Effects of asynchronous ending and number size of moving dots on the estimation of the number of dots that moved.

Abstract

Because of the limitation of working memory processing, it is important to free up working memory. To examine forgetting of working memory through perceived cues, an experiment was conducted in which multiple dots were presented on the screen for a short time and a subset was moved. Participants were asked to estimate the number of dots that moved. The preceding studies revealed that the estimated number was smaller where motions of dots ended asynchronously than where motions ended synchronously. The present experiment compared two conditions with large and small numbers of moving dots to examine the strategy participants used to estimate the number of dots moved. Thirty-seven participants were randomly assigned to one of these conditions. In both conditions, underestimation was shown, indicating no effect of the strategy. These results suggest that forgetting in working memory is related to endings of motion and event segmentation.