July 28, 2025 10:23 am (IST)
Follow us:
facebook-white sharing button
twitter-white sharing button
instagram-white sharing button
youtube-white sharing button
'I feel sad to support such a govt': Chirag Paswan slams Bihar administration after woman 'gang-raped' in Bodh Gaya | Bihar woman gang-raped in moving ambulance after she fell unconscious during Home Guard Test | Operation Sindoor still on, preparedness level should be high: CDS Anil Chauhan | PM Modi tops list of global leaders with 75 percent approval rating, Donald Trump languishes at 8th place | President Murmu, PM Modi pay tributes to martyrs' on Kargil Vijay Diwas | Jagdeep Dhankar's resignation: Election Commission initiates steps for Vice President elections | Centre bans Ullu, ALTT, other OTT apps over obscene content | Centre bans Ullu, ALTT, other OTT apps over obscene content | Deeply touched by Muizzu's gesture, writes Narendra Modi on X after arriving in Male | Tejashwi Yadav mulls boycotting Bihar polls over SIR, says 'no point in holding elections when people can't vote'

Study finds reading information aloud to yourself improves memory

| @indiablooms | Dec 02, 2017, at 09:50 pm

Ontario, Dec 2 (IBNS): You are more likely to remember something if you read it out loud, a study from the University of Waterloo has found.

A recent Waterloo study found that speaking text aloud helps to get words into long-term memory. Dubbed the “production effect,” the study determined that it is the dual action of speaking and hearing oneself that has the most beneficial impact on memory.

“This study confirms that learning and memory benefit from active involvement,” said Colin M. MacLeod, a professor and chair of the Department of Psychology at Waterloo, who co-authored the study with the lead author, post-doctoral fellow Noah Forrin. “When we add an active measure or a production element to a word, that word becomes more distinct in long-term memory, and hence more memorable.”

The study tested four methods for learning written information, including reading silently, hearing someone else read, listening to a recording of oneself reading, and reading aloud in real time. Results from tests with 95 participants showed that the production effect of reading information aloud to yourself resulted in the best remembering.

“When we consider the practical applications of this research, I think of seniors who are advised to do puzzles and crosswords to help strengthen their memory.  This study suggests that the idea of action or activity also improves memory.  And we know that regular exercise and movement are also strong building blocks for a good memory,” said Professor MacLeod.

This research builds on previous studies by Professor MacLeod, Dr. Forrin, and colleagues that measure the production effect of activities, such as writing and typing words, in enhancing overall memory retention. This latest study shows that part of the memory benefit of speech stems from it being personal and self-referential.

The study was recently published in the journal Memory.

Support Our Journalism

We cannot do without you.. your contribution supports unbiased journalism

IBNS is not driven by any ism- not wokeism, not racism, not skewed secularism, not hyper right-wing or left liberal ideals, nor by any hardline religious beliefs or hyper nationalism. We want to serve you good old objective news, as they are. We do not judge or preach. We let people decide for themselves. We only try to present factual and well-sourced news.

Support objective journalism for a small contribution.
Close menu