The Relationships among Working Memory, State Anxiety, and Academic Performance in Chinese Undergraduates with SLD

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Bibliographic Details
Title: The Relationships among Working Memory, State Anxiety, and Academic Performance in Chinese Undergraduates with SLD
Language: English
Authors: Li-Chih Wang (ORCID 0000-0002-4011-7305), Kevin Kien-Hoa Chung (ORCID 0000-0002-8105-7361), Rong-An Jhuo (ORCID 0000-0002-1418-482X)
Source: Reading and Writing: An Interdisciplinary Journal. 2025 38(2):1-22.
Availability: Springer. Available from: Springer Nature. One New York Plaza, Suite 4600, New York, NY 10004. Tel: 800-777-4643; Tel: 212-460-1500; Fax: 212-460-1700; e-mail: customerservice@springernature.com; Web site: https://link.springer.com/
Peer Reviewed: Y
Page Count: 22
Publication Date: 2025
Document Type: Journal Articles
Reports - Research
Education Level: Higher Education
Postsecondary Education
Descriptors: Foreign Countries, Learning Disabilities, Students with Disabilities, Short Term Memory, Language Processing, Chinese, Anxiety, Academic Achievement, Undergraduate Students
Geographic Terms: Taiwan
Assessment and Survey Identifiers: Raven Progressive Matrices, Raven Advanced Progressive Matrices, State Trait Anxiety Inventory
DOI: 10.1007/s11145-024-10520-z
ISSN: 0922-4777
1573-0905
Abstract: Processing efficiency theory can explain the relationship between anxiety and academic success; however, its application to adults with Specific Learning Disabilities (SLD) remains unclear, especially in a nonalphabetic language, such as Chinese. This study investigated the effects of working memory and processing speed on the relationships between state anxiety and academic performance of university students with and without SLD in Chinese. A sample of 223 s-year undergraduate students was recruited from universities in southern Taiwan; 123 were typical learners, while the remaining 100 were identified as having SLD. We found distinct profiles in the relationships between state anxiety, working memory, processing speed, and academic performance. The interaction between state anxiety and working memory was also predictive of the academic performance of university students with SLD, highlighting the negative impact of state anxiety on those students who performed poorly in working memory tasks. Our findings emphasize the importance of cognitive and psychological factors in contributing to the learning of students with SLD. Furthermore, the effects of working memory and state anxiety on academic performance, particularly in students with SLD, could inform the design of teaching materials and procedures, especially regarding the levels of difficulty and volumes of learning.
Abstractor: As Provided
Entry Date: 2025
Accession Number: EJ1461753
Database: ERIC
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Abstract:Processing efficiency theory can explain the relationship between anxiety and academic success; however, its application to adults with Specific Learning Disabilities (SLD) remains unclear, especially in a nonalphabetic language, such as Chinese. This study investigated the effects of working memory and processing speed on the relationships between state anxiety and academic performance of university students with and without SLD in Chinese. A sample of 223 s-year undergraduate students was recruited from universities in southern Taiwan; 123 were typical learners, while the remaining 100 were identified as having SLD. We found distinct profiles in the relationships between state anxiety, working memory, processing speed, and academic performance. The interaction between state anxiety and working memory was also predictive of the academic performance of university students with SLD, highlighting the negative impact of state anxiety on those students who performed poorly in working memory tasks. Our findings emphasize the importance of cognitive and psychological factors in contributing to the learning of students with SLD. Furthermore, the effects of working memory and state anxiety on academic performance, particularly in students with SLD, could inform the design of teaching materials and procedures, especially regarding the levels of difficulty and volumes of learning.
ISSN:0922-4777
1573-0905
DOI:10.1007/s11145-024-10520-z