Open AccessThe visual arrays task: Visual storage capacity or attention control?
Author(s) -
Jessie Martin,
Jason S. Tsukahara,
Christopher Draheim,
Zach Shipstead,
Cody A. Mashburn,
Edward K. Vogel,
Randall W. Engle
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
journal of experimental psychology. general
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.521
H-Index - 161
eISSN - 1939-2222
pISSN - 0096-3445
DOI - 10.1037/xge0001048
Subject(s) - task (project management) , visual search , control (management) , computer science , visual memory , psycinfo , cognitive psychology , working memory , visual perception , extant taxon , psychology , cognition , artificial intelligence , perception , neuroscience , engineering , medline , evolutionary biology , law , political science , biology , systems engineering
Extant literature suggests that performance on visual arrays tasks reflects limited-capacity storage of visual information. However, there is also evidence to suggest that visual arrays task performance reflects individual differences in controlled processing. The purpose of this study is to empirically evaluate the degree to which visual arrays tasks are more closely related to memory storage capacity or measures of attention control. To this end, we conducted new analyses on a series of large data sets that incorporate various versions of a visual arrays task. Based on these analyses, we suggest that the degree to which the visual arrays is related to memory storage ability or effortful attention control may be task-dependent. Specifically, when versions of the task require participants to ignore elements of the target display, individual differences in controlled attention reliably provide unique predictive value. Therefore, at least some versions of the visual arrays tasks can be used as valid indicators of individual differences in attention control. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).