title: Verbal and visuospatial short-term and working memory in children: are they separable?
abstract: This study explored the structure of verbal and visuospatial short-term and working memory in children between ages 4 and 11 years. Multiple tasks measuring 4 different memory components were used to capture the cognitive processes underlying working memory. Confirmatory factor analyses indicated that the processing component of working memory tasks was supported by a common resource pool, while storage aspects depend on domain-specific verbal and visuospatial resources. This model is largely stable across this developmental period, although some evidence exists that the links between the domain-specific visuospatial construct and the domain-general processing construct were higher in the 4- to- 6-year age group. The data also suggest that all working memory components are in place by 4 years of age.
authors.affiliation: School of Education, University of Durham, Leazes Road, Durham DH1 1TA, UK. t.p.alloway@durham.ac.uk
authors.forename: Tracy Packiam
authors.initials: TP
authors.lastname: Alloway
authors.forename: Susan Elizabeth
authors.initials: SE
authors.lastname: Gathercole
authors.forename: Susan J
authors.initials: SJ
authors.lastname: Pickering
mesh_terms: D002648:Child; D002657:Child Development; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003071:Cognition; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008570:Memory, Short-Term; D013028:Space Perception; D014705:Verbal Behavior; D014796:Visual Perception