A Study on the Error Occurrence and Human Information Processing Time Influenced by the Fluctuation of Working Memory Resource Capacity

• Published in: International journal of cognitive ergonomics Vol. 5; no. 2; pp. 91 - 109
• Main Authors: Karashima, Mitsuhiko, Saito, Murako
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Inc 01.06.2001
• ISSN: 1088-6362; 1532-7566
• DOI: 10.1207/S15327566IJCE0502_1

This article focuses on the variations of the human information processing (HIP) performance, error occurrence, and HIP time that occurred under the constraints of working memory. The characteristics of the variations were analyzed by carrying out 2 experiments. It was revealed in Experiment 1 that the variation of the error occurrence existed and the time series of the error occurrence had the characteristic fluctuation of 1/f in all subjects even though the experimental conditions and the protocol for each subject were fixed. It was also revealed in Experiment 2 that the variation of the HIP time in the working memory existed and the time series of the HIP time in the working memory had the characteristic fluctuation of 1/f 0 in all subjects even though the experimental conditions and the protocol for each subject were fixed. It was difficult to explain these variations and the characteristic fluctuations of the performance by the experimental conditions as well as by applying the precedent concept on the working memory resource capacity of the conventional working memory models. In the new theoretical hypothesis, called FLuctuation Of Working Memory (FLOWM), it was proposed that the working memory resource capacity had 1/f 0 fluctuation. It was revealed in Experiments 1 and 2 that the variations of the error occurrence and the HIP time and 1/f 0 fluctuation of the HIP time could be explained without any contradiction by applying FLOWM. Through the experiments and by conducting the simulation it was also revealed that 1/f fluctuation of the error occurrence could be explained by applying FLOWM.