title: Grouping and binding in visual short-term memory.
abstract: Findings of 2 experiments are reported that challenge the current understanding of visual short-term memory (VSTM). In both experiments, a single study display, containing 6 colored shapes, was presented briefly and then probed with a single colored shape. At stake is how VSTM retains a record of different objects that share common features: In the 1st experiment, 2 study items sometimes shared a common feature (either a shape or a color). The data revealed a color sharing effect, in which memory was much better for items that shared a common color than for items that did not. The 2nd experiment showed that the size of the color sharing effect depended on whether a single pair of items shared a common color or whether 2 pairs of items were so defined-memory for all items improved when 2 color groups were presented. In explaining performance, an account is advanced in which items compete for a fixed number of slots, but then memory recall for any given stored item is prone to error. A critical assumption is that items that share a common color are stored together in a slot as a chunk. The evidence provides further support for the idea that principles of perceptual organization may determine the manner in which items are stored in VSTM.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, University of York, York, United Kingdom. philip.quinlan@york.ac.uk
authors.forename: Philip T
authors.initials: PT
authors.lastname: Quinlan
authors.forename: Dale J
authors.initials: DJ
authors.lastname: Cohen
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D003118:Color Perception / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D005793:Generalization, Psychological; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008570:Memory, Short-Term / Q000502:physiology*; D010364:Pattern Recognition, Visual / Q000502:physiology*; D010775:Photic Stimulation; D012718:Set, Psychology; D055815:Young Adult