scholarly journals Hungarian Structural Focus: Accessibility to Focused Elements and Their Alternatives in Working Memory and Delayed Recognition Memory

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tamás Káldi ◽  
Ágnes Szöllösi ◽  
Anna Babarczy
Keyword(s):  
Working Memory ◽  
Recognition Memory ◽  
Sentence Type ◽  
Memory Performance ◽  
Research Question ◽  
Indirect Evidence ◽  
Memory Systems ◽  
Memory Representation ◽  
Original Sentence ◽  
Delayed Recognition

The present work investigates the memory accessibility of linguistically focused elements and the representation of the alternatives for these elements (i.e., their possible replacements) in Working Memory (WM) and in delayed recognition memory in the case of the Hungarian pre-verbal focus construction (preVf). In two probe recognition experiments we presented preVf and corresponding focusless neutral sentences embedded in five-sentence stories. Stories were followed by the presentation of sentence probes in one of three conditions: (i) the probe was identical to the original sentence in the story, (ii) the focused word (i.e., target) was replaced by a semantically related word and (iii) the target word was replaced by a semantically unrelated but contextually suitable word. In Experiment 1, probes were presented immediately after the stories measuring WM performance, while in Experiment 2, blocks of six stories were presented and sentences were probed with a 2-minute delay measuring delayed recognition memory performance. Results revealed an advantage of the focused element in immediate but not in delayed retrieval. We found no effect of sentence type on the recognition of the two different probe types in WM performance. However, results pertaining to the memory accessibility of focus alternatives in delayed retrieval showed an interference effect resulting in a lower memory performance. We conclude that this effect is indirect evidence for the enhanced activation of focus alternatives. The present work is novel in two respects. First, no study has been conducted on the memory representation of focused elements and their alternatives in the case of the structurally marked Hungarian pre-verbal focus construction. Second, to our knowledge, this is the first study that investigates the focus representation accounts for WM and delayed recognition memory using the same stimuli and same measured variables. Since both experiments used exactly the same stimulus set, and they only differed in terms of the timing of recognition probes, the principle of ceteris paribus fully applied with respect to how we addressed our research question regarding the two different memory systems.

scholarly journals Practice makes imperfect: Working memory training can harm recognition memory performance

2016 ◽  
Vol 44 (8) ◽  
pp. 1168-1182 ◽  
Author(s):  
Laura E. Matzen ◽  
Michael C. Trumbo ◽  
Michael J. Haass ◽  
Michael A. Hunter ◽  
Austin Silva ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Working Memory ◽  
Recognition Memory ◽  
Memory Performance ◽  
Working Memory Training ◽  
Memory Training ◽  
Recognition Memory Performance

scholarly journals The Potential of Invasive and Non-Invasive Vagus Nerve Stimulation To Improve Verbal Memory Performance in Epilepsy Patients

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ann Mertens ◽  
Stefanie Gadeyne ◽  
Emma Lescrauwaet ◽  
Evelien Carrette ◽  
Alfred Meurs ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Word Recognition ◽  
Recognition Memory ◽  
Vagus Nerve ◽  
Nerve Stimulation ◽  
Verbal Memory ◽  
Vagus Nerve Stimulation ◽  
Memory Performance ◽  
Non Invasive ◽  
Immediate Recall ◽  
Delayed Recognition

Abstract Introduction: It has been demonstrated that acute vagus nerve stimulation (VNS) improves word recognition memory in epilepsy patients. Transcutaneous auricular vagus nerve stimulation (taVNS) has gained interest as a non-invasive alternative to improve cognition. In this prospective randomized cross-over study, we investigated the effect of both invasive VNS and taVNS on verbal memory performance in 15 drug-resistant epilepsy patients. Methods All patients conducted a word recognition memory paradigm in 3 conditions: VNS ON, VNS OFF and taVNS. For each condition, patients memorized 21 highlighted words from text paragraphs. Afterwards, the intervention was delivered for 30 s. Immediate recall and delayed recognition scores were obtained for each condition. This memory paradigm was repeated after 6 weeks of VNS therapy in 2 conditions: VNS ON and VNS OFF. Results Acute VNS and taVNS did not improve verbal memory performance. Immediate recall and delayed recognition scores were significantly improved after 6 weeks of VNS treatment irrespective of the acute intervention. Conclusion The previously described positive effects of invasive VNS on verbal memory performance could not be replicated with invasive VNS and taVNS. An improved verbal memory performance was seen after 6 weeks of VNS treatment, suggesting that longer and more repetitive stimulation of the vagal pathway is required to modulate verbal memory performance.

scholarly journals Is Long-Term Memory Used in a Visuo-Spatial Change-Detection Paradigm?

