The many faces of working memory and short-term storage
The many faces of working memory and short-term storage
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DOI：
10.3758/s13423-016-1191-6
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发表时间：
2017-08-01
影响因子：
3.5
通讯作者：
Cowan, Nelson
中科院分区：
文献类型：
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作者：
Cowan, Nelson
工作记忆是认知心理学和个体差异研究中的一个普遍话题。根据一个定义，它是少量的信息保持在一个临时的高度可访问的状态;它被用于大多数类型的沟通和解决问题。短期存储已被定义为被动（即，非基于注意力的、非策略性的）WM的成分，或者可替代地，作为与基于注意力的WM分离的被动存储。在这里我注意到，各种研究人员对WM和短期存储的许多微妙不同的定义的使用造成了很大的混乱。这些定义有时是明确的，有时是隐含的。正如我所解释的，不同的定义可能源于使用了各种各样的技术来探索工作记忆，沿着理论取向的差异。通过描述先前使用的工作记忆的九个定义，并解释如何从这九个定义的组合中产生额外的定义，我希望改进工作记忆的科学论述。关于WM和短期存储的定义的清晰度的潜在优势说明了几个正在进行的研究争议。
The topic of working memory (WM) is ubiquitous in research on cognitive psychology and on individual differences. According to one definition, it is a small amount of information kept in a temporary state of heightened accessibility; it is used in most types of communication and problem solving. Short-term storage has been defined as the passive (i.e., non-attention-based, nonstrategic) component of WM or, alternatively, as a passive store separate from an attention-based WM. Here I note that much confusion has been created by the use by various investigators of many, subtly different definitions of WM and short-term storage. The definitions are sometimes made explicit and sometimes implied. As I explain, the different definitions may have stemmed from the use of a wide variety of techniques to explore WM, along with differences in theoretical orientation. By delineating nine previously used definitions of WM and explaining how additional ones may emerge from combinations of these nine, I hope to improve scientific discourse on WM. The potential advantages of clarity about definitions of WM and short-term storage are illustrated with respect to several ongoing research controversies.