The Effects Of Working Memory Span On The Topic Inference Processing In English Text Reading Of College Students

In 2 experiments, the effects of working memory span on the topical inference processing in English text reading of college students were tested. These experiments used 2X2X2 mixed design, response time was the main index, and the short English narrative were used as reading materials in both experiment 1 and experiment 2. Results of experiments indicated: 1) the response time of the third grade students are shorter than the first grade students;2)the response time of the high-span readers are shorter than the low-span readers;3) the effects of excessive memory tasks were found in high-span readers, but not in low-span readers. It supports the theory of Working Memory Capacity Constrain in the condition of English text reading.