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Benjamin Goecke ◽  
Klaus Oberauer
Keyword(s):  
Working Memory ◽  
Change Detection ◽  
Memory Performance ◽  
Memory Task ◽  
Repetition Effect ◽  
Long Term Memory ◽  
Memory Representation ◽  
Term Memory ◽  
Hebb Repetition Effect

In tests of working memory with verbal or spatial materials repeating the same memory sets across trials leads to improved memory performance. This well-established “Hebb repetition effect” could not be shown for visual materials. This absence of the Hebb effect can be explained in two ways: Either persons fail to acquire a long-term memory representation of the repeated memory sets, or they acquire such long-term memory representations, but fail to use them during the working memory task. In two experiments, (N1 = 18 and N2 = 30), we aimed to decide between these two possibilities by manipulating the long-term memory knowledge of some of the memory sets used in a change-detection task. Before the change-detection test, participants learned three arrays of colors to criterion. The subsequent change-detection test contained both previously learned and new color arrays. Change detection performance was better on previously learned compared to new arrays, showing that long-term memory is used in change detection.

Word length negatively predicts recognition memory performance

2020 ◽  
Vol 73 (10) ◽  
pp. 1675-1683
Author(s):  
Michael J Cortese ◽  
David Von Nordheim ◽  
Maya M Khanna
Keyword(s):  
Recognition Memory ◽  
Word Length ◽  
Recognition Performance ◽  
Memory Performance ◽  
False Alarms ◽  
Memory Representation ◽  
Orthographic Similarity ◽  
Single Process ◽  
The Individual ◽  
Noise Models

We examined how word length affects performance in three recognition memory experiments to resolve discrepant results in the literature for which there are theoretical implications. Shorter and longer words were equated on frequency, orthographic similarity, age of acquisition, and imageability. In Experiments 1 and 2, orthographic length (i.e., the number of letters in a word) was negatively related to hits minus false alarms. In Experiment 3, recognition performance did not differ between one- and two-syllable words that were equated on orthographic length. These results are compatible with single-process item-noise models that represent orthography in terms of features and in which memory representation strength is a product of the probabilities that the individual features have been stored. Longer words are associated with noisier representations than shorter words.

scholarly journals Is long-term memory used in a visuo-spatial change-detection paradigm?

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Benjamin Goecke ◽  
Klaus Oberauer
Keyword(s):  
Working Memory ◽  
Change Detection ◽  
Memory Performance ◽  
Memory Task ◽  
Repetition Effect ◽  
Long Term Memory ◽  
Memory Representation ◽  
Term Memory ◽  
Hebb Repetition Effect

AbstractIn tests of working memory with verbal or spatial materials, repeating the same memory sets across trials leads to improved memory performance. This well-established “Hebb repetition effect” could not be shown for visual materials in previous research. The absence of the Hebb effect can be explained in two ways: Either persons fail to acquire a long-term memory representation of the repeated memory sets, or they acquire such long-term memory representations, but fail to use them during the working memory task. In two experiments (N1 = 18 and N2 = 30), we aimed to decide between these two possibilities by manipulating the long-term memory knowledge of some of the memory sets used in a change-detection task. Before the change-detection test, participants learned three arrays of colors to criterion. The subsequent change-detection test contained both previously learned and new color arrays. Change detection performance was better on previously learned compared with new arrays, showing that long-term memory is used in change detection.

scholarly journals Opposite reactions to loss incentive by young and older adults: Insights from diffusion modeling

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hyesue Jang ◽  
Richard Lewis ◽  
Cindy Lustig
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Working Memory ◽  
Young Adults ◽  
Retention Interval ◽  
Drift Rate ◽  
Memory Performance ◽  
Later Life ◽  
Self Report ◽  
Memory Representation ◽  
Diffusion Modeling

The prospect of loss becomes more salient in later life, and the opportunity to avoid loss is often used to motivate older adults. We examined the effect of loss incentive on working memory in young and older adults. Diffusion-modeling analyses, manipulation of task parameters, and self-report measures identified which aspects of cognitive-motivational processing were most affected within each group. As predicted, loss incentive increased working memory performance and self-reported motivation in young adults, but, consistent with prior work, had the opposite effect in older adults. Diffusion-modeling analyses suggested the primary effect was on the quality of the memory representation (drift rate). Incentive did not interact with retention interval or the number of items in the memory set. Instead, longer retention intervals led to better performance, potentially by improved differentiation between studied items and the unstudied probe as a function of temporal context. Overall, the results do not support theories suggesting that older adults are either more motivated by loss or that they ignore it. Instead, the loss incentive increased young adults' performance and subjective motivation, with opposite effects for older adults. The specific impact on drift rate and lack of interactions with set size or retention interval suggest that rather than affecting load-dependent or strategic processes, the effects occur at a relatively global level related to overall task engagement.

scholarly journals I remember it now, so I'll remember it later: Working Memory Representations Guide Inaccurate Predictions of Future Memory Performance

