followed by a delay. Then they heard either the same series or a “foil” series where a letter is replaced or put into the wrong position. Participants then judged whether the second series of letters was the same as the first.

For the second test, they listened to letters while solving mathematical equations with proposed answers. Participants determined if equation solutions were correct, followed by reciting back the letters.

istockphoto 1348124692 612x612 1

As the researchers expected, according to neuroscience News, blind participants outperformed sighted ones in remembering speech. The results from another testing phase, which required solving mathematical equations and recalling letters, confirmed the researchers’ predictions. Blind participants again remembered more letters than sighted participants despite being forced to multitask mentally.

“On a daily basis, blind people use their memory much more to remember things, while sighted people can rely on visual clues to recall information,” said Karen Arcos, lead author and a blind postdoctoral fellow at the University of California, Santa Cruz who earned her Ph.D. at University of California, Irvine.

“We think blind people’s advantages on the verbal tests stem from increased practice remembering information. The brain area responsible for vision in sighted people, the ‘visual’ cortex, is repurposed for other functions in blind people. Perhaps it enhances blind people’s language processing.”

 “By using meaningless sound effects, we prevented participants from using language to remember them this lowered blind people’s usual memory advantage,” said Bedny.

Further Research

Bedny is now studying what enables blind people to outperform sighted people at remembering words, letters, and numbers. Moreover, she plans to examine if the “visual” cortex contributes to improved memory for speech and language in those born blind.

Credit to: Neuroscience News

English, Applied Linguistics Tags:blind people, Brain science, deaf people and language, language memory, neurolinguistics, neuroscience, psycholinguistics

Post navigation

Previous Post: Google Docs Assisted Text Feature Fails In Its Inclusive Language Suggestions
Next Post: 10 Common Slang Words Used by Gen Z in English and What they Mean

Related Posts

  • AI has brought back 15 languages people haven’t heard for centuries.
    AI has brought back 15 languages people haven’t heard for centuries. Here’s what they sound like. Applied Linguistics
  • hhh
    The New Global Means of Communication: Will Emoji become the language of the future? English
  • Oxymoron Instancess
    60 Funny Oxymorons you will certainly enjoy Applied Linguistics
  • Honest
    Want to sound smarter? Avoid these 10 Words Applied Linguistics
  • noname
    20 Most Inspiring Quotes of All Time Everyone Should Know Applied Linguistics
  • Funny cat memes
    Feline Funnies: A Collection of Cat Memes that’ll Make You ROFL English

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Categories

  • Applied Linguistics
  • Business Communication
  • Composition
  • Core Linguistics
  • Diagnostic Test
  • Discourse Analysis
  • English
  • Functions
  • Grammar
  • Vocabulary
  • meeting 1245776 960 720
    How to speak English fluently: Top 5 tips Applied Linguistics
  • Meta and Deaf 2
    People with hearing problems can easily communicate on Meta and it is hilarious! English
  • Why do people who speak English feel superior?
    Why do people who speak English feel superior? English
  • 42393522 linguistics concept word cloud background
    Anything You Need to Know about Linguistics Core Linguistics
  • google 485611 960 720.jpg
    5 Best Websites to learn English Applied Linguistics
  • Tongue Twisters Challenge
    Can You Manage These Hard Tongue Twisters In 14 Different Languages?+ Video English
  • What Is Critical discourse Analysis
    What is Critical Discourse Analysis? Discourse Analysis
  • discourse empty
    Language and Discourse Discourse Analysis

Copyright © 2023 The lingwist.

Powered by PressBook News WordPress theme