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Working Memory: Theories, Models, and Controversies
Abstract
I present an account of the origins and development of the multicomponent approach to working memory, making a distinction between the overall theoretical framework, which has remained relatively stable, and the attempts to build more specific models within this framework. I follow this with a brief discussion of alternative models and their relationship to the framework. I conclude with speculations on further developments and a comment on the value of attempting to apply models and theories beyond the laboratory studies on which they are typically based.
... One of these functions is working memory (WM) that allows for short storage and manipulation of the information coming from sensory inputs such as our eyes and ears. The researchers focus on WM processes because WM is fundamental to the acquisition of new vocabularies into long-term memory (Baddeley, 2012;Cattell, 1963;Ellis, 1996). A larger WM storage has been linked to a larger vocabulary size, better word recall and higher verbal fluency (Atkins & Baddeley, 1998;Bialystok & Feng, 2009;Carpenter et al., 2020;Luo et al., 2010). ...
... According to the Multi-component Working Memory Model, WM is a centralized system, where the prefrontal cortex supervises its processes of information. WM also consists of multiple fluid systems including visual-spatial sketchpad and phonological loop (Baddeley, 2012;Baddeley & Hitch, 1974). These systems interact with the crystallized systems responsible for amassing long-term knowledge such as visual semantics, language, and episodic long-term memory. ...
... Educators and teachers should use linguistic manipulation tasks to teach students when they wish them to get better at the same task in another language. In the Multi-component WM Model (Baddeley, 2012;Baddeley & Hitch, 1974), the phonological loop in WM provides an active storage for students to learn unfamiliar words (e.g., foreign words) and learn to associate these words with their meanings, visual images, contexts, or words that they have already learned. When capacity and efficiency of the phonological loop are greater, the vocabulary size (in the long-term memory) is greater, the verbal fluency is better, and the speed of acquiring foreign vocabulary is faster. ...
Cognitive control is a mental construct thought to be important in most cognitive tasks, including second language learning. Its functions are believed by many scholars to be mainly domain-general, with some transferability across linguistic and non-linguistic domains. Our study aims to investigate to what extent the domain-generality claim of working memory (WM) between the visual and verbal domains is true in Thai adults aged 18-36 years old. Subjects maintain and manipulate contents in the computerized WM tasks in the verbal (English, Thai, and Mixed Thai-English) and visual (kaleidoscope) domains. We hypothesized that (1) there are correlations in the WM manipulation effect of behavioral performances within the verbal domain, and (2) there are correlations in the WM manipulation effect of behavioral performances between the verbal and visual domains. Behavioral results (hit rates and reaction times) indicate significant correlations among the WM manipulation effect among the three language tasks, but not between the language and the visual tasks. Implications include that cognitive training and improvement are possible, but only within the domain. The manipulation effect can be trained across different languages using linguistic tasks, but visual tasks may not produce the desired manipulation effect in the verbal tasks. Cognitive trainings that use both linguistics and non-linguistic tasks simultaneously to train the students’ WM are recommended to achieve the manipulation effect in the language domain.
... The cognitive mechanisms included in the present implementation are visual working memory (VWM; responsible for holding, processing, and operating on information of immediate importance), procedural memory (PM; responsible for storing and preparing motor action sequences), declarative recall (DR; responsible for generating and presenting stored information on demand), semantic recognition (SR; responsible for determining whether factual information has been stored in memory), and episodic recognition (ER, responsible for determining whether information about experienced events have been stored in memory). Note that while the categories represented here have an empirical basis, the taxonomy of mental processes is a fluid research topic [4]. Table II reports the costs of switching between tasks utilising different cognitive mechanisms. ...
... class Order(Predicate):4 Toulbar2 was a wining solver in the Uncertainty in Artificial Intelligence (UAI) 2010 Approximate Inference Challenge. ...
Over the past 15 years, researchers have identified an increasing number of security mechanisms that are so unusable that the intended users either circumvent them or give up on a service rather than suffer the security. With hindsight, the reasons can be identified easily enough: either the security task itself is too cumbersome and/or time-consuming, or it creates high friction with the users` primary task. The aim of the research presented here is to equip designers who select and implement security mechanisms with a method for identifying the ``best fit`` security mechanism at the design stage. Since many usability problems have been identified with authentication, we focus on ``best fit`` authentication, and present a framework that allows security designers not only to model the workload associated with a particular authentication method, but more importantly to model it in the context of the user`s primary task. We draw on results from cognitive psychology to create a method that allows a designer to understand the impact of a particular authentication method on user productivity and satisfaction. In a validation study using a physical mockup of an airline check-in kiosk, we demonstrate that the model can predict user performance and satisfaction. Furthermore, design experts suggested personalized order recommendations which were similar to our model`s predictions. Our model is the first that supports identification of a holistic fit between the task of user authentication and the context in which it is performed. When applied to new systems, we believe it will help designers understand the usability impact of their security choices and thus develop solutions that maximize both.
... WM is primarily understood through the lens of Baddeley's multicomponent working memory model (Alshahrani, 2017;Barreyro et al., 2019;Chai et al., 2018;Nouwens et al., 2021). The model proposes a four-module structure comprising the phonological loop, the visuospatial sketchpad, the episodic buffer, and the central executive (Baddeley, 2012). The phonological loop and the visuospatial sketchpad are analogous to short-term memory in that they are domain-specific, storage-based, slave systems (Baddeley, 1992(Baddeley, , 2003Linck et al., 2014;St Clair-Thompson & Holmes, 2008). ...
... When considering EFs, some authors characterize them as high-level processes and recognize working memory, cognitive flexibility, and inhibitory control as central EFs (Escobar & Rosas Díaz, 2023, Kocaarslan, 2022 (Baddeley, 1986(Baddeley, , 1996(Baddeley, , 2000(Baddeley, , 2012Baddeley & Hitch, 1974) and define it as a system for temporarily storing and manipulating information relevant to an ongoing task. Kim (2020) explains that working memory allows for the simultaneous holding and processing of incoming linguistic information, which is necessary for constructing the surface structure. ...
Multiple cognitive processes are required to understand what is read—the goal of reading. The objective of this study is to analyse and synthesize the evidence presented in literature regarding the relationships between reading fluency and executive functions in reading comprehension. To this end, a systematic review of studies published between 2019 and 2023 was conducted using a metasearch engine. Six articles that met the inclusion criteria were found. The results indicate that there is no consensus on the definition of reading fluency or the instruments used to measure it. The findings on how reading fluency and executive functions are related to reading comprehension are inconclusive. Nevertheless, the evidence analysed suggests that both reading fluency and executive functions are relevant variables in reading comprehension, making it essential to continue investigating these relationships. The study proposes future research lines aimed at clarifying the processes involved in reading comprehension and their interconnections.
R E S U M E N
Múltiples procesos cognitivos son requeridos para comprender lo que se lee -fin de la lectura-. El objetivo de este estudio es analizar y sintetizar las evidencias arrojadas por la literatura acerca de las relaciones entre la fluidez lectora y las funciones ejecutivas en la comprensión lectora. Con este propósito, se realizó una revisión sistemática de estudios publicados entre 2019 y 2023 a través de un metabuscador. Se encontraron seis artículos que cumplieron con los criterios de inclusión. Los resultados indican que la definición de fluidez lectora y los instrumentos utilizados para medirla no cuentan con consenso. Los hallazgos sobre el modo en que la fluidez lectora y las funciones ejecutivas se relacionan en la comprensión lectora no son concluyentes. Aun así, las evidencias analizadas sugieren que tanto la fluidez lectora como las funciones ejecutivas resultan variables relevantes en la comprensión lectora, por lo que es fundamental continuar indagando estas relaciones. El estudio propone líneas futuras de investigación que permitan aclarar los procesos involucrados en la comprensión lectora y sus interconexiones.
R E S U M O
São necessários múltiplos processos cognitivos para compreender o que é lido - o objetivo da leitura. O objetivo deste estudo é analisar e sintetizar as evidências apresentadas na literatura a respeito das relações entre fluência de leitura e funções executivas na compreensão leitora. Para tal, foi realizada uma revisão sistemática de estudos publicados entre 2019 e 2023, utilizando um motor de meta-busca. Foram encontrados seis artigos que atenderam aos critérios de inclusão. Os resultados indicam que não há consenso sobre a definição de fluência de leitura ou sobre os instrumentos utilizados para medi-la. As conclusões sobre a forma como a fluência de leitura e as funções executivas estão relacionadas com a compreensão da leitura são inconclusivas. No entanto, a evidência analisada sugere que tanto a fluência de leitura como as funções executivas são variáveis relevantes na compreensão da leitura, tornando essencial continuar a investigar estas relações. O estudo propõe linhas de investigação futuras que visam clarificar os processos envolvidos na compreensão da leitura e as suas interligações.
... Compared with visual and auditory working memory, the neural mechanisms underlying olfactory working memory remain relatively less understood. Baddeley (2012) proposed a speculative view of a working memory model, in which he temporarily added the function of processing olfactory information to the episodic buffer. However, research on olfactory memory suggests the possibility of an additional subsystem dedicated to maintaining odor information (Andrade and Donaldson, 2007;Zelano et al., 2009). ...
Previous research has revealed that the insula, pallidum, thalamus, hippocampus, middle frontal gyrus, and supplementary motor area are activated during odor memory and that the performance of olfactory working memory is affected by the verbalization of odors. However, the neural mechanisms underlying olfactory working memory and the role of verbalization in olfactory working memory are not fully understood. Twenty-nine participants were enrolled in a study to complete olfactory and visual n-back tasks using high- and low-verbalizability stimuli while undergoing fMRI imaging. The behavioral results showed that the participants achieved greater accuracy in the visual rather than olfactory n-back task. We observed increased activation in the precentral gyrus, superior frontal gyrus, middle frontal gyrus, supplementary motor area, and inferior parietal gyrus during olfactory working memory. Interestingly, decreased activation was observed in the olfactory 2-back task versus the 0-back task. Moreover, the left angular gyrus and inferior parietal gyrus were more strongly activated during processing of olfactory working memory using high-verbalizability odors. In conclusion, olfactory working memory engages cross-modal regions to facilitate responses, is involved in the monitoring and manipulation of information during working memory, and boasts a unique activation pattern that is different from that of visual working memory. Semantic information supports the representation of odor information in the working memory system.
