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The benefit of removing information from working memory: Increasing available cognitive resources or reducing
Chenyu Li1, Gidon T Frischkorn1, Hannah Dames1
1Department of Psychology, Cognitive Psychology Unit, University of Zurich, Switzerland.
Cognition
|April 4, 2025
Summary
Removing information from working memory frees up cognitive resources, enhancing memory retention. This study found that the timing of information removal impacts working memory capacity, suggesting resource allocation is key, not interference reduction.
Area of Science:
- Cognitive Psychology
- Neuroscience
Background:
- Working memory capacity is limited.
- Information removal is theorized to enhance memory by freeing up cognitive resources or reducing interference.
Purpose of the Study:
- To differentiate between interference reduction and resource freeing as mechanisms for memory improvement following information removal from working memory.
- To investigate the temporal dynamics of working memory resource allocation during information removal.
Main Methods:
- Comparison of immediate versus delayed information removal from working memory.
- Assessment of memory performance for item-location bindings under different removal conditions.
- Experimental manipulation of encoding and removal timing.
Main Results:
- Both immediate and delayed removal improved memory for item-location bindings.
- Removal did not reduce interference from to-be-forgotten items.
- Removal facilitated subsequent item-location binding, supporting a resource-based account.
Conclusions:
- Information removal enhances working memory capacity primarily by increasing available cognitive resources.
- The timing of removal suggests that freed resources are allocated to newly encoded information.
- Findings challenge interference-based explanations for the benefits of information removal.
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