Open AccessThe contribution of working memory to divided attention
Author(s) -
Santangelo Valerio,
Macaluso Emiliano
Publication year - 2013
Publication title -
human brain mapping
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.005
H-Index - 191
eISSN - 1097-0193
pISSN - 1065-9471
DOI - 10.1002/hbm.21430
Subject(s) - working memory , psychology , intraparietal sulcus , object (grammar) , hum , cognitive psychology , task (project management) , selection (genetic algorithm) , object based , neuroscience , cognition , computer science , artificial intelligence , posterior parietal cortex , management , economics , art , performance art , art history
Previous studies have indicated that increasing working memory (WM) load can affect the attentional selection of signals originating from one object/location. Here we assessed whether WM load affects also the selection of multiple objects/locations (divided attention). Participants monitored either two object‐categories (vs. one category; object‐based divided attention) or two locations (vs. one location; space‐based divided attention) while maintaining in WM either a variable number of objects (object‐based WM load) or locations (space‐based WM load). Behavioural results showed that WM load affected attentional performance irrespective of divided or focused attention. However, fMRI results showed that the activity associated with object‐based divided attention increased linearly with increasing object‐based WM load in the left and right intraparietal sulcus (IPS); while, in the same areas, activity associated with space‐based divided attention was not affected by any type of WM load. These findings support the hypothesis that WM contributes to the maintenance of resource‐demanding attentional sets in a domain‐specific manner. Moreover, the dissociable impact of WM load on performance and brain activity suggests that increased IPS activation reflects a recruitment of additional, domain‐specific processing resources that enable dual‐task performance under conditions of high WM load and high attentional demand. Hum Brain Mapp, 2013. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.