... Işıl Uluç iuluc@mgh.harvard.edu Existence of distinct modality-specific subsystems of WM, which are divided into verbal conceptual and nonverbal, sensory WM, has also been supported by the prevalent psychological theories of WM (De Renzi and Nichelli 1975;Baddeley 1986Baddeley , 2012Quak et al. 2015;Chai et al. 2018). Verbal WM is traditionally theorized to be stored in the phonological loop by articulatory rehearsal. ...
Working memory (WM) reflects the transient maintenance of information in the absence of external input, which can be attained via multiple senses separately or simultaneously. Pertaining to WM, the prevailing literature suggests the dominance of vision over other sensory systems. However, this imbalance may be stemming from challenges in finding comparable stimuli across modalities. Here, we addressed this problem by using a balanced multisensory retro-cue WM design, which employed combinations of auditory (ripple sounds) and visuospatial (Gabor patches) patterns, adjusted relative to each participant’s discrimination ability. In three separate experiments, the participant was asked to determine whether the (retro-cued) auditory and/or visual items maintained in WM matched or mismatched the subsequent probe stimulus. In Experiment 1, all stimuli were audiovisual, and the probes were either fully mismatching, only partially mismatching, or fully matching the memorized item. Experiment 2 was otherwise the same as Experiment 1, but the probes were unimodal. In Experiment 3, the participant was cued to maintain only the auditory or visual aspect of an audiovisual item pair. In Experiments 1 and 3, the participant’s matching performance was significantly more accurate for the auditory than visual attributes of probes. When the perceptual and task demands are bimodally equated, auditory attributes can be matched to multisensory items in WM at least as accurately as, if not more precisely than, their visual counterparts.
... On the field, athletes quickly gather and integrate information, a process driven by working memory [7]. Working memory, with limited capacity, is crucial for learning, reasoning, and decision-making [8]. Compared to long-term memory, working memory has extremely limited capacity and precision [9]. ...
Long‐term training enables professional athletes to develop concentrated and efficient neural network organizations for specific tasks. This study used functional near‐infrared spectroscopy to investigate task performance, brain functional characteristics, and their relationships in footballers during sport‐specific motor‐cognitive processes. Twenty‐four footballers (athlete group, with 18 remaining of good signal quality) and 20 non‐footballers (control group, with 16 remaining) completed four tasks: a single task (trigger buttons corresponding to the appearance direction of teammates with kicking actions), an N‐back direction task, a dual task, and an N‐back digit task. Brain activation, functional connectivity (FC), and lateralization were calculated, and their correlation with behavioral indicators was analyzed. Results showed that reaction times were shorter in footballers across all tasks. The activation value in the right dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) decreased during dual task compared to the resting state in the athlete group. The activation values in all brain regions (except left primary sensory cortex in the single task), right DLPFC (dual task), and left premotor cortex & left supplementary motor area (left PMC & left SMA, digit task) were significantly lower in the athlete group than in the control group. Footballers exhibited higher interhemispheric FC during the direction and digit tasks, and greater leftward bias in the DLPFC during the dual task. The FC between left prefrontal cortex (PFC) ‐left PMC & left SMA and within the left PFC region was significantly positively correlated with accuracy during the dual task. Footballers showed better task performance with less impact from load, lower central energy consumption and higher sensory‐motor network connectivity during task execution, indicating a more efficient state. Enhancing brain function and related networks may improve athletes' reactive abilities and performance.
... Furthermore, children aged 4-13 perceive overlapping realistic figures, while embedded figure perception of geometric figures is harder for four year olds (Ghent, 1956). Motion perception reaches adult levels between ages 3-16 (Ahmed et al., 2005;Hadad et al., 2015;Pavlova et al., 2001;Sweeny et al., 2013), while visual short-term memory develops by age six (Baddeley, 1996(Baddeley, , 2012Gathercole et al., 2004). ...
... It suggests that number-space associations may arise from temporary representations within WM, rather than being fixed in LTM (van Dijck & Fias, 2011). WM, which facilitates the temporary encoding and manipulation of information (Baddeley, 2012;Cowan, 1999), has been shown to play a crucial role in spatial-numerical processing. Van Dijck and Fias (2011) proposed that the SNARC effect might emerge from the ordinal positions of numbers in WM, with faster responses for earlier numbers on the left and later numbers on the right. ...
Prior research has predominantly examined the role of working memory (WM) in tasks involving numerical information and spatial properties, such as memorizing number sequences and performing parity judgment and magnitude comparison. In contrast to focusing solely on the effect of WM on number judgment tasks, our study investigates how magnitude-space associations affect WM task performance, emphasizing long-term representations, specifically the concept of mental number line (MNL) compatibility (small items on the left, large items on the right) in long-term memory (LTM). Moving from the idea of representations within LTM contribute to the functioning of WM during task execution, we explore the effects of congruent, incongruent, and negative congruent numerical and non-numerical magnitude–space associations on magnitude-based 1-back (low WM load) and 2-back (high WM load) tasks. MNL compatible n-back and test items are congruent, MNL compatible n-back and MNL incompatible (small on the right, large on the left) test items (or vice versa) are incongruent, and MNL incompatible n-back and test items are considered negative congruent. Because negative congruent and incongruent representations may not activate existing representations in LTM, as congruent representations, we expected worse WM performance in negative congruent and incongruent trials than in congruent trials. Results reveal that congruent and incongruent representations elicit more accurate and rapid responses than negative congruents, suggesting that congruent and incongruent representations contribute to task execution. Additionally, we observe a size effect for small numerical magnitudes and a reverse size effect for large physical magnitudes, pointing towards the coactivation of LTM and WM in magnitude–space relations.
... Enfin, les apprenants éprouvent des difficultés à synthétiser l'information récoltée pendant leur navigation sur le web. Une navigation efficace à travers les pages exige que les lecteurs traitent non seulement les relations sémantiques entre les pages, comme en témoigne le rôle des compétences en lecture sur la navigation, mais aussi les relations spatiales entre les pages et entre les sections d'une page particulière (Baddeley, 2012). Cette structure hypertextuelle tend à augmenter les exigences cognitives de la prise de décision et du traitement visuel, et cette charge cognitive supplémentaire nuit à la compréhension de la lecture (DeStefano et LeFevre, 2007). ...
Que nous apprennent les réponses des élèves à deux tâches de recherche d'information en ligne ? Évaluer. Journal international de recherche en éducation et formation, 10(3), 49-75 49 Que nous apprennent les réponses des élèves à deux tâches de recherche d'information en ligne ? What can we learn from students' responses to two online information-seeking tasks? Audrey Kumps-audrey.kumps@umons.ac.be-https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6481-0318 Gaëtan Temperman-Gaetan.temperman@umons.ac.be-https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0200-350X Charles Glineur-Charles.glineur@umons.ac.be-https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9945-0348 Bruno De Lièvre-bruno.delievre@umons.ac.be-https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8843-1582
... As such, alternative ways to measure salience and memorability of musical phrases considered to be hooks would be useful to understand possible biases in participant responses in this study. Additionally, as salience and memorability rely on what are generally assumed to be separate mental processes (e.g., Baddeley, 2012), it would be useful for future research to separate these factors more carefully by having participants react to unfamiliar pop music using continuous self-report measures. ...
Hooks are a widely recognized feature of popular music. Despite this, few empirical studies have investigated what makes musical material likely to be a hook. Definitions of hooks consistently refer to both salience and memorability as a defining characteristic, suggesting that hooks may be understood as an interaction with attentional and memory processes. The current study aims to investigate which musical elements of pop music influence participant perceptions of salience and memorability. Participants were presented with four pop songs and asked to rate twenty excerpts from each song based on their ability to stand out and be memorable. Excerpts were isolated layers of the song, allowing for measurement of specific musical phrases. Excerpts were classified based on song section, whether they were topline or from the backing track, and whether they were rated as hooks by musicologists, as per Burns (1987). Results indicate that excerpts from the topline, from the chorus, and that included compound hooks were associated with an increase in participant ratings. Results provide evidence towards the perception of hooks as a psychological process involving memory and attentional systems. Future research should emphasize alternative methodologies and populations to further contribute to a psychological understanding of hooks.
... Multiple-component models of working memory comprise two specialised components for storing and processing verbal and visuospatial material (the phonological loop and the visuospatial sketchpad, respectively). The episodic buffer allows conscious access to multimodal representations, and may draw upon long-term memory (Baddeley, 2007(Baddeley, , 2012Logie, 2011Logie, , 2016Logie, , 2023. These sub-systems are directed by domain-general central executive resources. ...
Greater semantic availability (meaningfulness) within visual stimuli can positively impact visual working memory performance. Across two experiments, we investigated the effects of semantic availability and, for the first time, semantic strategy instruction on visual working memory performance. Experiment 1 focused on young adults’ (18-35 years) strategies during visual matrix task recognition. Results highlighted an existing propensity to report incorporating a semantic strategy. Interestingly, there was no significant effect of semantic availability within the task stimuli. Semantic strategy instruction also did not boost, or indeed hinder, accuracy. Experiment 2 incorporated older adults (60-87 years) and highlighted marked differences in capacity with older age. Greater semantic availability reliably benefitted capacity for young adults only. Furthermore, semantic strategy instruction neither boosted nor hindered capacity, even in older adults. There were also some interesting patterns regarding reported strategy use across groups. Again, participants did report spontaneously using semantic strategies, particularly young adults. However, instruction may have encouraged more frequent use of semantic strategies in older adults. Finally, the results suggest a role for task practice, likely related to strategy development and implementation over time. Future semantic strategy instruction protocols may need to incorporate more extensive training and/or practice to benefit working memory capacity.
