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The underlying mechanism for the connection between visual long-term memory and visual working memory

ZHANG Yin¹, LIANG Teng-Fei¹, CHEN Jiang-Tao¹, YE Chao-Xiong^1,2, LIU Qiang^1,*

¹Research Center of Brain and Cognitive Neuroscience, Liaoning Normal University, Dalian 116029, China；²Department of Psychology, University of Jyvaskyla, Jyväskylä 40014, Finland

Abstract

Visual memory, mainly composed of visual long-term memory (VLTM) and visual working memory (VWM), is an important mechanism of human information storage. Since Baddeley proposed the multicomponent working memory model, the idea that VWM is independent of the VLTM system has been widely accepted. However, the new theoretical evidence suggested a close connection between VLTM and VWM. For instance, the three embedded components model describes the VLTM and VWM in the same framework, which suggests that VWM is only a distinct state of VLTM. On the one hand, the operating function of VWM is supported by the persistence of VLTM. On the other hand, the evidence from neuroimaging studies shows that VWM and VLTM tasks activate some same brain areas. In addition, the whole visual memory system shows a trend of processing from early visual cortex to prefrontal cortex. The present article not only reviews the current studies about the relationship between VLTM and VWM but also gives some forecasts for future studies.

Key words: visual long-term memory; visual working memory; medial temporal lobe; the focus of attention

Received: 2018-05-16　　Accepted: 2018-10-08

Corresponding author: 刘强　　E-mail: lq780614@163.com

DOI: 10.13294/j.aps.2018.0093

Citing This Article：

ZHANG Yin, LIANG Teng-Fei, CHEN Jiang-Tao, YE Chao-Xiong, LIU Qiang. The underlying mechanism for the connection between visual long-term memory and visual working memory. Acta Physiol Sin 2019; 71 (1): 62-72 (in Chinese with English abstract).