The Relationship Between Divided Attention and Memory Processing: A Meta-Analysis

  • XIAO Jingjing ,
  • CHEN Dengshui ,
  • ZHANG Jinkun
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  • School of Psychology, Fujian Normal University, Fuzhou 350117

Received date: 2022-01-03

  Online published: 2023-05-18

Abstract

The use of smart devices intensifies the possibility of learners’ divided attention, but the results on the effects of divided attention on cognitive processing are varied. To explore the effects of divided attention on memory and to examine the boundary conditions of divided attention, a meta-analysis of 45 retrieved articles was performed by using a random effects model. On the results of recognition, cue recall and free recall, 17(1816), 12(1642), and 29(3802) independent effects were generated, respectively. The results showed that divided attention significantly reduced the performance on recognition (g = -0.52), cued recall (g = -0.50), and free recall (g = -0.87). Moderator analysis found that participants performed better in picture-learning than in text-learning on cue-recall, scored higher in retrieval-initiating divided attention than encoding-initiating divided attention on free recall, and were superior on explicit memory in both cue-recall and free recall. The results indicate that the effect of divided attention reduces memory, however, it is moderated by divided-attention initiated phase, material type and memory type.

Cite this article

XIAO Jingjing , CHEN Dengshui , ZHANG Jinkun . The Relationship Between Divided Attention and Memory Processing: A Meta-Analysis[J]. Studies of Psychology and Behavior, 2023 , 21(2) : 200 -208 . DOI: 10.12139/j.1672-0628.2023.02.008

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