Concepts

Working memory

Keeping information available while using or updating it supports thinking in the moment.

Definition

Working memory is a limited-capacity set of processes that temporarily maintains and updates information relevant to an ongoing task.

How to understand it

An active task may require holding a goal, keeping track of intermediate results and resisting interference. These demands help explain why remembering something briefly is not identical to using it successfully. The concept concerns current accessibility and control, rather than a small permanent storage compartment.

External supports change what a task requires. Writing intermediate results down can reduce the information that must remain internally available. This is a change in task demands, not proof that a person’s underlying capacity has increased. Familiar knowledge can also make some combinations of information easier to handle.

Evidence: (Spielman et al., 2020); (Working Memory, n.d.); (Memory (Encoding, Storage, Retrieval), n.d.)

Following a changing seating plan

Teaching scenario

A fictional event assistant remembers that three guests need to move tables while checking which seats remain available. A new message reverses one move and adds another. Maintaining the current plan and replacing outdated assignments involve working memory. If the assistant writes each change on a visible chart, the task becomes easier to track, but success would not establish an improved general memory capacity. Comparing the same person’s performance with and without the chart illustrates the role of support.

Constructed for learning. This scenario is not a report of an empirical finding or a diagnosis.

Common confusion: Long-term memory

Working memory concerns information currently maintained and used; long-term memory supports retention beyond the immediate task.

Compare working memory and long-term memory

Evidence: (Spielman et al., 2020); (Working Memory, n.d.); (Memory (Encoding, Storage, Retrieval), n.d.)

Limits of the concept

  • Capacity estimates depend on the task, material, prior knowledge and measurement method.
  • Working-memory training on one activity does not automatically imply broad transfer to intelligence.

Evidence: (Spielman et al., 2020); (Working Memory, n.d.); (Memory (Encoding, Storage, Retrieval), n.d.)

Textbook connection

Direct coveragePsychology 2e: 8.1 How Memory Functions

This section directly introduces or explains the concept.

Supplementary concepts may extend beyond this section. The source notes below identify the evidence for those details.

Related concepts

Check understanding · Inspect how psychological evidence is built

Sources and inspection notes

Checked October 21, 2026. An inspection date is not a source publication date. Definitions and scenarios on this page are original teaching explanations.

  1. Memory (encoding, storage, retrieval). (n.d.). https://nobaproject.com/modules/memory-encoding-storage-retrievalSupplementary conceptual evidence

    Academic module by Kathleen B. McDermott and Henry L. Roediger III; accessed module text. Supports memory processes, retrieval cues and distinctions among memory forms. Source checked 21 October 2026.

  2. Spielman, R. M., Jenkins, W. J., & Lovett, M. D. (2020). Psychology 2e. OpenStax. https://openstax.org/books/psychology-2e/pages/8-1-how-memory-functionsIntroductory textbook explanation

    This section directly introduces or explains the concept. Section opened and title verified on 21 October 2026.

  3. Working memory. (n.d.). https://www.nimh.nih.gov/research/research-funded-by-nimh/rdoc/constructs/working-memorySupplementary conceptual evidence

    NIMH research construct definition accessed directly; supports maintenance, updating, capacity and interference control. Source checked 21 October 2026.