... According to Wen (2016) and Elshout-Mohr and van Daalen-Kapteijns (1987), this system allows individuals to complete complex cognitive tasks, including reasoning, learning, and comprehension. However, since working memory is devoted to short-term storage and processing, its capacity is assumed to be limited and could be easily overwhelmed by tasks that have a high cognitive load (Baddeley, 1986(Baddeley, , 1992(Baddeley, , 2002(Baddeley, , 2012Elshout-Mohr & van Daalen-Kapteijns, 1987;Imbo & Vandierendonck, 2007). ...
The paper examined the relations among problem solving, automaticity, and working memory load (WML) by changing the difficulty level of task characteristics through two applications. In Study 1, involving 68 engineering students, a 2 (automaticity) × 2 (WML) design was utilized for arithmetic problems. In Study 2, involving 76 engineering students, a 2 (automaticity) × 2 (WML) design was used for linear algebra tasks. In both studies, there were statistically significant main effects and interaction effects of automaticity and WML on the variable of response time, concurring with the cognitive load theory. The simple effect of WML rendered a larger effect size under the conditions with low automaticity. When the testing condition was easy but contained more steps, the students were more accurate, and response times were faster. When the testing condition was difficult but contained fewer steps, the students were less accurate, and response times were slower. The findings underscore the important role of automaticity in helping engineering students bypass the limits of working memory.
This article presents findings from a research project conducted between 2022 and 2024 involving high school students from a private school in Medellin. The study aims to analyze the impact of Working Memory (WM) and Intrinsic Motivation (IM) on the performance of oral skills in English as a foreign language (EFL). A correlational research design was employed to explore the relationships between these variables. Measurement involved the use of the Motivational Assessment Questionnaire of the Learning Process (EMPA), the Working Memory Index of the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children (WISC-IV), the Controlled Oral Word Association Test (COWAT), and the standardized Cambridge A2 Key (KET) test according to the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR). Results suggest a moderate positive influence of WM on oral performance, while IM displays a positive but statistically insignificant correlation. It is proposed that investigating the interplay between WM and IM could be a promising avenue for future research, underscoring the significance of cognitive and motivational factors in language acquisition.
The Optimal electrode configuration of Electroencephalograms (EEG) systems for mild cognitive impairment (MCI) detection and monitoring in non-clinical settings, i.e. number of electrodes and the positions of the electrodes, remains to be explored. In the current study, we explored the optimization of electrode configuration for MCI detection. We used a 32-channel EEG device to record the data of 21 MCI patients and 20 cognitively normal elderly (NC) undergoing working memory (WM) tasks. Based on the differential value (MCI group vs. NC group) from the Power Spectral Density (PSD) value of each electrode in θ and α frequency band during WM coding stage, six different electrode configurations were obtained: (1) four electrodes in the occipital lobe (OCL4); (2) three electrodes in the prefrontal lobe (PRL3); (3) four electrodes in the parietal lobe (PLL4), (4) eight electrodes in occipital combined parietal lobe (OPL8), (5) seven electrodes in occipital combined prefrontal lobe (OPL7); and (6) seven electrodes in parietal combined prefrontal lobe (PPL7). A multi-parameter combination-assisted binary logistic regression model was established to distinguish two groups. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves were used to evaluate the MCI diagnostic power of each electrode configuration. The area under curve (AUC) of the ROC of electrode configurations OCL4, PRL3, PLL4, OPL8, OPL7 and PPL7 were 0.765, 0.683, 0.729, 0.83, 0.788, and 0.769, respectively. And the sensitivity of six electrode configurations were 0.962, 0.794, 0.873, 0.943, 0.859, and 0.938, respectively. Among these six configurations, OCL4, i.e. PO3, PO4, PO8, and PO7, had the highest sensitivity 96.2%, which meant that relying solely on these four electrodes of the occipital lobe had the potential to serve as an objective tool for preliminary screening of MCI. The abnormal brain rhythm characteristics of the frontal, parietal, and occipital lobes in the memory encoding stage of MCI provide a new perspective for MCI-WM impairment, which has the potential to be a novel biomarker for the early detection of pathological age-related cognitive decline. Further, a potential four-electrode configuration may be used for a novel detecting and monitoring EEG system of MCI in non-clinical settings.
This study delves into the under-explored dynamics of Primacy and Recency effects in multi-destination tourism, utilizing data from online travelogs. Focusing on attraction sequences (hedonic trends) and travel duration, our analysis reveals key relationships between travel duration and tourists’ emotional experiences. We found that longer travel durations lead to a Recency effect, where later parts of the journey significantly impact overall experience. In contrast, shorter durations demonstrate a Primacy effect, with initial attractions having a more pronounced influence. These findings not only highlight the “dynamic” transition between Primacy and Recency effects based on travel duration but also offer practical insights for itinerary design, aiming to enhance tourist satisfaction. This research contributes a new understanding of the temporal sequencing of attractions and their impact on tourist experiences, enriching both theoretical and practical aspects of tourism management.
Older adults often struggle to comprehend speech in noisy environments, a challenge influenced by declines in both auditory processing and cognitive functions. This study examines age-related differences in speech recognition in noise, focusing on the roles of delta (1-4 Hz) and theta (4-8 Hz) neural oscillations and their relationship with cognitive function, particularly working memory. Electroencephalography (EEG) was used to collect data from 23 young adults (20-35 years) and 23 older adults (65-80 years) with normal hearing. Cognitive assessments were administered to older adults, and both groups completed an EEG task involving speech recognition in Speech-Shaped Noise (SSN) at individualized noise levels based on their Sentence Recognition Scores (SRS). Results showed that age significantly impacted hit rates and reaction times in noisy speech recognition tasks. Theta-band neural tracking was notably stronger in older adults, while delta-band tracking showed no age-related difference. Pearson's correlations indicated significant associations between age-related cognitive decline, reduced hearing sensitivity, and Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) scores. Regression analyses showed that theta-band neural tracking at specific SRS levels significantly predicted word list recognition in the higher SRT group, while constructional recall was strongly predicted in the lower SRT group. The findings suggest that older adults may rely on theta-band neural tracking as a compensatory mechanism to support speech perception in noise, with indirect links between working memory and speech perception. Further research is needed to explore the causal relationship between cognitive function and hearing.
Verbal working memory delays are found in many prelingually deaf children who receive cochlear implants (CIs). Because of the central importance of working memory for language, learning, and daily functioning, these delays present a significant challenge to cognitive development and quality of life. In order to address the consequences of working memory delays in normal-hearing children, several computer-based, game-like programs have been developed with the goal of improving working memory. Research on these working memory training programs using normal-hearing samples has demonstrated improvements on measures of abilities that are similar to trained working memory tasks. The findings have been less consistent and provide less support for the generalization and transfer of this improvement to other abilities such as fluid intelligence, attention, concentration, academic skills, and behavior in daily life. In a pilot study of a working memory training program in a sample of prelingually deaf, early-implanted children and adolescents with CIs, we found an improvement after training on measures of working memory and sentence repetition. The results were less robust for measures of fluency/speed, and the magnitude of improvement (with the notable exception of sentence repetition skills) declined during the 6-month follow-up period. Theory-driven research investigating the foundational cognitive functions affected by working memory training, using larger samples and randomized controlled designs, is recommended as the next step to develop and evaluate novel working memory training interventions for children with CIs.
This study investigates the relationship among working memory (WM), mathematics, and language, with the aim of understanding: (1) whether the functions and capacities of WM components can predict achievement in language and mathematics; and (2) whether competence in the first language (L1) and achievement in mathematics can predict success in later second language (L2) learning. The participants were 60 Turkish-English bilingual young adults. Data were collected through the Digit Span Task, standardized exams, and a computerized Turkish Reading Span Task developed for this study. The results reveal that: (1) WM significantly explains achievement in both language and mathematics, and (2) competence in L1 and mathematics predicts success in later L2 learning. Based on these findings, it is hypothesized that the domain-specific abilities of language and mathematical skills might share a core network that is strongly linked to the mechanisms of the phonological loop and the central executive, and that rehearsal techniques may modulate the learning achievement of languages and mathematics.
The present study investigated the involvement of working memory deficits in the difficulty presented by individuals with dyslexia or/and dyscalculia to understand Physics. For this reason, it dealt with the working memory deficits in these individuals and with the type of difficulties they face in learning Physics. The study concluded that the deficits in Phonological loop,in visual-spatial sketchpadand central executive that cause difficulties in individuals with dyslexia or/and dyscalculia also cause a learning disability in physics, the dysphysics.
Explicit (Declarative) Memory: Includes episodic memory, which pertains to personal experiences, and semantic memory, which involves factual knowledge. Semantic memory, being the foundation of disciplines such as medical education, is particularly relevant in this context. Memory and learning are indispensable to human behavior, with particular importance in academic disciplines such as medicine, where effective retention of complex information is vital. Historically, medical education has relied heavily on rote memorization. However, advances in neuroscience and cognitive science have revealed pedagogical strategies that enhance learning by building robust cognitive frameworks. These frameworks are based on the neuroanatomy of memory, including the Circuit of Papez, schema formation in the association cortex, and retrieval pathways. This paper provides a comprehensive review of the literature on memory pathways and stages, emphasizing the transition of information into long-term memory (LTM) through schema-based constructs. It also details six key pedagogical strategies-cognitive load management, dual encoding, spiral syllabus design, bridging and chunking, sleep consolidation, and retrieval practice-highlighting their application in medical education. By integrating neuroscience principles into teaching methods, educators can move beyond rote memorization to foster lifelong learning, improve memory retention, and enhance student engagement. This approach also offers clinicians insights into diagnosing and treating memory and cognitive disruptions.
