Visual mental imagery and verbal working memory: evidence from consecutive interpreting

The link between the different types and components of mental imagery and efficiency in tasks involving memory storage and processing is not clear. The direction of the effect (facilitation/deterioration) usually depends on the task in question and the cognitive processes involved. Here, we investigate the possible contribution of visual and auditory imagery components to performance in a verbal working memory task (i.e. consecutive interpreting) in which accuracy is not dependent on mental imagery yet with high individual variability due to exacting memory and cognitive control demands. The mental imagery of 38 translation-interpreting undergraduates was measured on four self-reported scales with the vividness, control, and preference components and with a mental rotation test. Participants were then asked to consecutively interpret 10 speeches from English into Turkish. Mixed-effects models revealed that only control of visual mental imagery measured with Gordon’s Test of Visual Imagery Control predicts verbal transfer accuracy in consecutive interpreting.