Abstract
Previous research assumes that executive functions such as inhibition, shifting, and updating explain individual differences in cognitive abilities. Of these three executive functions, updating was previously found to relate most strongly to fluid intelligence. However, this relationship could be a methodological artifact: Measures of inhibition and shifting usually isolate the contribution of this executive function to performance by contrasting conditions with high and low demands on these processes, whereas updating is measured by overall accuracy in working memory tasks involving updating. This updating measure conflates updating-specific individual differences (e.g., removal of outdated information) with variance in working memory maintenance. Reanalyzing data (N = 111) from von Bastian et al. (2016), we separated updating-specific variance from working memory maintenance variance. Updating contributed only 15% to individual differences in performance in the updating tasks, and it correlated neither with fluid intelligence nor with independent working memory measures reflecting storage and processing or relational integration. In contrast, the working memory maintenance component of the updating task correlated with both abilities. These findings challenge the view that updating contributes to variance in higher cognitive abilities. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).
Highlights
Author Note: Correspondence regarding this article should be addressed to Gidon T
We decomposed the common variance of the three updating tasks into two components of variance: (a) individual differences in working memory (WM) maintenance vs. (b) individual differences related to updating-specific variance
WM maintenance is captured in a Maintenance factor estimated from trials without updating demands
Summary
Author Note: Correspondence regarding this article should be addressed to Gidon T. Updating is the executive function (EF) previously found to most strongly relate to higher cognitive abilities such as reasoning. This relationship could be a methodological artifact: Measures of other EFs (i.e., inhibition and shifting) usually isolate the contribution of EF, whereas updating is measured by overall accuracy in working memory (WM) tasks involving updating. This updating accuracy-score conflates updating-specific individual differences (e.g., removal of outdated information) with variance in WM maintenance. Updating refers to replacing outdated information in working memory (WM) by new, more relevant information
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