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The relation between working memory and attention
Author
Yeo, Jan Poh Hong
Supervisor
Lee, Kerry
Abstract
Controlled attention - the executive control capability recruited to combat interference - drives the working memory system, and both working memory and attention have been closely linked to higher order cognition (Kane & Engle, 2002). This study investigated the relation between working memory and attention. Fifty-six pupils, averaging 9 years and 10 months, were administered the Listening Recall subtest from the Working Memory Test Battery for Children (WMTB-C), and the Attention Network Test (ANT). Responses on the Listening Recall were recorded as spans and correct number of trials. On the ANT, three separate indexes were generated by combining cue reaction time and flanker types, and comparing no-cue/no flanker reference conditions with those involving cue/flanker types. None of the attention networks correlated with working memory capacity, defying the notion that attentional capabilities drive working memory capacity. It is argued that differences in the demands of goal maintenance on the two experimental tasks masked a correlation between working memory and attention.
Date Issued
2009
Call Number
BF723.M4 Yeo
Date Submitted
2009