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Julia Krasnoff ◽  
Alessandra S. Souza
Keyword(s):  
Working Memory ◽  
Memory Performance ◽  
Memory Systems ◽  
Memory Test ◽  
Sequence Length ◽  
Long Term Memory ◽  
Memory Strength ◽  
Term Memory ◽  
Memory Representations

Making accurate predictions of future memory performance (Judgements of Learning; JOLs) is a prerequisite for efficient learning. Since decades, those JOLs are assumed to be made inferentially, based on cues. This cue-utilization approach substituted the idea that JOLs are directly linked to memory quality. We criticize the reasons for the rejection of this memory-strength hypothesis because they ignore the existence of two different memory systems: working memory which holds representations immediately accessible, and long-term memory which is a more permanent store. Considering both memory systems, the current work revisited the memory-strength hypothesis: In Experiment 1, participants memorized sequences of two or four colored objects, then they provided JOLs for a long-term memory test, and performed a working memory test on the objects’ colors. After learning 200 objects, the long-term memory test on all studied objects followed. Sequence-length affected working memory, but not long-term memory performance. JOLs, however, were higher for sequences of two than four and correlated higher with working memory than long-term memory performance. Experiment 2 replicated the sequence-length effect on JOLs in the absence of a working memory test. Results of a sequence-eight condition revealed an increase in JOLs’ accuracy when the number of studied objects exceeded working memory span. Contrary to predominant theories, our findings suggest that JOLs are based on the quality of memory representations.

scholarly journals Adolescent-specific memory effects: Evidence from working memory, immediate and 24-hour recognition memory performance in 8- to 30-year-olds

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lena J Skalaban ◽  
Alexandra O. Cohen ◽  
May I. Conley ◽  
Qi Lin ◽  
Garrett N. Schwartz ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Working Memory ◽  
Recognition Memory ◽  
Memory Performance ◽  
Community Sample ◽  
Delay Condition ◽  
Long Term Memory ◽  
Term Memory ◽  
Recognition Memory Performance ◽  
Similar Accuracy

Working memory and long-term memory develop from childhood to adulthood, but the relationship between them is not fully understood, especially during adolescence. We investigated associations between n-back task performance and subsequent recognition memory in a community sample (8-30 years, n=150) using tasks from the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development Study (ABCD Study®). We added a 24-hour delay condition to assess long-term memory and assessed ages that overlap with those to be assessed in the 10-year ABCD study. Overall working memory, immediate, and long-term recognition memory performance peaked during adolescence. Age effects in recognition memory varied by items (i.e., old targets and distractors and new items) and delay. For immediate recognition, accuracy was higher for new items and targets than distractors, with the highest accuracy for new items emerging by the mid-teens. For long-term recognition, adolescents were more accurate in identifying new items than children and adults and adolescents showed more long-term forgetting of distractors relative to targets. In contrast, adults showed similar accuracy for targets and distractors, while children showed long-term forgetting of both. The results suggest that working memory processes may facilitate long-term storage of task-relevant items over irrelevant items and may benefit the detection of novel information during adolescence.

scholarly journals Working memory performance is tied to stimulus complexity

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Roland Pusch ◽  
Julian Packheiser ◽  
Amir Hossein Azizi ◽  
Celil Semih Sevincik ◽  
Jonas Rose ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Working Memory ◽  
Visual Information ◽  
Neural Coding ◽  
Single Unit ◽  
Memory Performance ◽  
Delay Period ◽  
Memory Representation ◽  
Stimulus Complexity ◽  
Behavioral Experiments ◽  
Complex Stimuli

1.SummaryWorking memory is the cognitive capability to maintain and process information over short periods. Recent behavioral and computational studies have shown that increased visual information of the presented stimulus material is associated with enhanced working memory performance. However, the underlying neural correlates of this association are unknown. To identify how stimuli of different visual information levels affect working memory performance, we conducted behavioral experiments and single unit recordings in the avian analog of the prefrontal cortex, the nidopallium caudolaterale (NCL). On the behavioral level, we confirmed that feature-rich complex stimuli demonstrated higher working memory performance compared to feature-poor simple stimuli. This difference was reflected by distinct neural coding patterns at the single unit level. For complex stimuli, we found a highly multiplexed neuronal code. During the sample presentation, NCL neurons initially reflected both visual and value-related features of the presented stimuli that switched to a representation of the upcoming choice during a delay period. When processing simple stimuli, NCL neurons did not multiplex and represented the upcoming choice already during stimulus presentation and throughout the delay period. It is conceivable that the maintenance of the upcoming choice in working memory was prolonged for simple stimuli due to the early choice representation. This possibly resulted in increased decay of the working memory trace ultimately leading to a decrease in performance. In conclusion, we found that increases in stimulus complexity are associated with increased neuronal multiplexing of the working memory representation. This could possibly allow for a facilitated read-out of the neural code resulting in further enhancements of working memory performance.

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