Investigating the effect of literacy on adults' working memory performance

This study examined the effect of literacy on adults' working memory performance and its subsystems (phonological loop, visuo-spatial sketchpad and central executive) in Kurdestan, Iran. The study was based on a descriptive methodology, using a causal-comparative method. The sample consisted of adult students in the final course of Nehzat Savad Amouzi Organization (NSAO) in Kurdestan, made up of 76 individuals who constituted the literate group and were matched with 76 other students who constituted the illiterate group. The 67 adults in each group were matched for age, gender, job, and intelligence. For investigating the differences between the two groups, multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) was used. The results of the MANOVA analysis indicated that there was a significant difference (p <= 0.001) between the groups in working memory performance and all its subsystems. This study suggests that, literacy could be the main factor in improving the working memory performance in adulthood.