Story Retelling and Verbal Working Memory in Young Adults With a History of COVID-19: Cross-Sectional Study
View abstract on PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.Young adults who had COVID-19 showed lower story retelling abilities. Verbal working memory impacts story retelling, regardless of COVID-19 history, indicating potential cognitive-linguistic changes post-infection.
Area Of Science
- Cognitive Science
- Linguistics
- Infectious Disease Research
Background
- COVID-19's impact on infant and child development is well-documented.
- Less research exists on the cognitive and language effects of COVID-19 in young adults.
- Emerging evidence suggests COVID-19 affects cognitive and language functions beyond physical health.
Purpose Of The Study
- To investigate the effects of COVID-19 on story retelling and verbal working memory in young adults.
- To compare story retelling and working memory performance between young adults with and without a history of COVID-19.
- To determine if verbal working memory predicts story retelling outcomes in this population.
Main Methods
- 79 young adults participated: 40 with COVID-19 history, 39 without.
- Participants completed the Story Retelling Procedure (SRP) and the Alphabet Span Test for verbal working memory.
- Story retelling was measured by information units per minute (IUs/min).
Main Results
- Young adults with COVID-19 history had significantly lower story retelling performance (0.53 IUs/min) compared to the non-COVID-19 group (0.63 IUs/min).
- No significant differences in verbal working memory performance were found between the groups.
- Verbal working memory significantly predicted story retelling performance (R²=0.064, P=.02).
Conclusions
- COVID-19 history is associated with reduced story retelling performance in young adults.
- Verbal working memory is a significant predictor of story retelling informativeness.
- Story retelling may be a sensitive indicator of post-COVID-19 cognitive-linguistic changes in young adults.
Related Concept Videos
Working memory refers to a combination of components, including short-term memory and attention, that allow an individual to hold information temporarily as we perform cognitive tasks. It is an essential cognitive function that enables the execution of complex tasks such as problem-solving, comprehension, and reasoning. Unlike short-term memory, which simply involves the storage of information for a brief period, working memory involves the active manipulation and processing of this...
Emotionally traumatic events often lead to memories that are exceptionally vivid and enduring, sometimes persisting with remarkable clarity throughout an individual's life. A classic example of this phenomenon is a person who survives a car accident. Even years later, they may recall every detail of the event with startling accuracy — the screeching of the tires, the jarring impact, and the acrid smell of burning rubber. Such vividness contrasts sharply with how an individual...
Cognitive development continues throughout adulthood, undergoing significant shifts across early, middle, and late stages. Individual transition occurs from adolescent idealism to pragmatic and adaptable thinking in early adulthood. During this period, individuals learn to integrate personal beliefs with the recognition that other perspectives are equally valid. Exposure to the complexities of modern society, diverse experiences, and higher education contribute to this adaptive thought process,...
Eyewitness memory refers to the recollection of events by someone who has directly witnessed them, often serving as critical evidence in legal settings. This type of memory is commonly used in criminal cases where a witness describes details like a suspect's appearance, clothing, or behavior during a crime. However, despite its perceived reliability, eyewitness memory is prone to significant errors.
One such error is memory distortion, which occurs because human memory does not function...
The cerebellum, while traditionally associated with motor control, also plays a crucial role in memory, particularly in procedural memory, which involves learning motor tasks that become automatic through repetition. For example, studies have shown that when the cerebellum is damaged, individuals or animals lose the ability to learn conditioned motor responses, such as the conditioned eye-blink response in classical conditioning experiments with rabbits. This study demonstrates the...
The amygdala is a small, almond-shaped structure responsible for processing and storing memories, particularly those linked to emotions like fear and stress. It plays an essential role in the brain's response to emotionally significant events and often enhances memory formation by triggering stress hormone release. The amygdala is vital for encoding and retrieving memories associated with fear or stress, a process that is adaptive by helping organisms avoid dangerous situations.
One of the...

