The trait of backward speech is described as an ability to spontaneously and accurately reverse words. Two strategies of word reversal were reported: reversal according to the phonetic structure of the words or reversal according to their spelling.[1] In the 1980s Nelson Cowan hypothesized that this ability is afforded by an extraordinary working memory.[2] Recent studies have provided evidence that the working memory is indeed involved in this ability and further suggested that genetic factors may contribute to this trait.[1]
^ abCowan N, Braine M, Leavitt L (December 1985). "The phonological and metaphonological representation of speech: Evidence from fluent backward talkers". Journal of Memory and Language. 24 (6): 679–698. doi:10.1016/0749-596x(85)90053-1.
^Cocchi R, Pola M, Sellerini M, Tosaca P, Zerbi F (August–October 1986). "Mirror speaking after neurosurgery. A case history". Acta Neurol. Belg. 86: 224–32. PMID3766111.
^Jokel R, and Conn D (1999). "Case Study: Mirror reading, writing and backward speech in a woman with a head injury: a case of conversion disorder". Aphasiology. 13 (6): 495–509. doi:10.1080/026870399402046.