INVESTIGATING THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN VISUAL ACUITY AND VISUAL MEMORY

ABSTRACT

Visual memory describes the relationship between perceptual processing and the encoding, storage and retrieval of the resulting neural representations. Visual memory is a form of memory which preserves some characteristics of our senses pertaining to visual experience. Visual acuity, often associated with the clarity of vision, technically assesses an individual's ability to recognize small details precisely. It depends on both optical and neural factors. Optical factors include eye-related aspects influencing image sharpness on the retina, while neural factors involve the health and functioning of the retina, neural pathways to the brain, and interpretative abilities of the brain. This study aimed to determine the relationship between visual acuity and visual memory scores of undergraduates of the University of Benin. Using a descriptive cross-sectional study design, data were collected and analyzed using Statistical Packages for Social Sciences (SPSS), version 25, alongside other statistical tests like Mean, Standard Deviation and the Karl Pearson Correlation coefficient. There were 51 participants predominantly aged between 20-23 years (n = 32; 62.75%) with a mean age of 23.18 ± 1.42 years, and a majority being female (n = 26, 50.98%). The results of the findings found that most students had visual acuity of -0.08 LogMAR unit (47.1%) and most of the participants had visual memory capacity of 0.55 (13.7%). There was no significant correlation observed between visual acuity and visual memory (r < 0.1; p > 0.05). In conclusion, this study showed that most of the students had good visual acuity and good visual memory capacity. Despite these findings, the study did not establish a significant relationship between visual acuity and visual memory among undergraduate students at the University of Benin. To address this gap, this study recommends that investigating potential moderators that may influence the relationship visual acuity and visual memory to ascertain a more nuanced understanding of the relationship. Key words: Visual memory, visual acuity, relationship and correlation