Memory in the Deaf: A Cross-Cultural Study in English and Japanese

Deaf children who are learning to read are essentially learning a second language that may be transcribed in different ways, for example, using an alphabet, such as the Roman one used in written English, or logography, such as Japanese kanji. How do deaf adults from cultures using different writing systems memorize linguistic and visual material? Two experiments were carried out to answer this question. Two predictions were made: first, that Japanese deaf persons would outscore their English-language counterparts in memory for words, due to a possible direct processing from visual to semantic codes with kanji; second, that Japanese deaf persons would outscore their English-language counterparts in memory for abstract designs, due to prolonged use of a highly visual writing system. The first hypothesis was rejected; the second was accepted.