The work memory It is a cognitive element that is used to store and manipulate for a short period of time the data necessary to carry out complex psychological tasks. For example, this mental element helps us with learning, thinking and understanding our environment..
Working memory plays a role in tasks such as selecting information, storing data, reasoning, and moving from short-term to long-term memory. On the other hand, many experts believe that working memory is the element with the greatest weight in the level of intelligence of each person.
A classic test to measure working memory capacity is to study the number of items, usually words or numbers, that an individual can remember and manipulate at one time using only their short-term memory. It has been found that the average is seven items, this being the maximum number of items that a person can retain in this part of their memory..
Although some researchers consider that short-term memory and working memory are the same, most experts believe that both elements of our mind are different and fulfill different tasks.
Article index
Although much research has been done on the limits of human memory, we have not yet been able to determine what they are, or even if there are any limits. However, these investigations have almost always focused on long-term memory, which is what allows us to remember almost unlimited amounts of information.
Working memory is different. Studies carried out focusing on it have discovered that a normal person can only retain approximately seven different elements in this part of memory, in such a way that if this number is exceeded it will be necessary to forget a previous one to store a new one in it..
This characteristic also occurs in a similar way in short-term memory, although not in such an exaggerated way.
The main difference between working memory and the other components of human memory is that it not only limits itself to passively storing data, but allows us to manipulate and work with it. This allows us to use it to perform complex cognitive tasks, and makes it a fundamental element in our psyche..
For example, working memory plays a very important role in tasks such as reading, solving mathematical problems or different types of learning, especially those related to a complex skill..
Because the working memory only has the capacity to store seven elements or items, its nature is much more volatile than the rest of the memory components. Thus, the long-term can retain information or memories for many decades, while the short-term is capable of doing so in a space of several hours.
In contrast, working memory is only capable of holding data for a few seconds unless the person is making a continuous and conscious effort to keep the information stored there. If this does not happen, its contents are constantly being renewed, as we pay attention to different elements of the environment..
Within the most classical theories of psychology, working memory is usually related to what is known as the “G factor”. This would be the component that could explain the differences that exist between people's levels of intelligence, in such a way that individuals with better working memory would have greater mental capacity.
This relationship would have to do with the ability that working memory provides us to manipulate information and use it for highly complex tasks. However, not all experts agree that the level of working memory and intelligence are as directly related as previously thought.
The first theory on working memory was that of Baddeley and Hitch, presented in 1974. In it they discussed the multicomponent model of working memory. The hypothesis proposed that it was a cognitive element that contained three segments: the central executive, the phonological loop, and the articulatory loop..
In this model, the central executive would be in charge of regulating the attention of the other two elements, which would be in charge of manipulating the data collected through the senses or thought. Each of them would be focused on a specific type of task.
On the other hand, the phonological loop aims to store information from sounds and language and prevent its loss by repeating it constantly, in a continuous process that is what gives it its name. For example, in order to remember a phone number in the short term we have to repeat it over and over again until we can dial them.
The other secondary system is the articulatory loop. Its function is to store visual and spatial information, and for example it can be used to build visual images in our mind and manipulate them. Some experts consider that this component can be divided into two subsystems, one in charge of the visual part and the other of the spatial part..
In 2000, Baddeley himself added a fourth component to his theory, known as the episodic buffer. This would be in charge of working with mental representations that include a mixture of types of information; that is, they had visual, auditory, spatial and other elements.
Processing speed is one of the most important cognitive skills, and one of the ones that most determines our results in tasks such as learning, understanding or reasoning. It can be defined as the cognitive element that determines the time it takes for a person to perform a certain mental task.
Processing speed is closely related to the speed with which the individual perceives, processes and reacts to all kinds of stimuli received from their environment and from within, regardless of their nature. Although their scope is not directly related to working memory, both have a very significant impact on psychological performance.
Thus, while processing speed affects how quickly we can manipulate and understand the information we receive from our environment, working memory determines how effectively we can perform these mental tasks. Therefore, they are two of the elements that most determine our levels of general intelligence..
The activity carried out by working memory takes place in specific regions of the brain. Specifically, working memory seems to be associated with the functioning of neocortical areas.
In this sense, in order to start working memory, the activation of the prefrontal cortex is required. This upper brain region is considered essential for storing and manipulating new information in the mind..
The role of the prefrontal cortex in working memory is fundamental, however, multiple studies indicate how the functioning of working memory lies in the interaction between the prefrontal cortex and different areas of the postrolandic cortex.
Thus, working memory does not occur in a single part of the brain. This cognitive construct requires the activation of a specific neuron circuit.
Although working memory is initially activated thanks to the activation of the prefrontal cortex, for it to function properly, other neuroanatomical structures must be activated, such as the temporal lobe and the occipital lobe..
The temporal lobe has been shown to store and manipulate verbal information in the short term. This area of the brain would give rise to the activity of the phonological loop. For its part, the occipital lobe is in charge of processing visual information, so it carries out activities relevant to the viso-spatial agenda..
As we have already seen, working memory is the mental capacity that allows us to keep the information we need in our brain while we complete a specific task. This process is very useful in many situations, including the following:
- Relate two or more elements that apparently have no connection. This occurs, for example, when remembering and relating the data that were mentioned during a discussion to give them coherence.
- Associate a new idea with something that we have already learned in the past. In this way, working memory allows us to expand our knowledge.
- Retain data while we focus on something different. For example, we can prepare the ingredients we need to cook a specific dish while chatting on the phone normally.
Working memory is one of the most important elements of our mind, since it allows us to concentrate on the task we are doing at all times, remember information in the short and medium term, and carry out new learning. However, to this day no way has yet been discovered to train this ability directly.
Even so, various investigations have shown that certain changes in lifestyle and the repetition of some activities can indirectly improve our working memory. The most important are the following:
Resting properly at night has a very positive impact on many areas of life, but one of the most affected by this factor is working memory. Lack of sleep can decrease our ability to retain and manipulate information with it.
Lack of exercise or eating unhealthy foods can worsen our working memory capacity. In extreme cases, what is known as “cognitive fog” may appear, a phenomenon experienced by people who have great difficulty thinking clearly.
For working memory to function properly, we must find ourselves in an environment as free from distracting stimuli as possible. Therefore, if you eliminate everything that takes you out of your task, you will realize that it is much easier for you to concentrate, reason and learn new information..
Yet No Comments