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The amount of work we can do in working memory – the part of our brain that processes immediate information.
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The amount of work we can do in working memory – the part of our brain that processes immediate information.
Some mental tasks require you to compare a lot of information – for example, choosing a mortgage involves comparing interest rates (now and later), entry and exit charges, time periods, flexibility and other factors. ‘Processing load’ describes the limit to what you can manage. While navigating an unfamiliar city centre, many drivers instinctively switch their radio off – this reduces processing load and frees up cognitive capacity for the main task of driving.
Theories of memory and cognition usually propose a distinction between long-term, short-term and working memory (although the last two are not separate in all theories).1 Working memory has limited capacity, so readers can be helped by consistent information structures, and by splitting information into smaller chunks.
1. Baddeley, A.D., Hitch, G.J.L (1974). Working Memory, in G.A. Bower (Ed.), The psychology of learning and motivation: advances in research and theory (Vol. 8, pp. 47-89), NY: Academic Press.