NDLI: Action relevance induces an attentional weighting of representations in visual working memory

Content Provider	Springer Nature Link
Author	Heuer, Anna Crawford, J. Douglas Schubö, Anna
Copyright Year	2016
Abstract	Information maintained in visual working memory (VWM) can be strategically weighted according to its task-relevance. This is typically studied by presenting cues during the maintenance interval, but under natural conditions, the importance of certain aspects of our visual environment is mostly determined by intended actions. We investigated whether representations in VWM are also weighted with respect to their potential action relevance. In a combined memory and movement task, participants memorized a number of items and performed a pointing movement during the maintenance interval. The test item in the memory task was subsequently presented either at the movement goal or at another location. We found that performance was better for test items presented at a location that corresponded to the movement goal than for test items presented at action-irrelevant locations. This effect was sensitive to the number of maintained items, suggesting that preferential maintenance of action relevant information becomes particularly important when the demand on VWM is high. We argue that weighting according to action relevance is mediated by the deployment of spatial attention to action goals, with representations spatially corresponding to the action goal benefitting from this attentional engagement. Performance was also better at locations next to the action goal than at locations farther away, indicating an attentional gradient spreading out from the action goal. We conclude that our actions continue to influence visual processing at the mnemonic level, ensuring preferential maintenance of information that is relevant for current behavioral goals.
Starting Page	413
Ending Page	427
Page Count	15
File Format	PDF
ISSN	0090502X
Journal	Memory & Cognition
Volume Number	45
Issue Number	3
e-ISSN	15325946
Language	English
Publisher	Springer US
Publisher Date	2016-11-07
Publisher Place	New York
Access Restriction	One Nation One Subscription (ONOS)
Subject Keyword	Attention Working memory Short term memory Motor control Cognitive Psychology
Content Type	Text
Resource Type	Article
Subject	Experimental and Cognitive Psychology Arts and Humanities Medicine Neuropsychology and Physiological Psychology

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