Individual differences in working memory capacity predict benefits to memory from intention offloading

Ball, Hunter; Peper, Phil; Alakbarova, Durna; Brewer, Gene; Gilbert, Sam J. · 2021 · Crossref

DOI: 10.1080/09658211.2021.1991380

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Summary

This study investigates whether individual differences in working memory capacity (WMC) influence the benefits derived from intention offloading and the decisions to offload intentions onto the environment. Prospective memory requires self-initiated retrieval of delayed intentions, a process that demands significant cognitive resources. While offloading (e.g., using reminders) can mitigate these demands, prior research has not fully determined how WMC affects the utility of offloading or the strategic choices individuals make regarding its use. The authors hypothesized that individuals with lower WMC would benefit more from offloading and would be more likely to choose it, potentially due to metacognitive underconfidence or a desire to minimize cognitive effort. The researchers conducted an experiment with 268 undergraduate participants who completed three variants of a delayed intention task (involving letters, ascending numbers, and descending numbers) and three complex span tasks to assess WMC. In the delayed intention task, participants dragged circles in sequence, with specific "target" circles requiring movement to designated locations later in the sequence. Trials were categorized as forced internal (relying on memory), forced external (using a reminder), or choice trials. On choice trials, participants could opt to offload, but doing so reduced the point value earned for successful completion, allowing the researchers to measure "reminder bias" (suboptimal offloading decisions). The study employed latent variable modeling to control for measurement error and analyze the relationships between WMC, memory performance, and offloading decisions. Results indicated that individuals with higher WMC successfully fulfilled more intentions on forced internal trials compared to those with lower WMC. However, this performance gap was eliminated on forced external trials, demonstrating that offloading effectively circumvents capacity limitations associated with maintaining delayed intentions. Regarding decision-making, individuals with lower WMC chose to offload more frequently on choice trials, suggesting a lower willingness to engage in effortful internal maintenance. Contrary to some expectations, WMC was not significantly associated with metacognitive confidence or the optimality of offloading decisions based on point values. This suggests that while lower WMC predicts a higher propensity to offload, it does not necessarily drive suboptimal decision-making or inaccurate self-assessment of memory ability. The findings imply that intention offloading serves as a robust compensatory strategy that equalizes prospective memory performance across individuals with varying cognitive capacities. The study highlights that while those with lower WMC rely more heavily on external aids, this behavior may stem from a preference to minimize cognitive effort rather than solely from metacognitive bias. These results contribute to the understanding of how environmental support can mitigate individual differences in cognitive performance, suggesting that designing environments with accessible offloading opportunities can support individuals with limited working memory resources.

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• prospective memory interruptions