Enactment effects on memory for sign language

Abstract

The enactment effect refers to the phenomenon of better memory performance for action phrases, such as “lift a pen,” when the phrases are enacted than when not. The purpose of this study is to explore the boundary conditions for enactment effects working with the Japanese Sign Language (JSL). While motor program theory stresses the motor component of memory traces, the episodic integration view holds that associations between actions and objects are important. In order to examine how these theories can be applied to enactment effects with JSL, two JSL attributes were manipulated; namely, recallability (how easily one can reproduce an action) and imaginability (how easily one can form an image from the JSL). In Experiment 1, the participants studied four types of JSL words (high-R+high-I, high-R+low-I, low-R+high-I, and low-R+low-I) either by enacting the actions, observing the actions, or only looking at the verbal match. No differences were observed between the different word types or study conditions in Experiment 1. However, in Experiment 2 where imaginability was maximized, an enactment effect was observed for high recallability words. The results are discussed in terms of the explanatory powers of the respective theories.View full abstract