Sensory Input Matching Visual Working Memory Guides Internal Prioritization

Abstract

Adaptive behavior necessitates the prioritization of the most relevant information in the environment (external) and in memory (internal). Internal prioritization is known to guide the selection of external sensory input, but the reverse may also be possible: Does the environment guide the prioritization of memorized material? Here we addressed whether reappearing sensory input matching visual working memory (VWM) facilitates the prioritization of other non-reappearing memorized items. Participants (total n = 72) memorized three orientations. Crucially some, but not all, items maintained in VWM were made available again in the environment. These reappearing items never had to be reproduced later. Experiment 1 showed that the reappearance of all but one memory item benefited accuracy and speed to the same extent as a spatial retro cue. This shows that reappearing memory-matching items allow for the dynamic prioritization of another non-reappearing memorized item. What aspects of the reappearing sensory input drive this effect? Experiment 2 demonstrated that prioritization was facilitated most if reappearing items matched VWM content in terms of both location and orientation. Sensory input fully matching VWM is likely processed more efficiently, possibly leading to stronger prioritization of other memory content. We showed the robustness of our findings in Experiment 3. We propose that the link between sensory processing and VWM is bidirectional: internal representations guide the processing of sensory input, which in turn facilitates the prioritization of other VWM content to subserve adaptive behavior.