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Limitations in one's capacity to encode information in working memory (WM) constrain later access to that information in long-term memory (LTM). The present study examined whether these WM constraints on episodic LTM are limited to specific representations of past episodes or also extend to gist representations. Across three experiments, young adult participants (n = 40 per experiment) studied objects in set sizes of two or six items, either sequentially (Experiments 1a and 1b) or simultaneously (Experiment 2). They then completed old/new recognition tests immediately after each sequence (WM tests). After a long study phase, participants completed LTM conjoint recognition tests, featuring old but untested items from the WM phase, lures that were similar to studied items at gist but not specific levels of representation, and new items unrelated to studied items at both specific and gist levels of representation. Results showed that LTM estimates of specific and gist memory representations from a multinomial-processing-tree model were reduced for items encoded under supra-capacity set sizes (six items) relative to within-capacity set sizes (two items). These results suggest that WM encoding capacity limitations constrain episodic LTM at both specific and gist levels of representation, at least for visual objects. The ability to retrieve from LTM each type of representation for a visual item is contingent on the degree to which the item could be encoded in WM. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Associative binding between components of an episode is vulnerable to forgetting across time. We investigated whether these forgetting effects on inter-item associative memory occur only at specific or also at gist levels of representation. In two experiments, young adult participants (n = 90, and 86, respectively) encoded face–scene pairs and were then tested either immediately after encoding or following a 24-hour delay. Tests featured conjoint recognition judgments, in which participants were tasked with discriminating intact pairs from highly similar foils, less similar foils, and completely dissimilar foils. In both experiments, the 24-hour delay resulted in deficits in specific memory for face–scene pairs, as measured using multinomial-processing-tree analyses. In Experiment 1, gist memory was not affected by the 24-hour delay, but when associative memory was strengthened through pair repetition (Experiment 2), deficits in gist memory following a 24-hour delay were observed. Results suggest that specific representations of associations in episodic memory, and under some conditions gist representations, as well, are susceptible to forgetting across time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Two meta-analyses assessed whether the relations between reading and mathematics outcomes could be explained through overlapping skills (e.g., systems for word and fact retrieval) or domain-general influences (e.g., top-down attentional control). The first (378 studies, 1,282,796 participants) included weighted random-effects meta-regression models to explore and contrast the magnitudes of the links between different reading and mathematical competencies. The second (138 studies, 39,836 participants) used meta-analytic structural equation modeling to determine the influence of a domain-general factor, defined by intelligence, executive functioning, working and short-term memory, and processing speed measures, on the link between reading and mathematics skills. The overall relation was significant (r=0.52), as were all associations between specific reading and mathematics measures (rs = 0.23 to 0.61, ps<.05). Most of the correlations were similar across different types of reading and mathematics competencies, although generally smaller than within-domain correlations. The domain-general model explained most of the covariance between reading and mathematics outcomes, with a few modest moderating effects (e.g., age). The results imply correlations between reading and mathematics measures are largely due to domain-general processes, although within-domain correlations confirm the importance of overlapping competencies especially for reading. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Effects of divided attention (DA) during encoding on later memory performance are widely documented. However, the precise nature of these effects on underlying memory representations and subsequent retrieval processes has not been thoroughly investigated. Here, we examined whether DA at encoding would disrupt young adults' ability to remember associations in episodic memory at highly specific levels of representation (i.e., verbatim memory), or whether the effects of DA extend also to gist memory for associations. Two groups of participants (one under full attention, one under DA) studied face–scene pairs. The DA group simultaneously completed an auditory choice reaction-time task during encoding. Following either a short or long delay, participants were tested on their ability to discriminate intact face–scene pairs from recombined pairs that were either highly similar, less similar, or completely unrelated to originally studied pairs. The DA group performed more poorly than the full attention participants at correctly classifying most types of test pairs at both delays, and results from a multinomial-processing-tree model demonstrated that participants who encoded associations under DA experienced deficits in both specific and gist memory retrieval. We also compared the DA group to full attention older adults who were tested with the same paradigm (Greene & Naveh-Benjamin, Psychological Science, 31[3], 316–331, 2020). The DA group had lower estimates of gist retrieval than the older adults but similar estimates of verbatim memory. These results suggest that DA at encoding disrupts episodic memories at multiple levels of representation, in contrast to age-related effects, which are restricted only to the highest levels of specificity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Relative to younger adults, older adults tend to perform more poorly on tests of both free recall and item recognition memory. The age difference in performance is typically larger for recall tasks relative to those involving recognition. However, there have been reports of comparable age-related differences in free recall and item recognition performance. Further, a differential performance cost does not necessarily mean that processes involved in recall are specifically affected by age. Here we present a meta-analysis of 36 articles reporting 89 direct comparisons of free recall and item recognition in younger and older groups of participants. Standardized effect sizes reveal that age differences are larger for recall tasks (Hedges' g = 0.89, 95% confidence intervals [0.75, 1.03]) than for recognition tasks (0.54, [0.37, 0.72]). Further, Brinley analyses of the data suggest that distinct functions are needed to relate younger and older performance for the two tasks. These functions differ in intercept pointing to a disproportionate age difference in recall relative to recognition. This is in line with theories of memory and aging which posit specific deficits in processes related to search and retrieval from memory. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]