Visual working memory phenomena based on categorical tasks replicate using a continuous measure: A simple interpretation and some methodological considerations

Hu, Yanmei; Allen, Richard J.; Baddeley, Alan; Hitch, Graham J. · 2023 · Attention Perception & Psychophysics

DOI: 10.3758/s13414-023-02656-x

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Summary

This study investigates whether key phenomena in visual working memory (VWM), traditionally documented using discrete, categorical measures, replicate when assessed using continuous measures of feature precision. The research addresses a methodological divide in the field: one tradition uses categorical recall (e.g., naming colors), while another uses continuous adjustment tasks to measure the precision of stored features like orientation. The authors aim to determine if findings regarding recency effects, prioritization of items, and interference from post-stimulus suffixes are robust across these methodologies, thereby strengthening the theoretical unity of VWM research. The researchers conducted two experiments using a continuous response task where participants recalled the orientation of colored bars. In Experiment 1, 54 participants viewed sequences of three colored bars and adjusted a probe to match the original orientation. The study manipulated prioritization by assigning different point values to items based on their serial position (first, second, or third). Experiment 2 involved 39 participants and introduced a "suffix"—an irrelevant distractor presented immediately after the final item—to test interference effects. Participants were instructed to either ignore the suffix or prioritize the first item in the sequence. Performance was analyzed using absolute error and precision metrics derived from continuous response data. The results demonstrated broad convergence between continuous and categorical methods. Experiment 1 replicated the recency effect, with highest precision for the final item. Crucially, it confirmed that prioritizing an item enhanced its recall precision while reducing the precision of non-prioritized items, resulting in no net change in overall retention. This trade-off suggests that prioritization reallocates a limited pool of attentional resources. Experiment 2 found that a suffix impaired recall of the most recent item regardless of prioritization. However, when the first item was prioritized, it became susceptible to suffix interference, whereas it remained unaffected in the no-priority condition. These findings mirror previous categorical results, indicating that prioritization renders items more likely to occupy the focus of attention, making them vulnerable to displacement by subsequent stimuli. The authors conclude that categorical and continuous measures tap into the same underlying memory processes. They propose that categorical retrieval involves applying a discrete criterion to an underlying continuum of stored feature information. The replication of prioritization and suffix effects supports the view that attentional refreshing mechanisms operate similarly regardless of the measurement method. This convergence validates the use of continuous measures for studying VWM phenomena previously established via categorical tasks, suggesting that the field can integrate findings from both traditions to build a more comprehensive theory of visual working memory.

Key finding

Visual working memory phenomena such as recency effects, prioritization trade-offs, and suffix interference observed in categorical tasks are successfully replicated using continuous precision measures.

Methodology

lab_experiment

Sample size: 93

Provenance

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Topics

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• working memory