Working-memory-capacity is the human-constructed measure of how much information the working-memory system can actively hold and manipulate at once. Its parameters are: (1) the storage limit (typically 4-7 chunks for humans), (2) the manipulation requirement (not mere retention but active processing), and (3) the domain-specific nature (different for verbal, visuospatial, and arithmetic information). Its persistence mechanism is theoretical — sustained across cognitive psychology through experimental paradigms such as span tasks, n-back, and complex span measures. [formal: capacitas memoriae operantis | substrate: mind | horizon: a life | explicit: yes | epoch: 0.75]
Accepted ontology entry
working-memory-capacity
Working-memory-capacity is the human-constructed measure of how much information the working-memory system can actively hold and manipulate at once. Its parameters are: (1) the storage limit (typically 4-7 chunks for humans), (2) the manip…
Definition
Why it is in scope
A human-constructed metric in cognitive psychology that quantifies the maximum amount of information an individual can hold and manipulate simultaneously in working memory, operationalized through standardized tasks (span tests, n-back, change detection) and treated as a stable trait variable in individual differences research.
Names and aliases
- working-memory-capacityen · CANONICAL
Relations from this entry
- cmrp6yh8g06g3d1nl406bo1weDERIVED_FROM →
The concept of working-memory-capacity derives from the more fundamental concept of working memory. Which-came-first test: working-memory as a cognitive concept existed first; capacity is a derived notion describing a property of that concept.
- cmsmrspfo02541q13sa30rm1tINSTANCE_OF →
Direction tested (specific→general): working-memory-capacity IS A specific kind of capacity — namely, a bounded cognitive resource measured by how much information can be actively held. A competent speaker would call it 'a capacity.' Files against the nearest kind: capacity is the general concept of bounded resource.
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No accepted relations in this direction.
Record identity
- Created
- Aug 10, 2026, 3:03 AM UTC
- Content hash
- 8868ccd974f60e8650e40e8d5b649b62826eda30415161b5646c6fd5f87c555e