The relationship between visual attention and visual working memory encoding: A dissociation between covert and overt orienting.

Abstract

There is substantial debate over whether visual working memory (VWM) and visual attention constitute a single system for the selection of task-relevant perceptual information or whether they are distinct systems that can be dissociated when their representational demands diverge. In the present study, we focused on the relationship between visual attention and the encoding of objects into visual working memory (VWM). Participants performed a color change-detection task. During the retention interval, a secondary object, irrelevant to the memory task, was presented. Participants were instructed either to execute an overt shift of gaze to this object (Experiments 1–3) or to attend it covertly (Experiments 4 and 5). Our goal was to determine whether these overt and covert shifts of attention disrupted the information held in VWM. We hypothesized that saccades, which typically introduce a memorial demand to bridge perceptual disruption, would lead to automatic encoding of the secondary object. However, purely covert shifts of attention, which introduce no such demand, would not result in automatic memory encoding. The results supported these predictions. Saccades to the secondary object produced substantial interference with VWM performance, but covert shifts of attention to this object produced no interference with VWM performance. These results challenge prevailing theories that consider attention and VWM to reflect a common mechanism. In addition, they indicate that the relationship between attention and VWM is dependent on the memorial demands of the orienting behavior.

Visual short‐term memory for overtly attended objects during infancy

“…Four‐month‐old infants failed to demonstrate a stronger preference for a fixated item that changed color than a fixated item that did not change color. This contrasts with our findings that 8.5‐month‐old infants did encode the color of an item that they were experimentally induced to fixate and with previous research showing that adults automatically store the properties of a saccade target in VSTM which then influences their subsequent oculomotor behavior (Hollingworth et al, 2008; Tas et al, 2016). Thus, the correspondence between overt gaze and encoding in VSTM may develop during infancy.…”

“…Here, we explore the possibility that, when faced with multiple‐element visual arrays, young infants are able to store information in VSTM, but only about items they have overtly attended. This possibility derives from the finding that adults automatically store the properties of a saccade target in VSTM (Hollingworth, Richard, & Luck, 2008; Tas, Luck, & Hollingworth, 2016). If young infants also automatically store fixated objects in VSTM, this would help them learn about the objects that attract their attention (especially highly salient items).…”

Dissecting the neural focus of attention reveals distinct processes for spatial attention and object-based storage in visual working memory

“…However, in this study, we extend the growing evidence that the focus of attention may be implemented via multiple component processes playing distinct functional roles: one that represents currently prioritized space (alpha); and another that reflects item storage within the focus of attention (CDA). This proposal converges with other findings that suggest a dissociation between spatial attention and WM storage (Tas et al, 2016;Sheremata et al 2018). van Dijk et al (2010) proposed that asymmetric modulations of alpha power at the trial-level can generate a CDA-like negative slow wave in an event-related average.…”

The impact of stereoscopic imagery and motion on anatomical structure recognition and visual attention performance

“…In the dynamic condition there was no difference between cohorts in visual attention performance. Coming from the assumption of a connection between visual attention and working memory (de Fockert et al, ; Luck and Vogel, ; Tas et al, ) one can reason that individuals' working memory was impacted differently by stereoscopic imagery. Arguing with the cognitive load theory (Chandler and Sweller, ), enhanced visual attention performance might be interpretable as a good prerequisite of Germane load while learning anatomical content.…”

“…Visual attention is said to be linked with working memory (de Fockert et al, ). Research postulates that visual attention and visual working memory probably relate to one system for selecting pertinent visual information (Luck and Vogel, ; Tas et al, ). Related to this, decreased visual attention performance can be interpreted as impaired information processing in visual working memory.…”