Tracking how attentional focusing in working memory benefits long-term memory

Abstract

Human working memory serves as a key gateway to the formation of lasting memories in long–term memory. While it is well established how attentional focusing during working memory can prioritize internal representation for an imminent task, how such internal focusing affects subsequent long–term memory remains less understood. Here, we developed a two–stage visual working memory/long–term memory task in which we cued attention during working memory and tracked the dynamics of attentional deployment through a recently established gaze marker of internal focusing. Across two experiments, we found that attentional focusing in visual working memory reliably affects subsequent visual long–term memory, driven by a benefit to internally attended objects without a cost to unattended objects. Gaze biases associated with internal focusing revealed how this benefit was mediated by the speed – but not necessarily the degree – of attentional deployment, with faster attentional deployment predicting better subsequent memory. Together, these results highlight how attentional focusing in working memory benefits subsequent long–term memory, and uncover the dynamic processes that instill such lasting benefits – offering new insights into the catalyst function of attention in bridging working memory and long–term memory.