Further Evidence for Temporal Decay in Working Memory

The sources of forgetting in working memory are a matter of intense debate: is there a time-related decay of memory traces or is forgetting uniquely due to representation-based interference? In a previous study, we claimed to have provided evidence supporting the temporal decay hypothesis (Portrat, Barrouillet, & Camos, 2008). However, reanalyzing our data, Lewandowsky and Oberauer (2009) demonstrated that they do not provide compelling evidence for temporal decay, and suggested a class of alternative models favoring a representation-based interference account. In this article, we develop from the most recent proposals made by these authors two of the most plausible extensions of these alternative models. We show that none of these extensions can account for recent findings related to between-domain working memory performance, and that both lead to predictions that are contradicted by new empirical evidence. Finally, we show that recent studies that have been claimed to rule out the temporal decay hypothesis do not resist close scrutiny. We conclude that the TBRS model remains the most parsimonious way to account for forgetting and restoration of memory traces in working memory. ha l-0 07 98 38 1, v er si on 1 8 M ar 2 01 3