Diverting the Focus of Attention in Working Memory through a Perceptual Task

Autor/inn/en	Gao, Zaifeng; Li, Jiaofeng; Wu, Jinglan; Dai, Alessandro; Liao, Huayu; Shen, Mowei
Titel	Diverting the Focus of Attention in Working Memory through a Perceptual Task
Quelle	In: Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition, 48 (2022) 6, S.876-905 (30 Seiten) PDF als Volltext Verfügbarkeit
Zusatzinformation	ORCID (Gao, Zaifeng)
Sprache	englisch
Dokumenttyp	gedruckt; online; Zeitschriftenaufsatz
ISSN	0278-7393
DOI	10.1037/xlm0001112
Schlagwörter	Attention Control; Short Term Memory; Cues; Task Analysis; Accuracy; Cognitive Processes; Cognitive Psychology; Visual Perception; Undergraduate Students; Foreign Countries; China + Suchen Sie Ihr Suchwort? Aufmerksamkeitstest; Kurzzeitgedächtnis; Stichwort; Aufgabenanalyse; Cognitive process; Kognitiver Prozess; Kognitive Psychologie; Visuelle Wahrnehmung; Ausland
Abstract	Working memory (WM) has a limited capacity; however, this limitation can be mitigated by selecting individual items from the set currently held in WM for prioritization. The selection mechanism underlying this prioritization ability is referred to as the focus of attention (FOA) in WM. Although impressive progress has been achieved in recent years, a fundamental question remains unclear: Do perception and WM share one FOA? In the current study, we investigated the hypothesis that only a perceptual task tapping object-based attention can divert the FOA in WM. We adopted a retro-cue WM paradigm and inserted a perceptual task after the offset of the cue. Critically, we manipulated the type of attention (object-based attention in Experiments 1-3, feature-based attention in Experiment 4, and spatial attention in Experiment 5) consumed by the perceptual task. We found that participants were able to prioritize a retro-cued representation in WM, and the retro-cue benefit on memory accuracy was intact regardless of the perceptual task. Critically, the retro-cue benefit on the response time of WM task was significantly reduced only after an object-based attention perceptual task (Experiments 1, 2, 3a, and 3b), while remaining constant after a feature-based attention (Experiment 4) or spatial attention (Experiment 5) perceptual task. These results suggest that WM and perception share an object-based FOA, and an object-based attention perceptual task can divert the FOA in WM. Meanwhile, the current study further confirms that sustained attention is not necessary for selective maintenance in WM. (As Provided).
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Erfasst von	ERIC (Education Resources Information Center), Washington, DC
Update	2024/1/01