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working memory

working memory

3 4.4
The mind holds and uses information for a short time to solve problems
  • noun
  • /ˈwɜrkɪŋ ˈmɛməri/
  • Specialized
translation icon : memoria de trabajo
  • Rehearsal strategies are designed to enhance interaction with the stimulus in short-term or working memory.
  • working memory capacity
  • role of working memory
  • working memory load

So reducing the process of thinking to working memory access is tricky.

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Examples

  • The cognitive domains were attention, long-term memory, planning, processing speed, working memory, and visual-spatial processing.

    Academic text (2013)
  • Older students rely on a variety of skills, including oral language, working memory, executive function, and processing speed, to read efficiently.

    Academic text (2013)
  • What we might think of as working memory, that is knowledge that is currently in an active state.

  • So reducing the process of thinking to working memory access is tricky.

  • And it had also some knock on effects in improvements to their working memory and to their sustained attention.

  • I would say they're signs of a working memory problem.

  • We don't have very much working memory, you know.

  • Dual-task methods were used to assess the role of working memory components.

    Academic text (2002)
  • Rehearsal and active processing must occur for information to pass from working memory to long-term memory.

    Academic text (1997)
  • Rehearsal and active processing must occur for information to pass from working memory to long-term memory.

How Long

long-term memory
  • Specialized
7 3.7
STM
  • Specialized
1 6.1
working memory
  • Specialized
3 4.4

Surface Forms

Morphology

working + memory

The term is partly compositional — 'working' + 'memory' suggests a kind of memory in operation — but the technical sense (temporary storage plus active manipulation for cognitive tasks) is not fully predictable from the plain words. Although many languages use an equivalent compound (e.g. Spanish 'memoria de trabajo', French 'mémoire de travail'), the specialized, process-oriented nuance makes it only partially transparent to a B1 learner.

Etymology

Working memory paints a simple picture of a small desk: working means doing a task and memory means what you keep. Imagine putting papers on that desk while you work so you can read and use them quickly, so the phrase means 'holding and using information for a short time'.