Journal article
The Strategic Retention of Task-Relevant Objects in Visual Working Memory
Journal of experimental psychology. Learning, memory, and cognition, Vol.39(3), pp.760-772
05/2013
DOI: 10.1037/a0029496
PMCID: PMC3855846
PMID: 22845068
Abstract
The serial and spatially extended nature of many real-world visual tasks suggests the need for control over the content of VWM. We examined the management of VWM in a task that required participants to prioritize individual objects for retention during scene viewing. There were five principal findings: 1) Strategic retention of task relevant-objects was effective and was dissociable from the current locus of visual attention; 2) strategic retention was implemented by protection from interference rather than by preferential encoding; 3) this prioritization was flexibly transferred to a new object as task demands changed; 4) no-longer-relevant items were efficiently eliminated from VWM; and 5) despite this level of control, attended and fixated objects were consolidated into VWM regardless of task relevance. These results are consistent with a model of VWM control in which each fixated object is automatically encoded into VWM, replacing a portion of the content in VWM. However, task-relevant objects can be selectively protected from replacement.
Details
- Title: Subtitle
- The Strategic Retention of Task-Relevant Objects in Visual Working Memory
- Creators
- Ashleigh M Maxcey-Richard - Department of Psychology, Manchester College Department of Psychology, The University of IowaAndrew Hollingworth - Department of Psychology, Manchester College Department of Psychology, The University of Iowa
- Resource Type
- Journal article
- Publication Details
- Journal of experimental psychology. Learning, memory, and cognition, Vol.39(3), pp.760-772
- DOI
- 10.1037/a0029496
- PMID
- 22845068
- PMCID
- PMC3855846
- NLM abbreviation
- J Exp Psychol Learn Mem Cogn
- ISSN
- 0278-7393
- eISSN
- 1939-1285
- Grant note
- R01 EY017356 || EY / National Eye Institute : NEI
- Language
- English
- Date published
- 05/2013
- Academic Unit
- Psychological and Brain Sciences
- Record Identifier
- 9984214756502771
Metrics
22 Record Views