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Related Concept Videos

Working Memory01:24

Working Memory

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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...
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The working memory stroop effect: when internal representations clash with external stimuli.

Anastasia Kiyonaga1, Tobias Egner2

  • 1Duke University anastasia.kiyonaga@duke.edu.

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|June 25, 2014
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Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Holding a color word in working memory (WM) creates interference similar to external attention, mimicking the Stroop effect. This suggests working memory and attention share common resources and representations.

Keywords:
open materialsselective attentionshort-term memoryvisual attentionworking memory

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Area of Science:

  • Cognitive Psychology
  • Neuroscience

Background:

  • Working memory (WM) is increasingly conceptualized as internally directed attention.
  • This perspective implies WM content should influence behavior similarly to external stimuli.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate if holding a color word in WM can induce interference in a color-discrimination task.
  • To determine if this WM-induced interference mirrors the classic Stroop effect.

Main Methods:

  • Three experiments were conducted to test the WM Stroop effect.
  • Participants performed a color-discrimination task while holding color words in WM.
  • Analysis focused on congruency effects and trial percentages.

Main Results:

  • A WM Stroop effect was observed, replicating key properties of the classic Stroop effect.
  • Equivalent congruency effects and additive contributions from stimulus- and response-level congruency were found.
  • WM maintenance was inversely related to attentional demands, with poorer performance after incongruent trials.

Conclusions:

  • Working memory and attention appear to rely on shared neural resources.
  • WM and attention likely operate on the same representational formats.