Grouping and binding in visual short-term memory

TY - JOUR

T1 - Grouping and binding in visual short-term memory

AU - Quinlan, Philip T

AU - Cohen, Dale J

N1 - PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved.

PY - 2012/9

Y1 - 2012/9

N2 - Findings of 2 experiments are reported that challenge the current understanding of visual short-term memory (VSTM). In both experiments, a single study display, containing 6 colored shapes, was presented briefly and then probed with a single colored shape. At stake is how VSTM retains a record of different objects that share common features: In the 1st experiment, 2 study items sometimes shared a common feature (either a shape or a color). The data revealed a color sharing effect, in which memory was much better for items that shared a common color than for items that did not. The 2nd experiment showed that the size of the color sharing effect depended on whether a single pair of items shared a common color or whether 2 pairs of items were so defined-memory for all items improved when 2 color groups were presented. In explaining performance, an account is advanced in which items compete for a fixed number of slots, but then memory recall for any given stored item is prone to error. A critical assumption is that items that share a common color are stored together in a slot as a chunk. The evidence provides further support for the idea that principles of perceptual organization may determine the manner in which items are stored in VSTM.

AB - Findings of 2 experiments are reported that challenge the current understanding of visual short-term memory (VSTM). In both experiments, a single study display, containing 6 colored shapes, was presented briefly and then probed with a single colored shape. At stake is how VSTM retains a record of different objects that share common features: In the 1st experiment, 2 study items sometimes shared a common feature (either a shape or a color). The data revealed a color sharing effect, in which memory was much better for items that shared a common color than for items that did not. The 2nd experiment showed that the size of the color sharing effect depended on whether a single pair of items shared a common color or whether 2 pairs of items were so defined-memory for all items improved when 2 color groups were presented. In explaining performance, an account is advanced in which items compete for a fixed number of slots, but then memory recall for any given stored item is prone to error. A critical assumption is that items that share a common color are stored together in a slot as a chunk. The evidence provides further support for the idea that principles of perceptual organization may determine the manner in which items are stored in VSTM.

KW - Young Adult

KW - Set (Psychology)

KW - Photic Stimulation

KW - Memory, Short-Term

KW - Pattern Recognition, Visual

KW - Humans

KW - Generalization (Psychology)

KW - Color Perception

KW - Adolescent

KW - Male

KW - Female

UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=84872681172&partnerID=8YFLogxK

U2 - 10.1037/a0027866

DO - 10.1037/a0027866

M3 - Article

C2 - 22449133

SN - 0278-7393

VL - 38

SP - 1432

EP - 1438

JO - Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition

JF - Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition

IS - 5

ER -