Item strength affects working memory capacity.
Do the processing and online manipulation of stimuli that are less familiar require more working memory (WM) resources? Is it more difficult to solve demanding problems when the symbols involved are less rather than more familiar? We explored these questions with a dual-task paradigm in which subjec...
| Published in: | Memory & Cognition Vol. 46; no. 2; pp. 204 - 216 |
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| Main Authors: | , , , |
| Format: | Article |
| Published: |
Springer Nature
Feb2018
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| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | View this record in EBSCOhost |
| fields | @attributes: recordID: 1 pdfLink: plink: https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=ssf&AN=127996157&site=ehost-live header: @attributes: shortDbName: ssf uiTerm: 127996157 longDbName: Social Sciences Full Text (H.W. Wilson) uiTag: AN controlInfo: bkinfo: jinfo: jid: 0090502X MEG jtl: Memory & Cognition issn: 0090502X maglogo: N pubinfo: dt: Feb2018 vid: 46 iid: 2 pid: 237 pub: Springer Nature artinfo: ui: 127996157 10.3758/s13421-017-0758-4 ppf: 204 ppct: 12 formats: fmt: @attributes: type: P size: 1.1MB tig: atl: Item strength affects working memory capacity. aug: au: Zhangfan Shen Popov, Vencislav Delahay, Anita B. Reder, Lynne M. affil: School of Mechanical Engineering, Southeast University, Nanjing 211189, China Department of Psychology, Carnegie Mellon University, 5000 Forbes Avenue, Baker Hall, 345F, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, USA Center for the Neural Basis of Cognition, Pittsburgh, PA, USA su: Intellect Intelligence tests Paradigms (Social sciences) Problem solving Recognition (Psychology) Short-term memory sug: subj: Intellect Intelligence tests Paradigms (Social sciences) Problem solving Recognition (Psychology) Short-term memory keyword: Familiarity Knowledge Math Problem-solving Workingmemory Familiarity Knowledge Math Problem-solving Workingmemory ab: Do the processing and online manipulation of stimuli that are less familiar require more working memory (WM) resources? Is it more difficult to solve demanding problems when the symbols involved are less rather than more familiar? We explored these questions with a dual-task paradigm in which subjects had to solve algebra problems of different complexities while simultaneously holding novel symbol-digit associations in WM. The symbols were previously unknown Chinese characters, whose familiarity was manipulated by differential training frequency with a visual search task for nine hour-long sessions over 3 weeks. Subsequently, subjects solved equations that required one or two transformations. Before each trial, two different integers were assigned to two different Chinese characters of the same training frequency. Half of the time, those characters were present as variables in the equation and had to be substituted for the corresponding digits. After attempting to solve the equation, subjects had to recognize which two characters were shown immediately before that trial and to recall the integer associated with each. Solution accuracy and response times were better when the problems required one transformation only; variable substitution was not required; or the Chinese characters were high frequency. The effects of stimulus familiarity increased as the WM demands of the equation increased. Character-digit associations were also recalled less well with low-frequency characters. These results provide strong support that WM capacity depends not only on the number of chunks of information one is attempting to process but also on their strength or familiarity. pubtype: Academic Journal doctype: Article src: R language: English refInfo: copyright: @attributes: flag: N holdings: @attributes: islocal: N |
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