Effective learning strategies, rooted in an understanding of neurocognitive pathways, have the potential to revolutionize education. Post-encoding sleep consolidation and retrieval practice represent evidence-based approaches that leverage the brain’s natural mechanisms for memory reinforcement. By shifting away from rote memorization toward strategies that prioritize long-term retention and critical thinking, educators can empower students to achieve academic success and cultivate lifelong learning skills. Memory and learning are indispensable to human behavior, with particular importance in academic disciplines such as medicine, where effective retention of complex information is vital. Historically, medical education has relied heavily on rote memorization. However, advances in neuroscience and cognitive science have revealed pedagogical strategies that enhance learning by building robust cognitive frameworks. These frameworks are based on the neuroanatomy of memory, including the Circuit of Papez, schema formation in the association cortex, and retrieval pathways. This paper provides a comprehensive review of the literature on memory pathways and stages, emphasizing the transition of information into long-term memory (LTM) through schema-based constructs. It also details six key pedagogical strategies-cognitive load management, dual encoding, spiral syllabus design, bridging and chunking, sleep consolidation, and retrieval practice-highlighting their application in medical education. By integrating neuroscience principles into teaching methods, educators can move beyond rote memorization to foster lifelong learning, improve memory retention, and enhance student engagement. This approach also offers clinicians insights into diagnosing and treating memory and cognitive disruptions.
WM is constrained by its limited capacity, typically holding only 5–7 items for no longer than 12 seconds. These constraints, as outlined by Miller’s law, make WM susceptible to overload, a concept central to cognitive load theory. Educators can mitigate this overload by breaking complex material into smaller chunks and connecting it to existing schemas in LTM. For instance, summarizing key points or using mnemonics helps reduce cognitive load while enhancing the encoding process. Memory and learning are indispensable to human behavior, with particular importance in academic disciplines such as medicine, where effective retention of complex information is vital. Historically, medical education has relied heavily on rote memorization. However, advances in neuroscience and cognitive science have revealed pedagogical strategies that enhance learning by building robust cognitive frameworks. These frameworks are based on the neuroanatomy of memory, including the Circuit of Papez, schema formation in the association cortex, and retrieval pathways. This paper provides a comprehensive review of the literature on memory pathways and stages, emphasizing the transition of information into long-term memory (LTM) through schema-based constructs. It also details six key pedagogical strategies-cognitive load management, dual encoding, spiral syllabus design, bridging and chunking, sleep consolidation, and retrieval practice-highlighting their application in medical education. By integrating neuroscience principles into teaching methods, educators can move beyond rote memorization to foster lifelong learning, improve memory retention, and enhance student engagement. This approach also offers clinicians insights into diagnosing and treating memory and cognitive disruptions.
Sensory memory is the initial stage of memory formation, lasting only a few seconds. It captures fleeting sensory information from the environment through modalities such as vision and hearing. Visual input is processed by the visual cortex, while auditory input is processed by the auditory cortex. SM has a limited capacity and acts as a buffer, retaining information long enough to decide whether it warrants further processing in WM. Memory and learning are indispensable to human behavior, with particular importance in academic disciplines such as medicine, where effective retention of complex information is vital. Historically, medical education has relied heavily on rote memorization. However, advances in neuroscience and cognitive science have revealed pedagogical strategies that enhance learning by building robust cognitive frameworks. These frameworks are based on the neuroanatomy of memory, including the Circuit of Papez, schema formation in the association cortex, and retrieval pathways. This paper provides a comprehensive review of the literature on memory pathways and stages, emphasizing the transition of information into long-term memory (LTM) through schema-based constructs. It also details six key pedagogical strategies-cognitive load management, dual encoding, spiral syllabus design, bridging and chunking, sleep consolidation, and retrieval practice-highlighting their application in medical education. By integrating neuroscience principles into teaching methods, educators can move beyond rote memorization to foster lifelong learning, improve memory retention, and enhance student engagement. This approach also offers clinicians insights into diagnosing and treating memory and cognitive disruptions.
Memory, a cornerstone of human cognition, is categorized into four primary types based on its temporal and functional characteristics: sensory memory (SM), working memory (WM), recent memory (RM), and long-term memory (LTM). These categories reflect the stages through which information progresses as it is processed, stored, and retrieved. Each type is associated with specific neuroanatomical regions and mechanisms, which collectively enable the encoding, consolidation, and retrieval of knowledge. Understanding these categories is essential for appreciating how memory functions in educational and clinical contexts. Memory and learning are indispensable to human behavior, with particular importance in academic disciplines such as medicine, where effective retention of complex information is vital. Historically, medical education has relied heavily on rote memorization. However, advances in neuroscience and cognitive science have revealed pedagogical strategies that enhance learning by building robust cognitive frameworks. These frameworks are based on the neuroanatomy of memory, including the Circuit of Papez, schema formation in the association cortex, and retrieval pathways. This paper provides a comprehensive review of the literature on memory pathways and stages, emphasizing the transition of information into long-term memory (LTM) through schema-based constructs. It also details six key pedagogical strategies-cognitive load management, dual encoding, spiral syllabus design, bridging and chunking, sleep consolidation, and retrieval practice-highlighting their application in medical education. By integrating neuroscience principles into teaching methods, educators can move beyond rote memorization to foster lifelong learning, improve memory retention, and enhance student engagement. This approach also offers clinicians insights into diagnosing and treating memory and cognitive disruptions.
As the discipline of medical education continues to evolve, educators must leverage insights from neuroscience and cognitive science to optimize the learning experience. By understanding and applying these principles, they can empower students to transition from passive rote learners to active, adaptive thinkers capable of lifelong learning and professional excellence. Memory and learning are indispensable to human behavior, with particular importance in academic disciplines such as medicine, where effective retention of complex information is vital. Historically, medical education has relied heavily on rote memorization. However, advances in neuroscience and cognitive science have revealed pedagogical strategies that enhance learning by building robust cognitive frameworks. These frameworks are based on the neuroanatomy of memory, including the Circuit of Papez, schema formation in the association cortex, and retrieval pathways. This paper provides a comprehensive review of the literature on memory pathways and stages, emphasizing the transition of information into long-term memory (LTM) through schema-based constructs. It also details six key pedagogical strategies-cognitive load management, dual encoding, spiral syllabus design, bridging and chunking, sleep consolidation, and retrieval practice-highlighting their application in medical education. By integrating neuroscience principles into teaching methods, educators can move beyond rote memorization to foster lifelong learning, improve memory retention, and enhance student engagement. This approach also offers clinicians insights into diagnosing and treating memory and cognitive disruptions.
Understanding these memory categories and pathways is pivotal for designing effective pedagogical strategies. For instance, visual aids and clear instructions optimize SM, while chunking and schema-based learning enhance WM processing. Techniques such as spaced repetition and sleep consolidation bolster RM, ensuring robust LTM formation. Additionally, retrieval practice strengthens memory pathways, reinforcing the durability and accessibility of LTM. Memory and learning are indispensable to human behavior, with particular importance in academic disciplines such as medicine, where effective retention of complex information is vital. Historically, medical education has relied heavily on rote memorization. However, advances in neuroscience and cognitive science have revealed pedagogical strategies that enhance learning by building robust cognitive frameworks. These frameworks are based on the neuroanatomy of memory, including the Circuit of Papez, schema formation in the association cortex, and retrieval pathways. This paper provides a comprehensive review of the literature on memory pathways and stages, emphasizing the transition of information into long-term memory (LTM) through schema-based constructs. It also details six key pedagogical strategies-cognitive load management, dual encoding, spiral syllabus design, bridging and chunking, sleep consolidation, and retrieval practice-highlighting their application in medical education. By integrating neuroscience principles into teaching methods, educators can move beyond rote memorization to foster lifelong learning, improve memory retention, and enhance student engagement. This approach also offers clinicians insights into diagnosing and treating memory and cognitive disruptions.
Implicit (Non-Declarative) Memory: Involves automatic tasks and procedures, such as riding a bicycle. It operates without conscious effort, relying on areas such as the basal ganglia and cerebellum.
The progression from SM to LTM involves three critical pathways:
Encoding: The transfer of information from WM to RM and LTM.
Consolidation: The process of stabilizing memory traces in the HPC and association cortex.
Retrieval: The reactivation of stored information from LTM back into WM for use.
Memory and learning are indispensable to human behavior, with particular importance in academic disciplines such as medicine, where effective retention of complex information is vital. Historically, medical education has relied heavily on rote memorization. However, advances in neuroscience and cognitive science have revealed pedagogical strategies that enhance learning by building robust cognitive frameworks. These frameworks are based on the neuroanatomy of memory, including the Circuit of Papez, schema formation in the association cortex, and retrieval pathways. This paper provides a comprehensive review of the literature on memory pathways and stages, emphasizing the transition of information into long-term memory (LTM) through schema-based constructs. It also details six key pedagogical strategies-cognitive load management, dual encoding, spiral syllabus design, bridging and chunking, sleep consolidation, and retrieval practice-highlighting their application in medical education. By integrating neuroscience principles into teaching methods, educators can move beyond rote memorization to foster lifelong learning, improve memory retention, and enhance student engagement. This approach also offers clinicians insights into diagnosing and treating memory and cognitive disruptions.
Memory Retrieval: The activation of pathways that reverse the encoding and consolidation processes, enabling the recollection of stored information.
An understanding of these pathways is crucial not only for educators but also for clinicians. It aids in identifying and diagnosing disruptions in memory processes, such as those seen in cognitive disorders, and provides insight into targeted treatment strategies. A comprehensive review of these neuroanatomical foundations prior to exploring pedagogical strategies equips educators with a robust framework for designing effective teaching methods while instilling confidence in their learners.
Memory and learning are indispensable to human behavior, with particular importance in academic disciplines such as medicine, where effective retention of complex information is vital. Historically, medical education has relied heavily on rote memorization. However, advances in neuroscience and cognitive science have revealed pedagogical strategies that enhance learning by building robust cognitive frameworks. These frameworks are based on the neuroanatomy of memory, including the Circuit of Papez, schema formation in the association cortex, and retrieval pathways. This paper provides a comprehensive review of the literature on memory pathways and stages, emphasizing the transition of information into long-term memory (LTM) through schema-based constructs. It also details six key pedagogical strategies-cognitive load management, dual encoding, spiral syllabus design, bridging and chunking, sleep consolidation, and retrieval practice-highlighting their application in medical education. By integrating neuroscience principles into teaching methods, educators can move beyond rote memorization to foster lifelong learning, improve memory retention, and enhance student engagement. This approach also offers clinicians insights into diagnosing and treating memory and cognitive disruptions.
