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Working Memory

Working Memory

Working memory refers to a combination of components, including short-term memory and attention, that allow an individual to hold information temporarily as we perform cognitive tasks. It is an essential cognitive function that enables the execution of complex tasks such as problem-solving, comprehension, and reasoning. Unlike short-term memory, which simply involves the storage of information for a brief period, working memory involves the active manipulation and processing of this information.

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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jul 3, 2026

A Method for Investigating Age-related Differences in the Functional Connectivity of Cognitive Control Networks Associated with Dimensional Change Card Sort Performance

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Age-related changes in neural activity during performance matched working memory manipulation.

Lisa Emery¹, Timothy J Heaven, Jessica L Paxton

¹Department of Psychology, Washington University, Saint Louis, MO 63139, USA.

|July 19, 2008

Summary

Cognitive aging affects working memory (WM) manipulation more than maintenance. Older adults show broader brain activation in the prefrontal cortex (PFC) during WM tasks, suggesting strategy differences.

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Last Updated: Jul 3, 2026

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Published on: May 7, 2014

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Published on: July 16, 2015

Area of Science:

Cognitive Neuroscience
Neuroimaging
Aging Research

Background:

Working memory (WM) tasks involving item rearrangement are thought to be more sensitive to aging than serial recall tasks.
Neuroimaging studies show age-related increases in frontoparietal activity during WM maintenance, but manipulation-specific age differences are less understood.

Purpose of the Study:

To investigate age-related differences in brain activity during WM maintenance versus manipulation using fMRI.
To determine if increased neural activation in older adults during WM manipulation reflects task demands or strategy use.

Main Methods:

Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) was used to monitor brain activity in younger and older adults.
Participants performed WM tasks involving either maintenance or manipulation (letter-number sequencing) with matched performance across age groups.

Main Results:

Younger adults showed focal manipulation-related activation in left posterior prefrontal cortex and bilateral inferior parietal cortex.
Older adults exhibited wider manipulation-related activation within the WM network, with significantly greater bilateral PFC activity compared to younger adults.

Conclusions:

Age differences in lateral PFC engagement during WM manipulation may reflect varying strategy use and controlled processing demands, not just the manipulation process itself.
The findings challenge assumptions about age-invariance in certain WM tasks and highlight the role of neural recruitment strategies in cognitive aging.