Comparison of the effects of verbal and visuospatial working memory training on reading comprehension of students with special needs

Objectives This study evaluated the effects of two working memory (WM) maintenance trainings (verbal and visuospatial WM) on the reading comprehension of students with special needs.Methods This study involved 22 students with special needs aged 15–18 from Guangdong, China: 15 with intellectual disability and 7 with autism spectrum disorder, among whom 2 had comorbid intellectual disability. The students were stratified into two groups based on homogeneity principles for intervention: one group underwent verbal WM training, while the other engaged in visuospatial WM training and combined training. The training sessions were conducted 3–4 times per week, lasting 3–4 wk, with each session involving a maximum stimulation duration of 5 min.Results Analysis of pre- and post-test data revealed that students who received verbal WM training in Group A scored significantly higher on post-tests. Students who received visuospatial WM training in Group B scored significantly higher on post-tests. There was no significant difference in post-test scores between Group A after verbal training and Group B after visuospatial training. Students who received combined WM training in Group A scored significantly higher on post-tests.Conclusions Our findings suggest that verbal WM training, visuospatial WM training, and combined training appear equally beneficial to reading comprehension of students with special needs, and the effects of two WM trainings are similar.