Working memory serves as the brain’s active workspace, where information is temporarily held and manipulated. WM receives inputs from SM and integrates them with pre-existing knowledge retrieved from LTM. It operates through a central executive component, located in the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DL-PFC), which organizes, prioritizes, and encodes information into RM and LTM simultaneously. Memory and learning are indispensable to human behavior, with particular importance in academic disciplines such as medicine, where effective retention of complex information is vital. Historically, medical education has relied heavily on rote memorization. However, advances in neuroscience and cognitive science have revealed pedagogical strategies that enhance learning by building robust cognitive frameworks. These frameworks are based on the neuroanatomy of memory, including the Circuit of Papez, schema formation in the association cortex, and retrieval pathways. This paper provides a comprehensive review of the literature on memory pathways and stages, emphasizing the transition of information into long-term memory (LTM) through schema-based constructs. It also details six key pedagogical strategies-cognitive load management, dual encoding, spiral syllabus design, bridging and chunking, sleep consolidation, and retrieval practice-highlighting their application in medical education. By integrating neuroscience principles into teaching methods, educators can move beyond rote memorization to foster lifelong learning, improve memory retention, and enhance student engagement. This approach also offers clinicians insights into diagnosing and treating memory and cognitive disruptions.
The brevity of SM underscores its vulnerability to distractions, making it a critical consideration in teaching and learning environments. Educators must ensure that instructional materials engage attention effectively, as information that fails to transition from SM to WM is lost. For example, visually engaging slides or clear auditory cues can help maximize the transfer of content from SM to WM. Memory and learning are indispensable to human behavior, with particular importance in academic disciplines such as medicine, where effective retention of complex information is vital. Historically, medical education has relied heavily on rote memorization. However, advances in neuroscience and cognitive science have revealed pedagogical strategies that enhance learning by building robust cognitive frameworks. These frameworks are based on the neuroanatomy of memory, including the Circuit of Papez, schema formation in the association cortex, and retrieval pathways. This paper provides a comprehensive review of the literature on memory pathways and stages, emphasizing the transition of information into long-term memory (LTM) through schema-based constructs. It also details six key pedagogical strategies-cognitive load management, dual encoding, spiral syllabus design, bridging and chunking, sleep consolidation, and retrieval practice-highlighting their application in medical education. By integrating neuroscience principles into teaching methods, educators can move beyond rote memorization to foster lifelong learning, improve memory retention, and enhance student engagement. This approach also offers clinicians insights into diagnosing and treating memory and cognitive disruptions.
Long-term memory is the final stage of memory storage, where information is organized into durable, complex representations known as schemas. These schemas reside in the parieto-temporal-occipital (PTO) junction and the ventromedial prefrontal cortex (VM-PFC), which correspond to the association areas of the brain. Unlike RM, which is transient, LTM can persist indefinitely, though its strength and accessibility may decline without reconsolidation. Memory and learning are indispensable to human behavior, with particular importance in academic disciplines such as medicine, where effective retention of complex information is vital. Historically, medical education has relied heavily on rote memorization. However, advances in neuroscience and cognitive science have revealed pedagogical strategies that enhance learning by building robust cognitive frameworks. These frameworks are based on the neuroanatomy of memory, including the Circuit of Papez, schema formation in the association cortex, and retrieval pathways. This paper provides a comprehensive review of the literature on memory pathways and stages, emphasizing the transition of information into long-term memory (LTM) through schema-based constructs. It also details six key pedagogical strategies-cognitive load management, dual encoding, spiral syllabus design, bridging and chunking, sleep consolidation, and retrieval practice-highlighting their application in medical education. By integrating neuroscience principles into teaching methods, educators can move beyond rote memorization to foster lifelong learning, improve memory retention, and enhance student engagement. This approach also offers clinicians insights into diagnosing and treating memory and cognitive disruptions.
Retrieval Practice: Actively recalling information to strengthen memory pathways.
This paper reviews the neuroanatomical underpinnings of memory and its stages and pathways, providing a detailed examination of the aforementioned strategies. These strategies are designed not only to enhance immediate retention but also to ensure robust, long-term learning. Special emphasis is placed on schema formation, the construct central to long-term memory storage. Building on this foundation, the paper outlines actionable pedagogical strategies that educators can integrate into their teaching methodologies.
Memory and learning are indispensable to human behavior, with particular importance in academic disciplines such as medicine, where effective retention of complex information is vital. Historically, medical education has relied heavily on rote memorization. However, advances in neuroscience and cognitive science have revealed pedagogical strategies that enhance learning by building robust cognitive frameworks. These frameworks are based on the neuroanatomy of memory, including the Circuit of Papez, schema formation in the association cortex, and retrieval pathways. This paper provides a comprehensive review of the literature on memory pathways and stages, emphasizing the transition of information into long-term memory (LTM) through schema-based constructs. It also details six key pedagogical strategies-cognitive load management, dual encoding, spiral syllabus design, bridging and chunking, sleep consolidation, and retrieval practice-highlighting their application in medical education. By integrating neuroscience principles into teaching methods, educators can move beyond rote memorization to foster lifelong learning, improve memory retention, and enhance student engagement. This approach also offers clinicians insights into diagnosing and treating memory and cognitive disruptions.
Traditionally, medical education has been perceived as a domain requiring extensive rote memorization for success. This perception is not without merit, given the vast volume of knowledge medical students must acquire and retain. However, advancements in neuroscience and educational psychology have provided a deeper understanding of learning and memory processes, paving the way for more effective pedagogical approaches. These approaches aim to minimize reliance on rote memorization by fostering cognitive frameworks that promote understanding, integration, and long-term retention of knowledge—skills that are essential for lifelong learning and professional competence. Memory and learning are indispensable to human behavior, with particular importance in academic disciplines such as medicine, where effective retention of complex information is vital. Historically, medical education has relied heavily on rote memorization. However, advances in neuroscience and cognitive science have revealed pedagogical strategies that enhance learning by building robust cognitive frameworks. These frameworks are based on the neuroanatomy of memory, including the Circuit of Papez, schema formation in the association cortex, and retrieval pathways. This paper provides a comprehensive review of the literature on memory pathways and stages, emphasizing the transition of information into long-term memory (LTM) through schema-based constructs. It also details six key pedagogical strategies-cognitive load management, dual encoding, spiral syllabus design, bridging and chunking, sleep consolidation, and retrieval practice-highlighting their application in medical education. By integrating neuroscience principles into teaching methods, educators can move beyond rote memorization to foster lifelong learning, improve memory retention, and enhance student engagement. This approach also offers clinicians insights into diagnosing and treating memory and cognitive disruptions.
Memory and learning are indispensable to human behavior, with particular importance in academic disciplines such as medicine, where effective retention of complex information is vital. Historically, medical education has relied heavily on rote memorization. However, advances in neuroscience and cognitive science have revealed pedagogical strategies that enhance learning by building robust cognitive frameworks. These frameworks are based on the neuroanatomy of memory, including the Circuit of Papez, schema formation in the association cortex, and retrieval pathways. This paper provides a comprehensive review of the literature on memory pathways and stages, emphasizing the transition of information into long-term memory (LTM) through schema-based constructs. It also details six key pedagogical strategies-cognitive load management, dual encoding, spiral syllabus design, bridging and chunking, sleep consolidation, and retrieval practice-highlighting their application in medical education. By integrating neuroscience principles into teaching methods, educators can move beyond rote memorization to foster lifelong learning, improve memory retention, and enhance student engagement. This approach also offers clinicians insights into diagnosing and treating memory and cognitive disruptions.
Memory and learning are indispensable to human behavior, with particular importance in academic disciplines such as medicine, where effective retention of complex information is vital. Historically, medical education has relied heavily on rote memorization. However, advances in neuroscience and cognitive science have revealed pedagogical strategies that enhance learning by building robust cognitive frameworks. These frameworks are based on the neuroanatomy of memory, including the Circuit of Papez, schema formation in the association cortex, and retrieval pathways. This paper provides a comprehensive review of the literature on memory pathways and stages, emphasizing the transition of information into long-term memory (LTM) through schema-based constructs. It also details six key pedagogical strategies-cognitive load management, dual encoding, spiral syllabus design, bridging and chunking, sleep consolidation, and retrieval practice-highlighting their application in medical education. By integrating neuroscie
“Learning represents the ability to use past experiences in the service of the present” 1. This succinct definition underscores the integral relationship between memory and learning—two processes that are foundational to all aspects of human behavior and cognition. The culmination of past experiences, referred to as memory, is not merely a passive repository but an active enabler of adaptive learning and problem-solving. Together, memory and learning underpin human interaction, creativity, and achievement, playing particularly critical roles in education and professional disciplines, including medicine. Memory and learning are indispensable to human behavior, with particular importance in academic disciplines such as medicine, where effective retention of complex information is vital. Historically, medical education has relied heavily on rote memorization. However, advances in neuroscience and cognitive science have revealed pedagogical strategies that enhance learning by building robust cognitive frameworks. These frameworks are based on the neuroanatomy of memory, including the Circuit of Papez, schema formation in the association cortex, and retrieval pathways. This paper provides a comprehensive review of the literature on memory pathways and stages, emphasizing the transition of information into long-term memory (LTM) through schema-based constructs. It also details six key pedagogical strategies-cognitive load management, dual encoding, spiral syllabus design, bridging and chunking, sleep consolidation, and retrieval practice-highlighting their application in medical education. By integrating neuroscience principles into teaching methods, educators can move beyond rote memorization to foster lifelong learning, improve memory retention, and enhance student engagement. This approach also offers clinicians insights into diagnosing and treating memory and cognitive disruptions.
