23 · Remembering
Working Memory
The small space in the mind where people hold what they need right now. It fills fast and empties faster.
Evidence: Holds upWhat we do with it
- 01
Carry information forward. A plan summary beside the checkout form beats asking people to remember what they picked.
- 02
Keep instructions on screen while people follow them. Steps that vanish after the first one get forgotten by the third.
- 03
Mark what people have already seen or done, the way a visited link changes color.
Examples
Getting it wrong, getting it right.
Don't
A confirmation code shown on one screen, then asked for on the next.
Do
The code is filled in for you, or stays on screen beside the field.
The evidence
What the research says.
The model is well supported and has kept being refined. In 2000 Alan Baddeley added a fourth part, the episodic buffer, to explain how people hold on to bits of information that don't fit the original model. His 2012 review found the frame had stayed much the same for nearly forty years.
Sources
- Baddeley, A. D., & Hitch, G. (1974). Working memory. In G. H. Bower (Ed.), The Psychology of Learning and Motivation, Vol. 8. Academic Press.
- Baddeley, A. (2000). The episodic buffer: A new component of working memory? Trends in Cognitive Sciences, 4(11).
- Baddeley, A. (2012). Working memory: Theories, models, and controversies. Annual Review of Psychology, 63.
Last reviewed November 7, 2026. How we keep this current