Does the Experimenter Presence Affect Verbal Working Memory?

Area of Science:

• Cognitive Psychology
• Social Psychology

Background:

• Experimenter presence can hinder cognitive performance, particularly executive functions.
• Previous research indicated a detrimental effect on working memory only during aloud concurrent articulation.
• Contradictory findings suggest potential improvements in executive functions with experimenter presence.

Purpose of the Study:

• To reassess the impact of experimenter presence on working memory.
• To investigate the role of concurrent articulation and secondary tasks.
• To replicate and extend Belletier and Camos' (2018) findings on a larger sample.

Main Methods:

• A within-subject design was employed, comparing participants alone versus in the presence of an experimenter.
• Participants performed a Brown-Peterson task with letter maintenance over 12 seconds.
• Concurrent articulation (silent, aloud, whispered) and secondary tasks (none, parity, location judgment) were manipulated.

Main Results:

• Experimenter presence significantly hindered memory performance when participants engaged in concurrent articulation and a secondary task.
• The detrimental effect was observed across all types of concurrent articulation (silent, aloud, whispered).
• Memory recall was preserved from the experimenter's effect in silent conditions or when no secondary task was performed.

Conclusions:

• The findings support the detrimental effect of experimenter presence on working memory under specific conditions.
• Concurrent articulation and secondary tasks mediate the impact of social presence on cognitive performance.
• Minimizing social cues (silence, no secondary task) can mitigate the negative effects of experimenter presence.