What does visual suffix interference tell us about spatial location in working memory?

Allen, Richard J.; Castellà, Judit; Ueno, Taiji; Hitch, Graham J.; Baddeley, Alan · 2014 · Memory & Cognition

DOI: 10.3758/s13421-014-0448-4

archive: archived pipeline: cataloged verified

Get this paper ↗ (DOI — opens at the source; we link to it, we don't host it)

Summary

This study investigates whether spatial location is automatically bound to visual features (color and shape) in working memory or if it remains separable. While previous research suggested that visual working memory representations are abstract and flexible, it remained unclear if spatial location is rigidly encoded or only utilized when task demands require it. The authors employed a visual suffix interference paradigm to determine if the spatial overlap of an irrelevant stimulus with a target item disrupts memory retention, and whether this disruption depends on how the target is cued for recall. The researchers conducted three experiments using a within-subjects design. Participants viewed an array of four colored shapes, followed by a retention interval during which they were instructed to ignore a "suffix" array of two different colored shapes. In half of the suffix trials, one suffix item overlaid the spatial location of the target item. Experiment 1 cued recall by spatial location; Experiment 2 cued recall by feature identity (color or shape); and Experiment 3 randomly intermixed both cue types to control for strategic encoding differences. Suffixes were categorized as "plausible" (sharing features with the experimental set) or "implausible." Performance was measured by correct recall rates and error types, specifically distinguishing between within-display confusions (binding errors) and external intrusions (overwriting errors). The results demonstrated that suffixes consistently interfered with memory performance, with plausible suffixes causing greater disruption than implausible ones. Crucially, the effect of spatial overlap depended entirely on the cueing method. In Experiment 1, where recall was cued by location, suffixes that overlaid the target’s location significantly impaired accuracy and increased external intrusion errors. In contrast, Experiment 2, which used feature-based cues, showed no significant effect of spatial overlap on performance or error rates. Experiment 3 confirmed these findings when cue types were randomly intermixed, ruling out strategic encoding differences as the cause. The effects of suffix identity and location were additive rather than interactive, suggesting independent processing streams. These findings indicate that spatial location is not automatically or rigidly bound to visual features in working memory. Instead, spatial information is only critically maintained and accessed when explicitly required by the retrieval task. The results support the view that visual working memory utilizes an abstract and flexible system where feature bindings (such as color and shape) can be retained independently of their spatial coordinates. This challenges theories positing that spatial location is a necessary component for maintaining object representations, suggesting instead that location serves as a flexible cue rather than an intrinsic part of the stored object file.

Key finding

Spatial location interference in visual working memory occurs only when the retrieval task explicitly requires spatial cues, indicating that feature binding can be maintained independently of spatial location.

Methodology

lab_experiment

Sample size: 95

Provenance

The full processing record for this entry. Every stage of this paper's journey through the pipeline is logged — what ran, with which tool and model, how many attempts it took, and when it last completed. Discovered via author_sweep_intake on 2026-05-28.

Summary generated by qwen3.6-27b-prismaquant on 2026-06-10; verification: verified.

Topics

Ranked by relevance to this paper. Hover a topic for its definition.

• prospective memory interruptions