Author(s)

Wang Yifan ¹

Affiliation(s)

¹ School of Humanities, Southeast University, Jiangsu, Nanjing, 210000, China

Corresponding Author

Wang Yifan

ABSTRACT

Working memory (WM) is a limited-capacity system responsible for the temporary storage and manipulation of information, and it is intricately linked to a broad range of higher-order cognitive functions. Given its central role in cognition, researchers have sought to enhance WM performance through training programs. While several studies report near and far-transfer effects to untrained cognitive domains such as fluid intelligence, attention, and inhibition, others raise doubts about the generalizability and longevity of such benefits. This paper critically examines empirical findings on the cognitive effects of WM training, evaluates methodological limitations in existing research, and discusses theoretical frameworks such as process-overlap theory. By reviewing controversies surrounding transfer effects, sample sizes, and experimental control, we argue that although current evidence remains inconclusive, WM training holds potential as a tool to enhance cognitive efficiency. Future research should prioritize rigorous experimental design, long-term follow-ups, and replication studies with larger samples to clarify the real-world impact of WM training.

KEYWORDS

Working Memory; WM; WM Training; Transfer Effects

CITE THIS PAPER

Wang Yifan, The Cognitive Effects of Working Memory Training. Applied & Educational Psychology (2025) Vol. 6: 53-61. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.23977/appep.2025.060308.

REFERENCES

[1] Kovacs, K., & Conway, A. R. (2016). Process overlap theory: A unified account of the general factor of intelligence. Psychological Inquiry, 27(3), 151-177.
[2] Jaeggi, S. M., Buschkuehl, M., Jonides, J., & Perrig, W. J. (2008). Improving fluid intelligence with training on working memory. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 105(19), 6829-6833.
[3] Klingberg, T., Fernell, E., Olesen, P. J., Johnson, M., Gustafsson, P., Dahlström, K., ... & Westerberg, H. (2005). Computerized training of working memory in children with ADHD-a randomized, controlled trial. Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, 44(2), 177-186.
[4] Klingberg, T., Forssberg, H., & Westerberg, H. (2002). Training of working memory in children with ADHD. Journal of clinical and experimental neuropsychology, 24(6), 781-791.
[5] Melby-Lervåg, M., Redick, T., & Hulme, C. (2016). Working Memory Training Does Not Improve Performance on Measures of Intelligence or Other Measures of “Far Transfer”: Evidence From a Meta-Analytic Review. Perspectives on Psychological Science, 11(4), 512-534.
[6] Bastian, C., Langer, C., Jäncke, N., & Oberauer, L. (2013). Effects of working memory training in young and old adults. Memory & Cognition, 41(4), 611-624. 
[7] Moriya, J. (2019). Visual-Working-Memory Training Improves Both Quantity and Quality. Journal of Cognitive Enhancement, 3(2), 221-232.
[8] Melby-Lervåg, M., & Hulme, C. (2013). Is working memory training effective? A meta-analytic review. Developmental psychology, 49(2), 270.
[9] Thorell, L. B., Lindqvist, S., Bergman Nutley, S., Bohlin, G., & Klingberg, T. (2009). Training and transfer effects of executive functions in preschool children. Developmental science, 12(1), 106-113.
[10] Dahlin, E., Neely, A. S., Larsson, A., Bäckman, L., & Nyberg, L. (2008). Transfer of learning after updating training mediated by the striatum. Science, 320(5882), 1510-1512.
[11] Kane, M. J., Hambrick, D. Z., & Conway, A. R. (2005). Working memory capacity and fluid intelligence are strongly related constructs: Comment on Ackerman, Beier, and Boyle (2005).
[12] De Simoni, C., & Von Bastian, C. (2018). Working Memory Updating and Binding Training: Bayesian Evidence Supporting the Absence of Transfer. Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, 147(6), 829-858.
[13] Melby-Lervåg, M., & Hulme, C. (2016). There is no convincing evidence that working memory training is effective: A reply to Au et al.(2014) and Karbach and Verhaeghen (2014). Psychonomic Bulletin & Review, 23(1), 324-330.
[14] Redick, T., Shipstead, Z., Harrison, T., Hicks, K., Fried, D., Hambrick, D., . . . Engle, R. (2013). No Evidence of Intelligence Improvement After Working Memory Training: A Randomized, Placebo-Controlled Study. Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, 142(2), 359-379.
[15] Redick, T. S., Shipstead, Z., Harrison, T. L., Hicks, K. L., Fried, D. E., Hambrick, D. Z., ... & Engle, R. W. (2013). No evidence of intelligence improvement after working memory training: a randomized, placebo-controlled study. Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, 142(2), 359.
[16] Guye, S., & Von Bastian, C. C. (2017). Working memory training in older adults: Bayesian evidence supporting the absence of transfer. Psychology and aging, 32(8), 732.
[17] Melby-Lervåg, M., Redick, T., & Hulme, C. (2016). Working Memory Training Does Not Improve Performance on Measures of Intelligence or Other Measures of “Far Transfer”: Evidence From a Meta-Analytic Review. Perspectives on Psychological Science, 11(4), 512-534.
[18] Rapport, M. D., Orban, S. A., Kofler, M. J., & Friedman, L. M. (2013). Do programs designed to train working memory, other executive functions, and attention benefit children with ADHD? A meta-analytic review of cognitive, academic, and behavioral outcomes. Clinical psychology review, 33(8), 1237-1252. 
[19] Meiran, N., Dreisbach, G., & Von Bastian, C. (2019). Mechanisms of working memory training: Insights from individual differences. Intelligence, 73, 78-87.
[20] Harrison, T. L., Shipstead, Z., Hicks, K. L., Hambrick, D. Z., Redick, T. S., & Engle, R. W. (2013). Working memory training may increase working memory capacity but not fluid intelligence. Psychological Science, 24(12), 2409-2419.
[21] Gallant, S. N. (2016). Mindfulness meditation practice and executive functioning: Breaking down the benefit. Consciousness and cognition, 40, 116-130.
[22] Sala, G., Tatlidil, K. S., & Gobet, F. (2018). Video game training does not enhance cognitive ability: A comprehensive meta-analytic investigation. Psychological bulletin, 144(2), 111.
[23] Klingberg, T. (2010). Training and plasticity of working memory. Trends in cognitive sciences, 14(7), 317-324.
[24] Guye, S., De Simoni, C., & von Bastian, C. C. (2017). Do individual differences predict change in cognitive training performance? A latent growth curve modeling approach. Journal of Cognitive Enhancement, 1(4), 374-393.
[25] Button, K. S., Ioannidis, J. P., Mokrysz, C., Nosek, B. A., Flint, J., Robinson, E. S., & Munafò, M. R. (2013). Power failure: why small sample size undermines the reliability of neuroscience. Nature Reviews Neuroscience, 14(5), 365-376.

Sponsors, Associates, and Links

---

• Advances in Educational Technology and Psychology
  
  
• Curriculum and Teaching Methodology
  
  
• Transactions on Comparative Education
  
  
• Advances in Vocational and Technical Education
  
  
• Adult and Higher Education