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Sequential vs. Simultaneous Encoding and Spatial vs. Temporal Retro-Cueing: Dissociating Working Memory Access Mechanisms

Poster Session E - Monday, March 9, 2026, 2:30 – 4:30 pm PDT, Fairview/Kitsilano Ballroom

Juan Pablo Abril Ronderos¹ (), Marisol Lamprea Rodríguez; ¹National University of Colombia

A current debate in working memory research concerns whether spatial and temporal information processing rely on shared or distinct neural mechanisms. Traditional models propose separate systems with spatial processing engaging parietal networks and temporal processing recruiting frontal regions. However, recent evidence suggests both may be encoded through a unified sequence generator mechanism. Retro-cuing paradigms provide an ideal tool to test these competing hypotheses by examining whether accessing information through spatial versus symbolic cues engages different attentional control mechanisms. Four experiments examined whether stimulus presentation format (sequential vs. simultaneous letter arrays) and retro-cue type (spatial vs. symbolic) engage shared neural mechanisms. Two behavioral experiments (n=30 each) tested sequential versus simultaneous presentations with no-cue, single-cue, and dual-cue trials. Two complementary EEG experiments (n=30 each) employed multivariate pattern analysis to decode cue type and validity, plus cross-experiment decoding to examine presentation format effects and time-frequency analysis testing alpha synchronization and theta-gamma coupling mechanisms. Behavioral experiments reveal equivalent retro-cue benefits for both presentation formats, with improved response times but no accuracy differences and no interaction between stimulus presentation and cue type, suggesting shared prioritization mechanisms. Ongoing EEG analyses will test whether valid spatial and symbolic cues engage similar attentional mechanisms, whether cross-experiment decoding reveals format-specific neural signatures, whether alpha oscillations show differential suppression patterns, and whether theta-alpha coupling demonstrates similar cross-frequency interactions supporting unified mechanisms versus distinct coupling patterns supporting separate systems.

Topic Area: EXECUTIVE PROCESSES: Working memory