Individual
Differences in the Irrelevant Speech Effect
M. Miyahara & T. Goshiki |
This
study examines the effect of irrelevant speech effect on a serial
recall task, focusing on individual difference indexes, such as introversion/extraversion,
field dependence/independence, and reading span. A foreign language
(Spanish) and pink noise were used as auditory distractor stimuli.
The results demonstrate that the irrelevant speech effect is robust
and causes a fixed increase in the number of serial recall errors,
irrespective of the individual difference indexes, such as introversion/extraversion,
field dependence/independence. On the other hand, the serial recall
performance itself was related to both introversion/extraversion
and field dependence/independence. The results are interpreted as
suggesting that while the irrelevant speech effect mainly reflects
the functioning of phonological loop, the performance of serial recall
may depend more on the functioning of the central executive, which
may differ between introverts and extraverts and between field dependents
and field independents. Further examination from this perspective
may serve to clarify the mechanism by which the irrelevant speech
effect occurs and its relation to the individual differences of performance
in various cognitive tasks. Key words: irrelevant speech effect, individual differences, introversion/extraversion, field dependence/field independence, working memory |