Historically, working memory (WM) and long-term memory (LTM) were viewed as distinct systems, operating independently. Recent research, however, has uncovered intricate interactions between these memory systems, revealing that LTM information can enhance the WM performance. This study investigates the mechanisms underlying such facilitation through a delayed color-recall task, adapted from Brady et al. (2009). Across three experiments, we systematically manipulated stimulus pairings with temporarily invalidating (Experiment 2) or changing (Experiment 3) statistical pairing regularities. The results demonstrated subjects’ flexible utilization of recent input regularities, showcasing their control over this information. Furthermore, regularity learning selectively modulated neural oscillations during the encoding phase, indicating reduced information storage and increased mental resource deployment when leveraging regularities to enhance the WM performances. In sum, this study shed new light on how and when LTM facilitates WM performances through rapid learning and flexible implementation of regularities between stimuli.
Purpose
Although the existing literature has explored the link between cognitive functioning and speech recognition in noise, the specific role of fluid intelligence still needs to be studied. Given the established association between working memory capacity (WMC) and fluid intelligence and the predictive power of WMC for speech recognition in noise, we aimed to elucidate the mediating role of fluid intelligence.
Method
We used data from the n200 study, a longitudinal investigation into aging, hearing ability, and cognitive functioning. We analyzed two age-matched samples: participants with hearing aids and a group with normal hearing. WMC was assessed using the Reading Span task, and fluid intelligence was measured with Raven's Progressive Matrices. Speech recognition in noise was evaluated using Hagerman sentences presented to target 80% speech-reception thresholds in four-talker babble. Data were analyzed using mediation analysis to examine fluid intelligence as a mediator between WMC and speech recognition in noise.
Results
We found a partial mediating effect of fluid intelligence on the relationship between WMC and speech recognition in noise, and that hearing status did not moderate this effect. In other words, WMC and fluid intelligence were related, and fluid intelligence partially explained the influence of WMC on speech recognition in noise.
Conclusions
This study shows the importance of fluid intelligence in speech recognition in noise, regardless of hearing status. Future research should use other advanced statistical techniques and explore various speech recognition tests and background maskers to deepen our understanding of the interplay between WMC and fluid intelligence in speech recognition.
A dive into the research linking development of spatial skills with improved outcomes at all levels of CS education.
Emotional working memory (WM) involves retaining and processing emotionally charged information, integrating emotions into cognitive tasks like decision-making and attention management. While anxiety affects dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (dlPFC) activity, research on how different anxiety levels impact WM remains inconclusive. To investigate this, participants were divided into Mild and Moderate anxiety groups based on their Beck Anxiety Inventory scores. Their performance on 2-back emotional WM task was compared both behaviorally and neurologically. Functional near-infrared spectroscopy was used to measure oxyhemoglobin levels in the dlPFC. The results showed that both groups had similar performance, with no significant differences in correct responses to the spatial location of emotional face stimuli. This suggests that emotional stimuli do not affect WM performance between groups. However, imaging data revealed hemisphere-specific differences in oxyhemoglobin changes, with no significant difference between hemispheres. The Moderate anxiety group exhibited reduced oxyhemoglobin levels in the right dlPFC compared to Mild anxiety group, while no significant difference was observed in the left dlPFC. These findings indicate that the degree of anxiety in healthy individuals affects WM processes in the right dlPFC, although this differs slightly from findings comparing high and low anxiety scores in healthy or diagnosed anxiety participants. Notably, these differences did not impair WM performance when participants provided non-verbal responses. This suggests that moderate anxiety may alter the neural mechanisms underlying WM without affecting the output of non-verbal tasks. Further research is needed to understand how WM, with or without emotional components, varies between individuals with mild and moderate anxiety levels.
Declining cognitive abilities can be a concomitant of advanced age. As language is closely associated with cognitive abilities, changes in language abilities can be an important marker of changes in cognitive abilities. The current study is to review cognitive studies of language and aging by first identifying and exploring the major clusters and pivotal articles and then detecting emerging trends. Data of 3, 266 articles on language and aging from 2013 to 2022 were collected from the Web of Science Core Collection database. Adopting Document Co-citation Analysis, Freeman’s betweenness centrality metric (Freeman, 2002) and Kleinberg’s burst detection algorithm (Kleinberg, 2002), we explored major clusters, pivotal articles and emerging trends in this field. Cognition appears to be the most remarkable cluster. Bilingualism, speech production, listening effort, and reading comprehension are other major active clusters in a certain period. The most recent active cluster concerns the studies of Alzheimer’s disease. Articles serving as pivotal points concentrate on cognitive studies of the Framework for Understanding Effortful Listening (FUEL), the new Ease of Language Understanding model (EUL) and a hierarchical multi-representational generative framework of language comprehension. The progress in statistical methods, the relationship between language and cognitive impairment and the relationship between language abilities and cognition are the emerging trends. These emerging trends will provide some insights into how cognitive abilities influence language abilities in aging.
Working memory can be divided into separate subsystems for verbal and visual information. Although the verbal system has been well characterized, the storage capacity of visual working memory has not yet been established for simple features or for conjunctions of features. The authors demonstrate that it is possible to retain information about only 3-4 colors or orientations in visual working memory at one time. Observers are also able to retain both the color and the orientation of 3-4 objects, indicating that visual working memory stores integrated objects rather than individual features. Indeed, objects defined by a conjunction of four features can be retained in working memory just as well as single-feature objects, allowing many individual features to be retained when distributed across a small number of objects. Thus, the capacity of visual working memory must be understood in terms of integrated objects rather than individual features.
Much effort has been made to understand the role of attention in perception; much less effort has been placed on the role attention plays in the control of action. Our goal in this chapter is to account for the role of attention in action, both when performance is automatic and when it is under deliberate conscious control. We propose a theoretical framework structured around the notion of a set of active schemas, organized according to the particular action sequences of which they are a part, awaiting the appropriate set of conditions so that they can become selected to control action. The analysis is therefore centered around actions, primarily external actions, but the same principles apply to internal actions—actions that involve only the cognitive processing mechanisms. One major emphasis in the study of attentional processes is the distinction between controlled and automatic processing of perceptual inputs (e.g., Shiffrin & Schneider, 1977). Our work here can be seen as complementary to the distinction between controlled and automatic processes: we examine action rather than perception; we emphasize the situations in which deliberate, conscious control of activity is desired rather than those that are automatic.
Recent research has provided mixed findings as to whether older adults find dual tasking problematic. Here, we examined whether methodological variations across studies can account for the discrepancies in the literature. Meta-analyses conducted on the results of 34 studies conducted between 1981 and 2003 found a strong overall effect size (d = .68), which indicated a clear age-related dual tasking impairment. However, this effect size was not representative of all the individual studies reported. Subsequent analyses, using an analysis of variance analogue (Hedges & Olkin, 1985), investigated potential moderators responsible for the variability in the effect sizes across studies. These secondary analyses included a comparison of dependent measure used, whether baseline differences in performance had been controlled for, and task domain. Task domain was found to be the critical moderator variable. Notably, tasks with a substantial controlled processing, or motor component showed greater dual task impairment than tasks that were relatively simple or relied on automatic processing.
We report the performance on recognition memory tests of Jon, who, despite amnesia from early childhood, has developed normal levels of performance on tests of intelligence, language, and general knowledge. Despite impaired recall, he performed within the normal range on each of six recognition tests, but he appears to lack the recollective phenomenological experience normally associated with episodic memory. His recall of previously unfamiliar newsreel event was impaired, but gained substantially from repetition over a 2-day period. Our results are consistent with the hypothesis that the recollective process of episodic memory is not necessary either for recognition or for the acquisition of semantic knowledge.
Working memory is currently a 'hot' topic in cognitive psychology and neuroscience. Because of their radically different scopes and emphases, however, comparing different models and theories and understanding how they relate to one another has been a difficult task. This volume offers a much-needed forum for systematically comparing and contrasting existing models of working memory. It does so by asking each contributor to address the same comprehensive set of important theoretical questions on working memory. The answers to these questions provided in the volume elucidate the emerging general consensus on the nature of working memory among different theorists and crystallize incompatible theoretical claims that must be resolved in future research. As such, this volume serves not only as a milestone that documents the state-of-the-art in the field but also as a theoretical guidebook that will likely promote new lines of research and more precise and comprehensive models of working memory.
Primary memory (or short-term memory), according to models such as Sperlingis, maintains a substantial amount of its information by storing it in an auditory sensory memory. Since the auditory sensory memory is used to store memory information these models predict that concurrent auditory stimulation should destroy memory information and, hence, reduce recall performance. To test this hypothesis, a foreign language was presented over earphones while subjects performed a serial recall task with visual presentations and written recall. The subjects were told to ignore the noise. In Experiment I the presence of the irrelevant foreign language noise reduced recall performance on phonologically different lists but it did not reduce performance on phonologically similar lists. Passive articulatory restraint had little effect. In Experiment II this noise effect was eliminated after 30 sec of silent arithmetic, indicating that the noise effect is a primary memory phenomenon.
