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Updated: Feb 12, 2026

A Cognitive Paradigm to Investigate Interference in Working Memory by Distractions and Interruptions
Published on: July 16, 2015
Dopamine D2 agonist affects visuospatial working memory distractor interference depending on individual differences
James M Broadway1, Michael J Frank2, James F Cavanagh3
1Department of Neurosciences, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM, 87106, USA. jbroadway@salud.unm.edu.
Abstract:
The interplay of dopaminergic striatal D1-D2 circuits is thought to support working memory (WM) by selectively filtering information that is to be remembered versus information to be ignored. To test this theory, we conducted an experiment in which healthy participants performed a visuospatial working memory (VSWM) task after ingesting the D2-receptor agonist cabergoline (or placebo), in a randomized, double-blinded, crossover design. Results showed greater interference from distractors under cabergoline, particularly for individuals with higher baseline dopamine (indicated by WM span). These findings support computational theories of striatal D1-D2 function during WM encoding and distractor-filtering, and provide new evidence for interactive cortico-striatal systems that support VSWM capacity and their dependence on WM span.
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