Forgetting from working memory: does novelty encoding matter?

Area of Science:

• Cognitive Psychology
• Neuroscience
• Memory Research

Background:

• The Serial Order in a Box (SOB) model proposes that forgetting in working memory arises from interference caused by encoding novel distractors.
• This model suggests that repeated distractors have less impact on memory, leading to less forgetting.

Purpose of the Study:

• To test the SOB model's predictions regarding distractor novelty and its effect on working memory recall.
• To investigate whether recall performance is better with repeated distractors compared to novel ones.

Main Methods:

• Conducted 5 experiments manipulating distractor novelty and pace in complex span tasks.
• Controlled for attentional demand and temporal factors to isolate the effect of distractors.

Main Results:

• None of the predictions derived from the SOB model were supported.
• Recall performance was not improved by repeated distractors; novel distractors did not significantly impair recall.
• The pace of distractor task performance strongly influenced forgetting, indicating its role.

Conclusions:

• The novelty of distractors does not play a direct role in working memory forgetting.
• The SOB model's explanation for forgetting based on distractor encoding strength is not supported by empirical evidence.
• Forgetting in complex span tasks is influenced by factors beyond distractor novelty, such as task pace.