--- abstract: "Free recall consists of two separate stages: the emptying of working memory and reactivation [1]. The Tarnow Unchunkable Test (TUT, [2]) uses double integer items to separate out only the first stage by making it difficult to reactivate items due to the lack of intra-item relationships. \r\n193 Russian college students were tested via the internet version of the TUT. The average number of items remembered in the 3 item test was 2.54 items. In the 4 item test, the average number of items decreased to 2.38. This, and a number of other qualitative distribution differences between the 3 and 4 item tests, indicates that the average capacity limit of working memory has been reached at 3 items. This provides the first direct measurement of the unchunkable capacity limit of language based items.\r\nThat the average number of items remembered decreased as the number of items increased from 3 to 4 indicates that most subjects were unable to manage their working memories as the number of items increased just beyond the average capacity. Further evidence for the difficulty in managing the capacity limit is that 25% of subjects could not remember any items correctly at least in one of three 4 item tests and that the Pearson correlation between the 3 item and 4 item subject recalls was a relatively small 38%.\r\nThis failure of managing a basic memory resource should have important consequences for pedagogy including instruction, text book design and test design. Because working memory scores are important for academic achievement, it also suggests that an individual can gain academically by learning how to manage her or his capacity limit.\r\n" altloc: [] chapter: ~ commentary: ~ commref: ~ confdates: ~ conference: ~ confloc: ~ contact_email: ~ creators_id: - erchovareg@mail.ru - etarnow@avabiz.com creators_name: - family: Ershova given: Regina honourific: '' lineage: '' - family: Tarnow given: Eugen honourific: '' lineage: '' date: 2016-03-20 date_type: completed datestamp: 2016-03-24 19:12:24 department: ~ dir: disk0/00/01/00/88 edit_lock_since: ~ edit_lock_until: 0 edit_lock_user: ~ editors_id: [] editors_name: [] eprint_status: archive eprintid: 10088 fileinfo: /style/images/fileicons/application_pdf.png;/10088/1/WorkingMemoryManagement.pdf full_text_status: public importid: ~ institution: ~ isbn: ~ ispublished: ~ issn: ~ item_issues_comment: [] item_issues_count: ~ item_issues_description: [] item_issues_id: [] item_issues_reported_by: [] item_issues_resolved_by: [] item_issues_status: [] item_issues_timestamp: [] item_issues_type: [] keywords: 'working memory capacity, working memory test, working memory management' lastmod: 2016-03-24 19:12:24 latitude: ~ longitude: ~ metadata_visibility: show note: ~ number: ~ pagerange: ~ pubdom: TRUE publication: ~ publisher: ~ refereed: FALSE referencetext: "[1] Tarnow E (2015) First direct evidence of two stages in free recall and three corresponding estimates of working memory capacity. PFUR Bulletin 2015-4, p. 15-26.\r\n[2] Tarnow, E. (2013). U.S. Patent Application No. 14/066,195.\r\n[3]Murdock, B. B. (1974). Human memory: Theory and data. Lawrence Erlbaum.\r\n[4] Murdock B (1962) The serial position effect of free recall Journal of Experimental Psychology 64(5) 482-488.\r\n[5] Tarnow E (2015). Large individual differences in free recall. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/271589189_Large_individual_differences_in_free_recall\r\n[6] Deese J (1959) On the prediction of occurrence of particular verbal intrusions in immediate recall. Journal of Experimental Psychology 58(1) 17-22\r\n[7] Alloway, T. P., & Alloway, R. G. (2010). Investigating the predictive roles of working memory and IQ in academic attainment. Journal of experimental child psychology, 106(1), 20-29.\r\n" relation_type: [] relation_uri: [] reportno: ~ rev_number: 10 series: ~ source: ~ status_changed: 2016-03-24 19:12:24 subjects: - cog-psy - neuro-psy succeeds: ~ suggestions: ~ sword_depositor: ~ sword_slug: ~ thesistype: ~ title: "A Precise Measure of Working Memory Reveals Subjects\r\nDifficulties Managing Limited Capacity" type: preprint userid: 2525 volume: ~