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Interference due to shared features between action plans is influenced by working memory span.

Lisa R Fournier1, Lawrence P Behmer, Alexandra M Stubblefield

  • 1Psychology Department, Washington State University, Pullman, WA, 99164-4820, USA, lfournier@wsu.edu.

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Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Working memory capacity influences action plan management. Interference between action plans increases with feature overlap, especially for individuals with low working memory spans, highlighting selection demands.

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Area of Science:

  • Cognitive Psychology
  • Neuroscience
  • Human Motor Control

Background:

  • Action plans are stored in memory and guide motor execution.
  • Working memory is crucial for managing cognitive tasks and goals.
  • Interference occurs when tasks share features, potentially taxing cognitive resources.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate if shared features between action plans cause interference due to working memory selection demands.
  • To determine the role of working memory capacity in managing concurrent and sequential action plans.
  • To examine how feature overlap in action plans affects response times and working memory span.

Main Methods:

  • Participants with low and high working memory spans learned arbitrary motor actions linked to visual cues (A and B).
  • Action plans for event A were formed and held in memory while a speeded response to event B was executed.
  • Response times to event B were measured under conditions of feature overlap and no feature overlap with event A.

Main Results:

  • Speeded responses to event B were delayed when action features overlapped with event A.
  • This feature-overlap delay was significantly larger for low-span than for high-span participants.
  • The findings suggest interference is linked to selection demands within working memory.

Conclusions:

  • Working memory is vital for managing current and future action plans, particularly in novel tasks.
  • Individuals with lower working memory spans experience greater interference when managing multiple action plans.
  • Selection demands on working memory mediate interference arising from shared action plan features.