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(Ed.)
Chunks allow us to use long-term knowledge to efficiently
represent the world in working memory. Most views of
chunking assume that when we use chunks, this results in the
loss of specific perceptual details, since it is presumed the
contents of chunks are decoded from long-term memory rather
than reflecting the exact details of the item that was presented.
However, in two experiments, we find that in situations where
participants make use of chunks to improve visual working
memory, access to instance-specific perceptual detail (that
cannot be retrieved from long-term memory) increased, rather
than decreased. This supports an alternative view: that chunks
facilitate the encoding and retention into memory of perceptual
details as part of structured, hierarchical memories, rather than
serving as mere “content-free” pointers. It also provides a
strong contrast to accounts in which working memory capacity
is assumed to be exhaustively described by the number of
chunks remembered.
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