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An electrophysiological measure of visual short-term memory capacity within and across hemifields

Delvenne, Jean Francois; Kaddour, Laura A.; Castronovo, Julie

Authors

Jean Francois Delvenne

Laura A. Kaddour



Abstract

Recent electrophysiological research has identified a specific contralateral correlate of the contents of visual short-term memory (VSTM). This posterior contralateral delay activity (CDA) persists during the retention period, and its amplitude is modulated by the number of items held at any one time. Here we show that, despite the contralateral nature of this activity, its amplitude is modulated by the number of objects from both hemifields. When objects from one side of the visual field are held in memory, CDA activity increased for arrays of one, two, and three objects, but stopped getting larger for arrays of four objects. However, when objects from both sides are memorized at the same time, CDA activity reached its asymptotic limit for arrays of two objects per side. These results suggest that, in spite of being contralaterally organized, VSTM is limited by the number of objects from both hemifields.

Citation

Delvenne, J. F., Kaddour, L. A., & Castronovo, J. (2011). An electrophysiological measure of visual short-term memory capacity within and across hemifields. Psychophysiology, 48(3), 333-336. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1469-8986.2010.01079.x

Journal Article Type Article
Acceptance Date May 8, 2010
Online Publication Date Feb 9, 2011
Publication Date 2011-03
Publicly Available Date Mar 28, 2024
Print ISSN 0048-5772
Electronic ISSN 1469-8986
Publisher Wiley
Peer Reviewed Peer Reviewed
Volume 48
Issue 3
Pages 333-336
DOI https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1469-8986.2010.01079.x
Keywords Visual working memory; Visual short-term memory; Capacity limits; Bilateral presentation; CDA; Event-related potentials
Public URL https://hull-repository.worktribe.com/output/409717