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Investigating the Deployment of Visual Attention Before Accurate and Averaging Saccades via Eye Tracking and Assessment of Visual Sensitivity

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Mechanisms of Working Memory Prioritization: Retro-Cues vs. Saccadic Preparation.

Cristina Romero-Casas^1,2, Jorge San-Segundo³, Joaquín Macedo-Pascual^1,2

¹Centro de Investigación Nebrija en Cognición (CINC), Universidad Nebrija, Madrid, Spain.

Psychophysiology

|May 21, 2026

Summary

Prioritizing working memory (WM) content via retro-cues enhances performance more than saccade preparation. Both methods use shared attention mechanisms but differ in strategic control and load management.

Keywords:

alpha oscillations prioritization retro‐cue saccadic preparation working memory

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Area of Science:

Cognitive Neuroscience
Attention Research

Background:

Selective attention prioritizes working memory (WM) content based on task demands.
The retro-cue paradigm typically investigates memory-based prioritization.
Saccade preparation may also induce prioritization linked to oculomotor selection.

Purpose of the Study:

Compare behavioral and neural dynamics of action-oriented (saccade) vs. memory-based (retro-cue) prioritization.
Investigate shared and distinct mechanisms underlying these prioritization strategies.
Determine the relative efficacy of each prioritization method.

Main Methods:

Utilized the retro-cue paradigm and saccade preparation tasks.
Measured behavioral performance (e.g., accuracy, reaction time).
Analyzed neural oscillatory dynamics, specifically alpha-band activity.

Main Results:

Retro-cues produced significantly larger behavioral benefits than saccade preparation.
Both prioritization types showed similar spatial-attention patterns in alpha-band lateralization.
Retro-cues led to reduced bilateral posterior alpha power compared to saccadic preparation.

Conclusions:

Spatial-attention mechanisms are likely shared across saccade-based and retro-cue-based prioritization.
These prioritization forms differ in strategic control and impact on WM load.
Retro-cue prioritization offers superior behavioral enhancement over saccade preparation.