原著論文
マンガの理解度に与えるワーキングメモリ容量の影響
―小学校第６学年を対象とした調査―
2020 年 61 巻 3-4 号 p. 128-142
詳細
2020 年 61 巻 3-4 号 p. 128-142
Japanese comics (manga) are now one of the most popular reading media among young generations. However, the cognitive mechanisms that might underlie reading comprehension of manga remain unknown. This study aimed to clarify the characteristics of reading comprehension of manga with respect to the functions of working memory. In this study, 61 sixth grade readers were asked to read a manga story and then complete a comprehension test based on van Dijk & Kintsch’s (1983) model of three distinct levels of text representation: the surface form, the propositional textbase, and the situation model. The participants then completed several types of working memory tests measuring verbal short-term memory, verbal working memory, visuo-spatial short-term memory, and visuo-spatial working memory. Correlational analysis and multiple regression analysis were used to assess the associations between each level of reading comprehension and each of the working memory capacities. The results showed that high-capacity readers for both verbal and visuo-spatial working memories showed a higher performance compared to other readers in the process of textbase comprehension, implying the involvement of integrated propositional representation of verbal and visuo-spatial information for understanding manga stories. On the other hand, verbal and visuo-spatial components of working memory were found to be separately involved in situation model processing. Based on these findings, media characteristics of manga and its potential usefulness as a learning material in language class are discussed.
