How the writing process and working memory capacity relate to the text quality and the structure

Abstract

This study examined the correlations between the text structure and the text quality, and the working memory capacity and the text quality in Japanese text. Participants (𝑁= 52) were asked to complete the Reading Span Test (a measure of the working memory capacity) and the writing task. Participants’ texts were classified based on the text labels (e.g., the sentence was classified as M-label if the sentence explained the topic of the sentence) and the sentence qualities (e.g., how high the overall text quality was). In addition, overall text structure was classified by the pattern of the text labels (e.g., if there were multiple M-labels, then the text was classified into Flexible). Results revealed that, as predicted by the previous study reported in English participants, the working memory capacity correlated with the overall text quality. However, we could not find the relationships between text structures and the working memory capacity and the overall text quality. Though there were limitations, our result indicated a positive correlation between text qualities and working memory capacity, even in Japanese samples.