The Interplay of Long-Term Memory and Working Memory: When Does Object-Color Prior Knowledge Affect Color Visual Working Memory?

Abstract

Elaboration enriches newly encoded information by connecting it to prior knowledge. Here, we tested if prior knowledge about object-color associations improves visual working memory (VWM) for colors. A sequence of four colored objects was presented in four screen locations for a continuous color reproduction test. Object-color associations were either congruent with prior knowledge (e.g., red tomato) or incongruent (blue tomato). In Experiments 1 and 2, congruency had no effect on memory irrespective of memoranda format (images or words), encoding time (1500 vs. 4500 ms), and an instruction to elaborate. In Experiment 3, the object was also tested with a 3-alternative forced-choice before or after probing color memory. We also included neutral objects (no color association) and abstract shapes, and tested VWM and episodic memory. Congruent items were remembered better than in all other conditions, which did not systematically differ. In Experiment 4, we assessed the congruency effect when only color or both color and object were tested. Congruent objects were remembered better only when both features were tested. Hence, prior knowledge boosts VWM only when this knowledge is relevant at test. Our results suggest that retrieval manipulations can be critical for promoting the use of long-term memory knowledge.

What you don't know can't hurt you: Retro-cues benefit working memory regardless of prior knowledge in long-term memory

“…A pool of 504 concrete shapes was adapted from the nameable images developed by Sutterer and Awh (2016) and Sobrinho and Souza (2021). A corresponding pool of 504 abstract shapes was created based on the same nameable images via a diffeomorphic transformation that scrambled the images, thereby resulting in semantically meaningless shapes that still retained the perceptual properties of the original images (Brady & Störmer, 2022;Stojanoski & Cusack, 2014).…”