Huh, what did they say again? The influence of task interruption position and workload on auditory-verbal memory performance

The harmful effects of task interruptions on performance in discrete visual-manual reaction-time (RT) tasks are well investigated, but the impact on continuous auditory-verbal memory tasks has received comparably less attention. In the present study, the encoding phase of an auditory-verbal free recall task was interrupted by visual-manual RT tasks. To examine which factors influence the disruptiveness of an interruption during the encoding phase, we manipulated the cognitive workload (low vs. high) associated with the interruption task and the position (early vs. late) of the intervening interruption tasks. Moreover, we manipulated the central code (verbal vs. spatial) in the high-workload interruption task. Results showed decreased free recall with late and high-workload interruptions compared to early and low-workload interruptions. However, the variation of central codes did not influence free recall in the high-workload interruption task. We also examined task trade-offs and found worse performance in the interruption task itself compared to performing it as a single task. These results suggest that memory maintenance in the memory task interferes with response selection in the interruption task. Further, we assume that early interruptions of memory encoding are less harmful than later ones because less primary task information needs to be maintained during interruption task processing. Overall, our study revealed that task interruptions lead to information loss in auditory-verbal memory encoding, highlighting the importance of minimizing interruption costs in work environments where effective communication and information exchange are crucial.