Visual Working Memory Capacity Can Be Increased by Training on Distractor Filtering Efficiency.

Area of Science:

• Cognitive Neuroscience
• Psychology

Background:

• Working memory (WM) capacity is limited and impacts cognitive functions.
• Distractor filtering efficiency is a key determinant of visual working memory (VWM) capacity.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate if training visual filtering efficiency (FE) can enhance VWM capacity.
• To assess the transfer effects of FE training on verbal WM and fluid intelligence.

Main Methods:

• Participants were grouped into high- and low-VWM capacity based on a change detection task (CDT).
• Low-capacity individuals underwent 20 days of FE training.
• VWM capacity was measured by CDT performance and contralateral delay activity (CDA).
• Verbal WM and fluid intelligence were assessed using the verbal WM span task and Raven's Standard Progressive Matrices (RSPM), respectively.

Main Results:

• FE training significantly improved CDT performance in the low-capacity group.
• CDA patterns in trained individuals became more similar to the high-capacity group.
• Training effects generalized to improve verbal WM span.
• No significant changes were observed in RSPM scores.

Conclusions:

• WM capacity is partly determined by distractor filtering efficiency.
• Targeted training can enhance VWM capacity and related cognitive functions.
• Improvements in VWM capacity through FE training are sustainable and transferable to verbal WM.