Working Memory Selectively Modulates Subjective Perception: A Pilot Study

This study aimed to investigate how working memory interacts with perception at the behavioral level. We examined whether working memory modulates subjective perception when the general capacity for perceptual processing is kept constant. This possibility is in part motivated by the neuropsychological phenomenon of blindsight, in which subjective perception and general perceptual capacity are dissociated. To test this, in this pilot study (n = 8), we manipulated the congruency between perceptual and working memory content and examined its effects on sensitivity in a Yes/No (Y/N) detection task. To match perceptual processing capacity across conditions, we titrated stimulus contrast in a two-interval forced choice (2-IFC) task. There was a trend that working memory selectively modulated subjective perception, as measured by detection sensitivity (dₐ) in the Y/N task, even though processing capacity in the 2-IFC task was matched. Specifically, when the working memory content was categorically incongruent with the perceptual stimulus, Y/N sensitivity was selectively impaired. These preliminary findings suggest that working memory modulates subjective perception in ways that are less general than some other manipulations, such as visual masking, which generally impairs both objective and subjective aspects of perception. We hereby treat this preprint as a form of pre-registration, specifying our hypotheses, experimental designs, and analysis methods before examining whether the preliminary results will be confirmed in a larger sample.