A Role for Visual Memory in Vocabulary Development: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Literature examining the role of visual memory in vocabulary development during childhood is limited, despite it being well known that preverbal infants rely on their visual abilities to form memories and learn new words. Hence, this systematic review and meta-analysis utilised a cognitive neuroscience perspective to examine the association between visual memory and vocabulary development, including moderators such as age and task selection, in neurotypical children aged 2- to 12-years. Visual memory tasks were classified as spatio-temporal span tasks, visuo-perceptual or spatial concurrent array tasks, and executive judgment tasks. Visuo-perceptual concurrent array tasks expected to rely on ventral visual stream processing showed a moderate association with vocabulary, while tasks measuring spatio-temporal spans expected to be associated with dorsal visual stream processing, and executive judgments (central executive), showed only weak correlations with vocabulary. These findings have important implications for all health professionals and researchers interested in language, as they can support the development of more targeted language learning interventions that require ventral visual stream processing.