Neuroscientists have suggested this resource could be neural activity, with different parts of the remembered information having varying amounts of activity devoted to them, depending on current priorities.Ī different theoretical approach instead argues that the capacity limit arises because different items will interfere with each other in memory.Īnd of course memories decay over time, though rehearsing the information that’s in working memory seems to mitigate that process. Depending on your goals, different parts of the remembered information can receive different amounts of resource. Research has shown that the number of bits that can be held in memory can depend on the type of item-flavors of ice cream on offer versus digits of pi.Īn alternative theory suggests working memory acts as a continuous resource that’s shared across all remembered information. These could be digits, letters, words or other units.

Many suggest that working memory can store a limited number of “items” or “chunks” of information. But researchers debate the nature of this limit. How much working memory do we have?Ĭapacity is limited-we can keep only a certain amount of information “in mind” at any one time. Here’s a snapshot of where the research stands currently. Psychologists and neuroscientists focus on different aspects as they investigate working memory: Psychologists try to map out the functions of the system, while neuroscientists focus more on its neural underpinnings. Given its central role in our mental life, and the fact that we are conscious of at least some of its contents, working memory may become important in our quest to understand consciousness itself. It correlates with many more general abilities and outcomes-things like intelligence and scholastic attainment-and is linked to basic sensory processes. Researchers believe working memory is central to the functioning of the mind. It’s for things that are important to you in the present moment, but not 20 years from now. It’s the ability to hold and manipulate information in mind, over brief intervals.

When you need to remember a phone number, a shopping list or a set of instructions, you rely on what psychologists and neuroscientists refer to as working memory. The following essay is reprinted with permission from The Conversation, an online publication covering the latest research.

Working memory