A research group of Professor Sadao Otsuka and Professor Toshiya Murai of Kyoto University Graduate School found that the acquisition of handwriting is associated with the development of advanced linguistic ability, and that the higher the kanji writing ability, the higher the writing ability.
The group has already shown from an analysis of the Kanji Kentei test database that there are three aspects to kanji ability: reading, writing, and understanding meaning.Previous research focused on the relationship between the reading and writing of Chinese characters and cognitive ability, and the understanding of meaning was unclear.In addition, there was concern about the impact of the spread of digital devices in recent years on the writing ability of Chinese characters.
Focusing on the multifaceted ability of reading and writing this time, the recruited university students and graduate students (15 men and women each) have the ability to read, write, and understand the meaning, basic cognitive ability, acquisition of linguistic knowledge, and writing. The relationship with ability was analyzed.
As a result, it was discovered that multiple partially different cognitive abilities are involved in the acquisition of the three aspects of kanji ability, and for children who have difficulty in acquiring kanji, the aspects of kanji ability that are difficult to acquire and their factors (not good at it). It was suggested that an educational strategy considering (cognitive ability) was necessary.
In addition, of the three aspects, only the acquisition of writing was associated with writing ability through the acquisition of linguistic knowledge.In the research, semantic density (linguistic complexity of sentences) was adopted as an index of sentence writing ability. There is a US report that people with high semantic density scores in their early twenties have a high ability to resist cognitive decline in old age and maintain healthy cognitive ability until later years.Based on this, the study proposed a theoretical framework for lifelong trajectories from the acquisition of reading and writing (especially handwriting) in school age to the maintenance of cognitive ability in old age.
This achievement and future research are expected to contribute to the development of educational strategies for children who have difficulty learning Chinese characters and the prevention of dementia.
Paper information:[Scientific Reports] Cognitive underpinnings of multidimensional Japanese literacy and its impact on higher-level language skills