Irrelevant background speech disrupts serial recall of visually presented lists of verbal material. In 4 experiments, the hypothesis that this disruption is due to the phonological similarity of the irrelevant sound and the list to be recalled was tested. In Experiment 1, item length was controlled and a large irrelevant speech effect was found, but the effect of phonological similarity was small and confined to recency. In Experiment 2, words in the irrelevant stream were used, and the experiment showed an irrelevant speech effect in which phonological similarity played a small part. Experiments 3 and 4 found that similarity (rhyming) within the irrelevant sound stream decreased the level of disruption, and the effect was more marked when the visually presented lists contained items that did not rhyme with one another. Rather than supporting a phonological similarity hypothesis, the results support a changing state hypothesis. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
Presents research showing that while an S is recalling a line diagram he can more readily signal information about that diagram by speaking than by spatially monitored output (e.g., pointing to correct items in a column of symbols). When recalling a sentence, he can more readily signal information about that sentence by spatially monitored output than by speaking. These results suggest that spatial and verbal information is recalled and processed in a modality-specific manner. Recall of verbal information is most readily disrupted by concurrent vocal activity; recall of spatial information is most readily disrupted by concurrent spatially monitored activity. This differential conflict occurs even though the concurrent activity is a recoding of the information that is being recalled. (French summary) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
Examined the suggestion that the absence of semantic-similarity effects in most short-term memory studies is due to the difficulty of semantically encoding unrelated words. The effect of semantic similarity on minimal paired-associate learning of semantically compatible (e.g., priest-religious) or incompatible (e.g., priest-delicious) noun-adjective pairs was examined in 56 undergraduates. An adverse effect of similarity was found for compatible but not for incompatible pairs. Serial recall and attempts to distinguish primary and secondary memory components by comparing immediate recall with recall after a 20-sec distractor task were studied in 24 undergraduates. The semantic-similarity decrement again occurred with compatible lists, but only after delay. This result suggests that semantic coding was limited to secondary memory. (15 ref.) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
Reviews literature showing how the levels of processing framework (F. I. Craik and R. S. Lockhart; see record
1973-20189-001) has influenced memory research since 1972. Principles underlying the framework include the claim that the memory trace should be understood as a by-product or record of normal cognitive processes (e.g., comprehension, categorization). Subsequent research has confirmed the value of much of the framework. It is now generally accepted that memory performance is directly and strongly linked to the nature of processing underlying the original experience, and theories of memory now include an analysis of these processing operations. (French abstract) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
The focus of discussion is 2 supervisory processes: the top-down modulation of lower level schemas and checking and monitoring processes. Both the Mark II Supervisory System model (T. Shallice and P. W. Burgess, 1996) and the Domino model (J. Fox and S. K. Das, 2000) have a variety of subprocesses. The author considers 4 such processes and argues that they are localized in different parts of the prefrontal cortex (PFC). Two are treated in more detail; these are the top-down Supervisory System modulation of schemas in contention scheduling (left dorsolateral PFC), and the monitoring and checking of behavior with respect to a variety of internally generated criteria (right dorsolateral PFC). Two are considered much more briefly; these are the specification of a required memory trace (right ventrolateral PFC) and the setting up and/or realization of intentions (area 10). All are subprocesses postulated in the Mark II Supervisory System model. Three processes also correspond well to those required by the Domino Model. All 4 processes satisfy 3 general principles. First, they come into play in non-routine situations. Second, they are computationally very different from each other. Third, they appear to be localized in different parts of the PFC. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
Addresses the possibility that tones disrupt serial recall of visually presented material in the same way as speech. A stream of changing tones is as disruptive of visual serial recall as 4 syllables (Exps 1 and 2). Similar effects were also shown with a repeated syllable that changed only in pitch (Exp 3). Just as for speech, the effect of tones is not at encoding but during storage of the serial lists (Exp 4 and 5). The results suggest that speech and tones are equipotent in their capacity to disrupt short-term memory. A "blackboard" model of working memory to account for the effects is outlined. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
A pattern made by randomly filling cells in a square matrix was presented for 1 see and followed, after various intervals,
by an identical or similar pattern. Ss responded “same” or “different.” Performance was fast and accurate if the interval
was short and there was no movement or masking of the pattern during the interval. Performance was slower, less accurate,
and highly dependent on pattern complexity if the interval exceeded 100 msec or if there was movement or masking. The results
are interpreted as evidence for two distinct classes of visual memory: high-capacity sensory storage which is tied to spatial
position and is maskable and brief; and schematic short-term visual memory which is not tied to spatial position, which is
protected against masking, and which becomes less effective over the first few seconds but not over the first 600 msec.
Experimental research into children’s working memory span has shown that retention duration contributes substantially to span
performance, while processing efficiency need not be related to concurrent memory load (Towse, Hitch, & Hutton, 1998). These
findings have been used to argue for a model of working memory span that emphasizes time-based forgetting rather than the
popular resource-sharing or tradeoff framework. The present paper considers whether adults perform working memory span tasks
in a qualitatively different way. Data from reading span and operation span tasks show that adults’ performance can be distinguished
from that of children, but also that a task-switching model of working memory span can explain some important aspects of performance.
Irrelevant background speech disrupts serial recall of visually presented lists of verbal material. In 4 experiments, the hypothesis that this disruption is due to the phonological similarity of the irrelevant sound and the list to be recalled was tested. In Experiment 1, item length was controlled and a large irrelevant speech effect was found, but the effect of phonological similarity was small and confined to recency. In Experiment 2, words in the irrelevant stream were used, and the experiment showed an irrelevant speech effect in which phonological similarity played a small part. Experiments 3 and 4 found that similarity (rhyming) within the irrelevant sound stream decreased the level of disruption, and the effect was more marked when the visually presented lists contained items that did not rhyme with one another. Rather than supporting a phonological similarity hypothesis, the results support a changing state hypothesis.
The idea of one's memory "filling up" is a humorous misconception of how memory in general is thought to work; it is actually has no capacity limit. However, the idea of a "full brain" makes more sense with reference to working memory, which is the limited amount of information a person can hold temporarily in an especially accessible form for use in the completion of almost any challenging cognitive task. This groundbreaking book explains the evidence supporting Cowan's theoretical proposal about working memory capacity, and compares it to competing perspectives. Cognitive psychologists profoundly disagree on how working memory is limited: whether by the number of units that can be retained (and, if so, what kind of units and how many?), the types of interfering material, the time that has elapsed, some combination of these mechanisms, or none of them. The book assesses these hypotheses and examines explanations of why capacity limits occur, including vivid biological, cognitive, and evolutionary accounts. The book concludes with a discussion of the practical importance of capacity limits in daily life. Incorporating the latest from the recent surge in research into working memory capacity limits and the remarkable new insights provided by neuroimaging techniques, this book serves as an invaluable resource for all memory researchers and is accessible to a wide range of readers.
This chapter reviews recent research from reaction-time experiments on the control of task-set, especially experiments in which frequent changes of task are required. The focus is on the reaction-time cost of a task switch, and the reduction in cost usually observed when the subject has time to prepare for a stimulus and foreknowledge of the task to be performed. The latter phenomenon has been interpreted as an index of a control process, task-set reconfiguration (TSR), being carried out in preparation for the change of task. The discussion addresses the nature of TSR, arguing that a simple associative conception of performance in task-switching experiments is inadequate, although associative binding between stimuli, responses, cues, contexts, and goals undoubtedly contributes to performance. There is also evidence that the fundamental task-set control network humans share with infra-human species is supplemented in humans by processes of linguistic self-instruction.
A series of studies addresses the possibility that tones disrupt serial recall of visually presented material in the same way as speech. A stream of changing tones is as disruptive of visual serial recall as 4 syllables (Experiments 1 and 2). Similar effects were also shown with a repeated syllable that changed only in pitch (Experiment 3). Just as for speech, the effect of tones is not at encoding but during storage of the serial lists (Experiments 4 and 5). The results suggest that speech and tones are equipotent in their capacity to disrupt short-term memory. A "blackboard" model of working memory to account for the effect is outlined.
This paper presents a meta-analysis of the data from 6,179 participants in 77 studies that investigated the association between working-memory capacity and language comprehension ability. A primary goal of the meta-analysis was to compare the predictive power of the measures of working memory developed by Daneman and Carpenter (1980) with the predictive power of other measures of working memory. The results of the meta-analysis support Daneman and Carpenter's (1980) claim that measures that tap the combined processing and storage capacity of working memory (e.g., reading span, listening span) are better predictors of comprehension than are measures that tap only the storage capacity (e.g., word span, digit span). The meta-analysis also showed that math process plus storage measures of working memory are good predictors of comprehension. Thus, the superior predictive power of the process plus storage measures is not limited to measures that involve the manipulation of words and sentences.
Working memory refers to keeping track of ongoing mental processes and temporary memory. One hypothesis is that this form of memory consists of multiple domain-specific components. Over four decades, experiments testing this hypothesis have yielded insight into cognitive changes from childhood to old age, selective cognitive impairments following brain damage, and on-line cognition in healthy adults. Advances in the understanding of working memory also have arisen from the discovery of associations between individual differences in working-memory capacity and a broad range of cognitive measures. These latter advances have often been interpreted as supporting the alternative hypothesis that working memory consists of a single, limited-capacity domain-general system for control of attention. Here I outline recent developments in the multiple-component perspective that address challenges derived from the attention-based hypothesis and from multivariate studies of individual differences. I argue that the multiple-component perspective and the single-attentional-system perspective are complementary, with each best suited to asking different research questions, and that many areas of contemporary debate regarding the nature of working memory reflect differences that are more apparent than real.
This chapter describes the nature of working memory capacity (WMC), and addresses the nature of WMC limitations, their effects on higher order cognitive tasks, their relationship to attention control and general fluid intelligence, and their neurological substrates. Much of work explores these issues in the context of individual differences in WMC and the cause of those individual differences. Measures of WMC are highly reliable and highly valid indicators of some construct of clear relevance to feral cognition. Macroanalytic studies have demonstrated that the construct reflected by WMC tasks has a strong relationship with gF above and beyond what these tasks share with simple span tasks. The conflict might also arise from stimulus representations of competing strength. This two-factor model fits with current thinking about the role of two brain structures: the prefrontal cortex as important to the maintenance of information in an active and easily accessible state and the anterior cingulate as important to the detection and resolution of conflict.
Despite 20 years of concerted attention, paleoanthropology has established little of substance concerning the evolution of the modern mind, if by substance we mean conclusions that would be of interest and use to scholars of human cognition. Part of this failure can be linked to a poverty of appropriate interpretive concepts. There is more to the modern mind than symbolism and language, the two "abilities" most often cited in the paleoanthropological literature. Modern humans have a sophisticated ability to make and execute elaborate plans of action, something known in the cognitive science literature as executive functions. Cognitive science has further established that these executive functions are enabled by working memory, an interpretive concept introduced by Alan Baddeley in 1974 and subsequently tested by more than 30 years of intensive research. Recently, Coolidge and Wynn have advanced a controversial hypothesis that it was an enhancement of working-memory capacity that powered the final evolution of the modern mind. Wenner-Gren International Symposium 139 met in March 2008 in Cascais, Portugal, to discuss this hypothesis and the evolution of working memory and executive reasoning in general.
