The effect of interleaving identity- and spatial-recognition trials on cueing

Cues presented before (pre-cue) or after (retro-cue) a task-relevant stimulus (target) can improve visual working memory for the cued target. Griffin and Nobre (2003) found a differential cueing advantage depending on whether participants were required to detect a change in a target's color (identity recognition) or its location (spatial recognition). We investigated how interleaving identity- and spatial-recognition trials influenced the effectiveness of cueing. Participants completed a successive same-different procedure in which colored background pre- or retro-cues signaled whether to match a target based on its identity or location. When identity- and spatial-recognition trials were encountered in separate blocks and instructions were provided at the start of each block, cueing effects were not observed (Experiment 1). In Experiment 2, interleaving the same trials within blocks produced main effects of cueing and trial type, as well as an interaction. In Experiment 3, the trial-by-trial task requirement was consistent throughout each session (similar to Experiment 1), but the more discriminable difference (identity or spatial) was cued on each trial (similar to Experiment 2). Congruency effects, but no cueing effects, were observed. These experiments revealed several key factors that influence cueing effects. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved).