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Dynamics of motor code formation in working memory

Poster Session B - Sunday, March 8, 2026, 8:00 – 10:00 am PDT, Fairview/Kitsilano Ballroom

Şahcan Özdemir^1,2 (), Nursena Ataseven^1,2, Wouter Kruijne², Elkan Akyurek², Daniel Schneider¹; ¹Leibniz Research Centre for Working Environment and Human Factors, ²University of Groningen

Working memory (WM) maintains information to guide adaptive behavior, preparing required action plans as motor codes based on its contents. In this EEG study, we investigated how the formation of motor codes from sensory information is influenced by affordances, selective attention, and task demands. Participants performed a delayed-match-to-sample task in which they memorized two simultaneously presented orientations and later reported them in cued order. Response preparation was made possible for either the first or second report, through blockwise instructions. Results showed that affordances alone did not trigger motor preparation until cue presentation: Even when both stimuli only allowed selection of the same response hand, we observed no lateralized centro-parietal mu/beta activity prior to the cue, suggesting the absence of motor preparation, and indicating that task demands shape how items are supported in WM. We also found evidence of motor preparation related to the probes that doesn’t allow response preparation by instruction. This suggests that affordances can still be a supporting factor for WM. Furthermore, on trials where it was possible to prepare a response for the second probe, we found no posterior alpha power lateralization associated with the re-focusing of attention after the first probe. This supports the assumption that WM relies more strongly on prospective motor codes when sensory information is not prioritized and the of prospective action is sufficient. Overall, our results indicate that the relative contribution of affordances and selective attention in forming motor codes within WM is shaped by task requirements.

Topic Area: EXECUTIVE PROCESSES: Working memory