Related Experiment Video
Updated: Dec 13, 2025
10:38
A Cognitive Paradigm to Investigate Interference in Working Memory by Distractions and Interruptions
Published on: July 16, 2015
13.9K
Memory load, distracter interference, and dynamic adjustments in cognitive control influence working memory
Anthony P Zanesco1, Joanna E Witkin1, Alexandra B Morrison1
1Department of Psychology.
Psychology and Aging
|August 4, 2020
Summary
Working memory declines with age due to difficulties with distraction and high memory load. While cognitive control adjustments help, their effectiveness varies across the lifespan, impacting older adults most.
Area of Science:
- Cognitive psychology
- Neuroscience of aging
- Human development
Background:
- Working memory (WM) capacity declines with age, often linked to difficulties inhibiting distracting information.
- Age-related WM deficits may also stem from increasing memory load and failures in cognitive control.
- Dynamic adjustments in cognitive control, triggered by distractions or load, can benefit subsequent performance, but their lifespan trajectory is unknown.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate how distracter interference, memory load, and dynamic cognitive control adjustments influence working memory performance across the lifespan.
- To determine if age-related working memory deficits are explained by failures in suppressing distracters or managing memory load.
- To characterize lifespan changes in cognitive control adjustments and their role in working memory.
Main Methods:
- A delayed-recognition working memory task was administered to 505 participants aged from adolescence to older adulthood.
- Distracter interference and memory load were parametrically manipulated (high vs. low).
- Performance accuracy was analyzed based on current (N) and previous (N-1) trial demands to assess dynamic adjustments.
Main Results:
- Working memory performance varied across the lifespan depending on task demands.
- The ability to suppress distracters improved from adolescence to adulthood but declined in older age.
- Increasing memory load led to performance deficits that worsened with age, especially when combined with high interference.
Conclusions:
- Age-related working memory deficits are influenced by both distracter interference and memory load, with distinct age trajectories.
- While memory-load-triggered cognitive control adjustments are maintained across the lifespan, interference-triggered benefits diminish after middle age.
- Older adults show reduced ability to suppress distracters, contributing to age-related working memory decline.
More Related Videos
07:01Working Memory Training for Older Participants: A Control Group Training Regimen and Initial Intellectual Functioning Assessment
Published on: September 20, 2020
5.1K
09:05Assessing Working Memory in Children: The Comprehensive Assessment Battery for Children – Working Memory (CABC-WM)
Published on: June 12, 2017
30.5K
Related Concept Videos
01:24Working Memory
650
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...
650
01:30Information Processing Approach
377
The information-processing theory of cognitive development centers on fundamental mental processes, including attention, memory, and problem-solving skills. Researchers in this field examine how cognitive abilities, such as working memory, evolve and influence children's overall development. Studies indicate that children with stronger working memory tend to excel in reading comprehension, math, and problem-solving compared to peers with less efficient memory skills. Low working memory is...
377
01:30Cognitive Development During Adulthood
626
Cognitive development continues throughout adulthood, undergoing significant shifts across early, middle, and late stages. Individual transition occurs from adolescent idealism to pragmatic and adaptable thinking in early adulthood. During this period, individuals learn to integrate personal beliefs with the recognition that other perspectives are equally valid. Exposure to the complexities of modern society, diverse experiences, and higher education contribute to this adaptive thought process,...
626
01:16Interference and Decay
342
Forgetting is a complex cognitive phenomenon influenced by several factors, among which interference and decay are particularly prominent. These processes explain why individuals often struggle to retrieve specific information from memory, leading to lapses in recall that can be observed in everyday situations.
Interference occurs when competing memories hinder the retrieval of particular information. It can be classified into two types: proactive and retroactive interference. Proactive...
Interference occurs when competing memories hinder the retrieval of particular information. It can be classified into two types: proactive and retroactive interference. Proactive...
342
01:14Role of Cerebellum and Prefrontal Cortex in Memory
868
The cerebellum, while traditionally associated with motor control, also plays a crucial role in memory, particularly in procedural memory, which involves learning motor tasks that become automatic through repetition. For example, studies have shown that when the cerebellum is damaged, individuals or animals lose the ability to learn conditioned motor responses, such as the conditioned eye-blink response in classical conditioning experiments with rabbits. This study demonstrates the...
868
01:27Language and Cognition
611
Language serves as a bridge between ideas and communication, influencing how individuals perceive and interact with the world. Psychologists have long debated whether language shapes thought or vice versa. This discussion gained grip with Edward Sapir and Benjamin Lee Whorf in the 1940s, who proposed that language determines thought, a concept known as linguistic determinism. They suggested that the vocabulary and structure of a language influence how its speakers think and perceive reality.
611