Assessing Working Memory in Spanish-Speaking Children: Automated Working Memory Assessment Adaptation

Abstract

The Automated Working Memory Assessment battery was designed to assess verbal and visuospatial passive and active working memory processing in children and adolescents. The aim of this paper is to present the adaptation and validation of the AWMA battery to Argentinean Spanish-speaking children aged 6 to 11. years. Verbal subtests were adapted and pilot tested on a small sample (n=26). A validation study was conducted including 6-, 8- and 11-year-old children (n=210). All subtests presented an increase in difficulty as the number of to-be-remembered items raised, and showed high Cronbach's α values. Regarding validity, all subtests had medium to high and significant correlations among them, and with two external measures of working memory (Picture Span and Word Order) and an executive function task (Tower of London); correlations with Block Design were low and non-significant. We conclude that the adapted AWMA can be considered a valid and reliable battery of working memory in Argentinean Spanish-speaking children.