Relationship between working memory and suprasegmental perception in normal-hearing individuals across age

Abstract Background Working memory (WM) plays a critical role in cognitive processes such as learning, language comprehension, and decision-making. While age-related changes in WM across different sensory modalities have been studied, its interaction with suprasegmental perception—prosodic elements like stress, rhythm, and emotion—remains underexplored. Understanding this relationship can provide insights into the cognitive and linguistic development of individuals across different age groups. This study aimed to investigate the relationship between WM across auditory, visual, and spatial modalities and suprasegmental perception in individuals of different age groups. Specifically, it examined age-related differences in WM and suprasegmental abilities and their potential correlations. Methods Sixty normal-hearing Kannada-speaking participants were divided into three groups: Children (7–12 years), adults (18–30 years), and elderly individuals (55–70 years), with 20 participants in each group. We assessed auditory, visual, and spatial WM using backward span tasks and evaluated suprasegmental perception through stress, rhythm, and emotion recognition tests. Data analysis included nonparametric comparisons, correlation analyses, and multiple regression models. Results Adults outperformed both children and elderly participants in WM and suprasegmental tasks, while elderly participants showed the lowest scores. Rhythm and emotion perception significantly varied with age, but stress perception remained stable. WM in all three modalities significantly correlated with rhythm and emotion perception, with visual WM emerging as the strongest predictor. Conclusion The findings revealed distinct developmental and aging patterns in both WM and suprasegmental skills. The strong link between visual WM and prosodic processing suggests shared cognitive-linguistic mechanisms. Enhancing WM—particularly visual WM—may improve prosodic perception, offering potential for targeted interventions, especially in older populations. This study underscores the role of WM in supporting suprasegmental processing across the lifespan.