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Updated: May 28, 2026
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A Cognitive Paradigm to Investigate Interference in Working Memory by Distractions and Interruptions
Published on: July 16, 2015
The contribution of working memory to divided attention
Valerio Santangelo1, Emiliano Macaluso
1Department of Human and Educational Sciences, University of Perugia, Italy. valerio.santangelo@unipg.it
Human Brain Mapping
|October 25, 2011
Summary
Working memory (WM) load impacts attention, particularly for object-based tasks. Brain activity in the intraparietal sulcus (IPS) increases with object-based WM load, suggesting domain-specific resource recruitment.
Area of Science:
- Cognitive Neuroscience
- Neuroscience
- Psychology
Background:
- Previous research shows working memory (WM) load influences attentional selection for single objects or locations.
- It remains unclear if WM load similarly affects the selection of multiple objects or locations (divided attention).
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate how working memory load affects divided attention, specifically object-based versus space-based attention.
- To explore the neural mechanisms underlying the interaction between working memory load and divided attention using fMRI.
Main Methods:
- Participants performed object-based and space-based divided attention tasks under varying working memory loads.
- Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) was used to measure brain activity, particularly in the intraparietal sulcus (IPS).
Main Results:
- Behavioral performance was affected by working memory load regardless of attention type (divided or focused).
- fMRI revealed a linear increase in left and right IPS activity with object-based WM load during object-based divided attention.
- No significant effect of WM load on IPS activity was observed for space-based divided attention.
Conclusions:
- Working memory supports attentional sets in a domain-specific manner, particularly for object-based processing.
- Increased IPS activation under high WM load reflects the recruitment of domain-specific resources for dual-task performance.
- These findings highlight a dissociation between behavioral performance and neural activity in response to working memory load.
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