Proactive interference of visual working memory chunks implicates long-term memory.

Visual working memory (VWM) is a limited cognitive resource that can be functionally expanded through chunking (Miller, 1956). For example, participants can hold an increasing number of colours in mind as they learn to chunk reliably paired combinations (Brady et al., 2009). We investigated whether...

Full description

Bibliographic Details
Published in:Memory & Cognition Vol. 52; no. 8; pp. 2092 - 2107
Main Authors: Doyle, Logan, Ferber, Susanne, Duncan, Katherine D.
Format: Article
Published: Springer Nature Nov2024
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=181119857&site=ehost-live
header:
  @attributes:
    shortDbName: ssf
    uiTerm: 181119857
    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: Nov2024
      vid: 52
      iid: 8
      pid: 237
      pub: Springer Nature
    artinfo:
      ui:
        181119857
        10.3758/s13421-024-01585-w
      ppf: 2092
      ppct: 15
      formats:
        fmt:
          – @attributes:
              type: T
          – @attributes:
              type: P
              size: 1.9MB
      tig:
        atl: Proactive interference of visual working memory chunks implicates long-term memory.
      aug:
        au:
          Doyle, Logan
          Ferber, Susanne
          Duncan, Katherine D.
        affil: https://ror.org/03dbr7087 Department of Psychology, University of Toronto, M5S 3G3, Toronto, Canada
      su:
        Recognition (Psychology)
        Task performance
        Memory
        Cognition
        Brain physiology
        Cognitive processing speed
        Probability theory
        Statistical sampling
        Color vision
        Descriptive statistics
        Experimental design
        Short-term memory
        Visual perception
        Reaction time
        Thought & thinking
      sug:
        subj:
          Recognition (Psychology)
          Task performance
          Memory
          Cognition
          Marketing Research and Public Opinion Polling
          Brain physiology
          Cognitive processing speed
          Probability theory
          Statistical sampling
          Color vision
          Descriptive statistics
          Experimental design
          Short-term memory
          Visual perception
          Reaction time
          Thought & thinking
      keyword:
        Chunking
        Interference/inhibition in memory retrieval
        Short term memory
        Working memory
        Chunking
        Interference/inhibition in memory retrieval
        Short term memory
        Working memory
      ab: Visual working memory (VWM) is a limited cognitive resource that can be functionally expanded through chunking (Miller, 1956). For example, participants can hold an increasing number of colours in mind as they learn to chunk reliably paired combinations (Brady et al., 2009). We investigated whether this benefit is mediated through the in situ compression of VWM representations (Brady et al., 2009) or the offloading of chunks to long-term memory (LTM; Huang & Awh, 2018; Ngiam et al., 2019) by asking if a vulnerability of LTM – proactive interference – influences VWM performance. We adapted previous designs using deterministic (Experiment 1, N = 60) and probabilistic pairings (Experiments 2 and 3, N = 64 and 80, respectively), to include colour pairings that swapped in sequence along with pairings that were consistent in sequence. Generally, participants reported colours from consistent pairs more accurately than from swapping pairs, which we designed to drive interference in LTM (Experiments 1 and 2). The error profiles also pointed to proactive interference between swapping pairs in all three experiments. Moreover, participants who had explicit awareness of frequent colour pairings had higher VWM accuracy, and their errors reflected more proactive interference than their unaware counterparts (Experiment 3). This pattern of long-term proactive interference in a VWM task lends support for accounts of VWM chunking that propose LTM offloading.
      pubtype: Academic Journal
      doctype: Article
      src: R
    language: English
    refInfo:
    copyright:
      @attributes:
        flag: N
    holdings:
      @attributes:
        islocal: N