Predicting visual memory across images and within individuals

Wakeland-Hart, Cheyenne D.; Cao, Steven; deBettencourt, Megan T.; Bainbridge, Wilma A.; Rosenberg, Monica D.

doi:10.1016/j.cognition.2022.105201

Cited by 31 publications

(36 citation statements)

References 41 publications

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“…Critically, we also observed a strong correlation between the most recognized objects across the first two experiments, indicating that in independent samples, the objects most likely to be correctly remembered remained reliable. This is consistent with a number of recent studies in long-term memory, which indicate that certain stimuli (e.g., photographs, faces) are highly memorable, and are consistently remembered across individuals, whereas other stimuli are much more forgettable (Bainbridge et al, 2013;Wakeland-Hart et al, 2022). Our results indicate that the property of memorability also extends to visual working memory -at least for real-world objects.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 92%

“…Recent studies have also demonstrated that some stimuli are intrinsically more memorable than others. That is, in studies of visual objects and faces, some items are consistently more likely to be remembered than others (Bainbridge et al, 2013;Wakeland-Hart et al, 2022), a property referred to as memorability.…”

Section: Not All Objects Are Created Equal: Greater Visual Working Me...mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The results of Experiments 1 and 2 suggest that greater working memory performance for real world objects may be due to greater memorability, as indicated by the greater rates of recollection and high-confidence responses compared to colors or scrambled objects. It is possible, however, that not all objects contribute to this effect; that is, past studies have demonstrated that some objects and faces are highly memorable across individuals, whereas others are more "forgettable" (Bainbridge et al, 2013;Wakeland-Hart et al, 2022).…”

Section: Memorability Analysismentioning

confidence: 99%

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Not all objects are created equal: the object benefit in visual working memory is supported by greater recollection-like memory, but only for memorable objects

Torres¹,

Duprey²,

Molokwu³

et al. 2023

Preprint

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Visual working memory is thought to have a fixed capacity limit. However, recent evidence suggests that capacity is greater for real-world objects compared to simple features (i.e., colors). Here, we examined whether greater working memory for objects was due to greater memorability. In online samples of young adults, real-world objects were better remembered than colors, which was attributed to a higher proportion of high-confidence responses (Exp 1). Memory performance for objects was also improved compared to their scrambled counterparts (Exp 2), indicating that this benefit is unrelated to visual complexity. Critically, the specific objects that were likely to be remembered with high confidence were highly correlated across experiments, consistent with the idea that some objects are more memorable than others. Object memorability also predicted memory performance between objects within a display (Exp 3). These findings suggest that the object benefit in working memory may be supported by stimulus memorability.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 92%

Section: Not All Objects Are Created Equal: Greater Visual Working Me...mentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Memorability Analysismentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Not all objects are created equal: the object benefit in visual working memory is supported by greater recollection-like memory, but only for memorable objects

Torres¹,

Duprey²,

Molokwu³

et al. 2023

Preprint

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…For example, for scene and face images, there are low or no correlations between true image memorability and what people think they will remember 15 , 23 , indicating that memorability is dissociable from individualized inferences about memorability. Other work has shown that an individual’s current attentional state and image memorability are independent and non-interacting predictors of memory 45 . Furthermore, neuroimaging work has identified separable patterns in the brain for stimulus memorability and markers of memory in a given individual 16 , 23 .…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Item memorability has no influence on value-based decisions

Bainbridge

Bakkour

2022

Sci Rep

Self Cite

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While making decisions, we often rely on past experiences to guide our choices. However, not all experiences are remembered equally well, and some elements of an experience are more memorable than others. Thus, the intrinsic memorability of past experiences may bias our decisions. Here, we hypothesized that individuals would tend to choose more memorable options than less memorable ones. We investigated the effect of item memorability on choice in two experiments. First, using food images, we found that the same items were consistently remembered, and others consistently forgotten, across participants. However, contrary to our hypothesis, we found that participants did not prefer or choose the more memorable over the less memorable items when choice options were matched for the individuals’ valuation of the items. Second, we replicated these findings in an alternate stimulus domain, using words that described the same food items. These findings suggest that stimulus memorability does not play a significant role in determining choice based on subjective value.

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“…Sustained attention research offers a way to measure moment-by-moment fluctuations in attention (Robertson et al, 1997;Sarter et al, 2001;Smallwood & Schooler, 2006;Esterman et al, 2013;Rosenberg et al, 2013;deBettencourt et al, 2015;Rosenberg et al, 2017;deBettencourt et al, 2018;Fortenbaugh et al, 2018;Esterman & Rothlein, 2019;Decker et al, 2020;Elshiekh & Rajah, 2021;Wakeland-Hart et al, 2022). One type of task, the gradual onset continuous performance task (gradCPT), uses reaction time (RT) variability to index moment-by-moment fluctuations: trials with higher RT variability constitute "out of the zone" attentional states, while trials with lower RT variability reflect "in the zone" attentional states.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%