This paper reports four experiments designed to develop a simple technique for the study of visuo-spatial processing within the working memory framework (Baddeley and Hitch, 1974). Experiment 1 involved the matching of successively presented random matrix patterns, as a secondary visual suppression task. This was coupled with rote rehearsal or a visual imagery mnemonic for learning lists of concrete words presented auditorily. Although memory performance with matching dropped overall, the visual mnemonic was differentially affected. Experiment 2 removed the matching decision, with visual presentation of unattended patterns. There was no overall effect of the unattended material, but use of the visual mnemonic was significantly affected. Experiment 3 replicated this result with simpler plain coloured squares as the unattended material.
In Experiment 4, for one group, the unattended material consisted of line drawings of common objects. For a second group, the lists of words for recall were presented visually, with or without unattended speech. The results suggested that unattended pictures disrupt use of a visual mnemonic, while unattended speech disrupts rote rehearsal.
These results suggest that unattended visual material has privileged access to the mechanism(s) involved in short-term visuo-spatial processing and storage. They also suggest that use of a concurrent visual matching task or of unattended visual material may provide tractable techniques for investigating this aspect of cognitive function within the context of working memory.
Described by the philosopher A.J. Ayer as a work of 'great originality and power', this book revolutionized contemporary thinking on science and knowledge. Ideas such as the now legendary doctrine of 'falsificationism' electrified the scientific community, influencing even working scientists, as well as post-war philosophy. This astonishing work ranks alongside The Open Society and Its Enemies as one of Popper's most enduring books and contains insights and arguments that demand to be read to this day.
Editors' preface Acknowledgments Author's introduction 1. A problem and a conjecture 2. A proof 3. Criticism of the proof by counterexamples which are local but not global 4. Criticism of the conjecture by global counterexamples 5. Criticism of the proof-analysis by counterexamples which are global but not local: the problem of rigour 6. Return to criticism of the proof by counterexamples which are local but not global: the problem of content 7. The problem of content revisited 8. Concept-formation 9. How criticism may turn mathematical truth into logical truth Appendices Bibliography Index of names Index of subjects.
This chapter discusses the storage mechanisms in recall. Information on the recall of words has been organized according to several theoretical views. In the case of free recall, the first reason for assuming such a flow and two separate storage mechanisms may be found in a very prominent and reliable characteristic of free recall–the serial position function. In the free recall of lists, Ss are more likely to recall the early and late items than the middle items. There are, moreover, a variety of systematic experimental effects that can be worked on this curve. In most cases, the curve is raised or lowered in all positions except the last few. The effects of similarity on LTS and STS are not established. Most of the work cited on this effect does not differentiate LTS and STS effects. The few studies that do permit the differentiation give conflicting results. Many of the results on short-term memory are interpreted differently in light of the STS-LTS distinction.
Working memory is currently a 'hot' topic in cognitive psychology and neuroscience. Because of their radically different scopes and emphases, however, comparing different models and theories and understanding how they relate to one another has been a difficult task. This volume offers a much-needed forum for systematically comparing and contrasting existing models of working memory. It does so by asking each contributor to address the same comprehensive set of important theoretical questions on working memory. The answers to these questions provided in the volume elucidate the emerging general consensus on the nature of working memory among different theorists and crystallize incompatible theoretical claims that must be resolved in future research. As such, this volume serves not only as a milestone that documents the state-of-the-art in the field but also as a theoretical guidebook that will likely promote new lines of research and more precise and comprehensive models of working memory.
Working memory is currently a 'hot' topic in cognitive psychology and neuroscience. Because of their radically different scopes and emphases, however, comparing different models and theories and understanding how they relate to one another has been a difficult task. This volume offers a much-needed forum for systematically comparing and contrasting existing models of working memory. It does so by asking each contributor to address the same comprehensive set of important theoretical questions on working memory. The answers to these questions provided in the volume elucidate the emerging general consensus on the nature of working memory among different theorists and crystallize incompatible theoretical claims that must be resolved in future research. As such, this volume serves not only as a milestone that documents the state-of-the-art in the field but also as a theoretical guidebook that will likely promote new lines of research and more precise and comprehensive models of working memory.
A series of five experiments explore the influence of articulatory suppression on immediate memory for auditorily presented items with a view to testing the revised concept of an articulatory loop. Experiments 1, 2 and 3 demonstrate that the phonological similarity effect is not abolished by articulatory suppression, whether this occurs only at input or at both input and recall. Experiments 4 and 5 show that the tendency for long words to be less well remembered than short is abolished by articulatory suppression, even when presentation is auditory, provided suppression occurs during both input and recall. These results are consistent with the concept of a loop comprising a phonological store, which is responsible for the phonological similarity effect, coupled with an articulatory rehearsal process that gives rise to the word length effect.Vivien Lewis is now at the Department of Psychology, University of Birmingham.
To investigate phonological factors in short-term memory (STM), immediate memory for sequences of 5, 6, 7, or 8 phonologically similar or dissimilar consonants was studied in 20 French undergraduates using visual presentation accompanied by silence or continuous speech in an unfamiliar language, Arabic. There were significant effects of list length, phonological similarity, and unattended speech, and significant interactions between similarity and unattended speech and between similarity and list length. The interactions are shown to stem primarily from the absence of a decrement due to phonological similarity at list length 8. It is suggested that this absence is attributable to a strategy of abandoning phonological coding when performance drops below some minimum level. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
Criticizes M. Posner and S. Keele's (see record
1968-00189-001) method of using differences in RT for physical and name matches to estimate the time constant of visual short-term memory as confounding the decay of the visual trace with the development of a name code. When this confounding is avoided by using stimuli that are hard to name (a 5 * 5 matrix of randomly filled squares), the time constant shown by both RT and errors is consistently longer than that reported by Posner and Keele. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
Two experiments were designed to assess Korsakoff patients' ability to encode verbal information on the basis of its physical, nominal and semantic properties. The first investigation employed Wickens' release from proactive interference (PI) technique; a procedure that allows an assessment of a subject's ability to encode verbal information on the basis of its semantic properties. It was discovered that on tasks involving only a rudimentary verbal analysis, such as the ability to discriminate letters from numbers, the Korsakoff patients demonstrated a normal release from PI. However, on tasks that required a more sophisticated level of semantic encoding, such as those based on taxonomic class inclusion, the patients failed to show release from PI. The second investigation employed Posner's reaction time technique which assesses a subject's ability to encode the physical and nominal properties of simple verbal materials (letters). The results of this study showed that Korsakoff patients are impaired on even these rudimentary encoding tasks, which led to the proposal that Korsakoff patients' semantic encoding deficit might stem from an initial impairment in the speed at which physical and nominal properties of verbal information are analyzed.
This paper reviews the literature on the irrelevant sound effect and concludes that, contrary to some claims, the data consistently show that irrelevant sound and articulatory suppression are not functionally equivalent. We evaluate the contribution of Larsen and Baddeley (2003 in this issue) and briefly discuss additional data in support of their position. We perform an error analysis on data from their third experiment and simulate detailed aspects of those data using our primacy model of immediate serial recall. Our model is briefly related to a number of findings in the literature on irrelevant sound.
Under appropriate conditions, immediate serial verbal recall is impaired by irrelevant speech, articulatory suppression, and syncopated tapping. Interpretation of these variables in terms of the phonological loop component of working memory assumes separate phonological storage and articulatory rehearsal processes. In contrast, the Object-Oriented Episodic Record (O-OER) of Jones and the feature theory of Neath interpret these and other phenomena in terms of a unitary multimodal system. Three experiments investigate these disrupting tasks, with each experiment emphasizing one parameter. In each case, recall of phonologically similar and dissimilar letter sequences is compared as a marker of the presence or absence of phonological coding. In Experiment 1, subjects heard or articulated a single item, or tapped a single key at equal intervals. Only articulatory suppression impaired performance; it also abolished the effects of phonological similarity. Experiment 2 was identical, except that items were heard, or generated in a syncopated rhythm. Both suppression and tapping impaired performance to an equivalent extent and obliterated the effect of phonological similarity. Syncopated irrelevant speech caused a modest but significant impairment in performance. Experiment 3 was identical to Experiment 1, except that six tokens were used. Irrelevant speech and tapping had a clear impact on recall, but neither removed the phonological similarity effect. Again articulatory suppression had a major impact on performance and removed the effect of phonological similarity. We conclude that the pattern of results readily fits the phonological loop hypothesis, provided one accepts Saitos proposal that generating syncopated sequences uses common processes with speech production. It is not clear how the results can be explained by either the O-OER or the feature hypothesis.
The relationship between working memory skills and performance on national curriculum assessments in English, mathematics and science was explored in groups of children aged 7 and 14 years. At 7 years, children's levels of attainment in both English and mathematics were significantly associated with working memory scores, and in particular with performance on complex span tasks. At 14 years, strong links persisted between the complex working memory test scores and attainments levels in both mathematics and science, although ability in the English assessments showed no strong association with working memory skill. The results suggest that the intellectual operations required in the curriculum areas of mathematics and science are constrained by the general capacity of working memory across the childhood years. However, whereas success in the acquisition in literacy (tapped by the English assessments at the youngest age) was also linked with working memory capacity, achievements in the higher-level skills of comprehension and analysis of English literature assessed at 14 years were independent of working memory capacity. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Four experiments examined the nature of forgetting and the processing–storage relationship during performance on a prevalent working memory task, the reading span test. Using two different presentation paradigms, Experiments 1 and 2 replicated and finding that the Short-Final lists, which presented a long sentence first and a short sentence last, led to better recall performance than the reverse-order Long-Final lists. This effect was still obtained when the retention duration for the target words was held constant and the amount of sentence processing required during that interval was varied (Experiment 3). However, the effect disappeared when the retention duration was varied while holding constant the amount of sentence processing required (Experiment 4). These results suggest that the amount of processing activities, not the sheer passage of time, may be the critical factor underlying the sentence order effect, thereby challenging purely time-based explanations of forgetting during reading span performance. In addition, the analysis of reading times (Experiment 1) revealed that the number of memory items had a subtle yet reliable negative effect on reading times, suggesting that the processing and storage requirements of the reading span test are not completely independent.