Issue 2
Vol. 44
2002

Complex prospective memory and executive control of working memory:
A process model

Matthias Kliegel, Mike Martin, Mark A. McDaniel, Gilles O. Einstein

Summary
Recent research on prospective memory suggests the involvement of executive functions in explaining performance in complex task environments. However, few theoretical concepts specify which executive functions contribute to prospective memory performance. Moreover, it is unclear which executive functions are required in the course of the prospective memory process. Therefore, we argue that prospective memory should be conceptualized as a multi-phasic process and propose a theoretical model that disentangles four different phases: (a) forming an intention, (b) maintaining the intention, (c) initiating the intended action, and (d) executing the intention. Empirical tests of the model with eighty adults reveal that more than 50 percent of the variance in the complex prospective memory task is predicted by the executive measures. Of those, planning and cognitive flexibility are particularly important predictors. The discussion focuses on the role of particular executive functions in predicting performance in specific phases of prospective remembering.

Key words: prospective memory, executive functions, planning, cognitive flexibility, inhibition, working memory

Dr. Matthias Kliegel
Dr. Mike Martin
German Centre for Research on Ageing at the University of Heidelberg
Bergheimer Str. 20
69115 Heidelberg
Germany
e-mail: kliegel@dzfa.uni-heidelberg.de

Dr. Mark A. McDaniel
University of New Mexico

Dr. Gilles O. Einstein
Furman University