Autism and working memory

Post Reply New Topic

I am often accused of not being interested in the world around me; on the contrary, I'm interested in too much. When I try to explain to my accusers that I am in fact interested in many, that I simply cannot process and store the information either because it's too overwhelming; the elements are too numerous; it's not the correct type of object for storage (e.g. it's not visual); or because I am terrified about the thought of not being able to know everything (hence I fulfil my concurrent fear of knowing very little and my other fear of not being very intelligent). They do not believe me, and accuse me of making excuses, even when I inform them that a second-hand source, or an advisor, told me that there is a link between autism and deficiencies in working memory. I feel helpless and I need to 'cure' (or manage) this problem I have. I would like to improve my memory for textual information and 'ordinary' events, but I do not know what can assist me. Is this a genuine problem that individuals with autism have or is it a particular defect in myself? How can I get rid of my problem? It's hindering my life, and frustrating my efforts to have deep relationships with people, intellectual subjects and the world.

i have absolutely no idea if this is common to AS, but it's definitely a problem i have.

i googled "Working memory training methods" and got a lot of links, checked out the cogmed site, looks interesting (and maybe even fun).

i haven't personally done any of this type of training but i think i will be looking for free online resources, if i find any good ones i'll post link(s).

I also have an inability to synthesize things. If anyone asked me to explain a book, poem or an article I had just read, I cannot do it; my mind returns with an indistinct fog, so to speak, and I struggle to extract anything pertinent from it - nothing based on something more cogent than feeling and sensations (these are also something I struggle to articulate). What I do (automatically) take from a piece of writing is an indistinct 'sensation': an atmosphere or a singular image which the piece ostensibly inhabits (according to the whims of my mind). So if I am writing a particular piece on epistemology, for instance, I 'trawl' my way towards works that have the correct atmosphere for the subject I'm working on. This is useful when I'm writing; but it's useless in anything, such as a conversation or debate, that requires quick thought and clear, accurate recollection of specific passages.

Last edited by Odresfelt on 08 Oct 2013, 8:08 pm, edited 2 times in total.

Well, back in April, I was at my parents' house and left to go for a walk. My dad told me to bring this sports thing for sale down from the top of the driveway, which I was going to go by on my way out, to the front of the garage. I was like, OK! I was like, Alright! I'll show dad I'm not a bum and can be depended on! By the time I made it to the top of the driveway (after about 10-15 seconds), I had completely forgotten about what I was supposed to do, and just walked by the sports thing. I noticed I had forgotten when I came back and noticed it already moved down to the garage.

How does your problem manifest? It comforts me to know that there is more than one person who shares my experience, even if I'd already suspected that there would be.

I took an IQ test (WISC IV) back in high school. I scored in the average range in terms of overall score. but I scored off the charts in the working memory subtest. I scored a 139 to be exact on working memory. I have no idea what that means. I guess it means i'm good at remembering numbers short-term wise.

Yes, I struggle with tasks like this. I'm too easily distracted. I may have ADHD but, being easily influenced, I can't help feeling that I'm trying to make excuses for myself by suggesting that. I would like to talk to somebody about these problems. The NAS is conveniently close and I'm sure there is somebody available, yet I do not know how quickly they will respond nor what treatment they can offer. Often, I feel like nobody can help or something else distracts me then I forget about making the effort to deal with my problems. I'm too introspective (and use too many 'I's).

My working memory is very poor. If I want to look up a concept, phrase, or word that I am unfamiliar with, by the time I open a new window to google it, I have already forgotten what it was or how to spell it. So I always cut and paste things that I want to look up.

Maybe it's because Aspies and Auties need the time to 'organize' unfamiliar things in the manner that they see fit and not according to how it is being presented to them?

well when i first came upon your post i had to google working memory deficits to understand what they were. i came upon this article:
http://www.teachadhd.com/working-memory-and-adhd.php

--wherein they give an example of a study that was done where people had information spoken into one ear and their name spoken into the other, and were instructed to ignore the voice speaking their name and listen to the other ear. and how people with working memory deficits do terrible on this test. and i thought, holy cow, i don't even have to wonder, i KNOW i couldn't do that.

pretty much any time i have more than one stream of information coming at me, i cant understand ANY of it. and i have a pretty high IQ. i get stressed and confused, at minimum, and downright bitchy if i'm tired.

When I am reading through a discussion thread, I often forget the subject of the thread or the op's question and so I have to scroll up to the top of the page.

I don't know, maybe. I can't seem to hold it in my head long enough and maybe it's because I am thinking about other things at the same time

Oh, I think I see what you mean now. Maybe organizing the concept differently in my mind instead of just memorizing it verbatim would help.

My recent WAIS IV assessment puts me at better than 98% of my peers in working memory, however my processing speed is well below average. The other scores are also above average. I would agree with the theory about thinking about too many things at once - particularly if there is a lot of noise as well. In these situations I can quite literally freeze. Perhaps the problem is not so much working memory but the ability to process (and filter) information quick enough to commit it to working memory?

One of the WAIS working memory exercises was to remember a string of numbers read out to you then repeat them back. Then I had to repeat them in reverse order (the numbers changed each time), then I had to repeat them back in order from smallest to largest, etc. All of this was timed and AFAIK scored on accuracy as well. I'm not sure if any other exercises tested working memory but this was the example used in my feedback sessions. However in situations where something is distracting me I probably wouldn't have even noticed the person saying the numbers never mind be able to repeat them!

Last edited by steffan on 08 Oct 2013, 9:54 pm, edited 1 time in total.

I don't know if this is a CPU cycles per second deal, or a working memory deal or a system throughput deal [combo of memory and cpu speed] but my multitasking ability is rudimentary at best.

Me, I've not taken the test and I'm not sure where to go to take it. I don't see a source for it, either. Nevertheless, I know I can do both math and reading pretty well, and was able to do so as a kid. I don't think my working memory capacity is exceptional or anything, but I did like those subjects.

I guess if I'm present and focused, my working memory is alright. It's just if I am told something, and my attention switches to something else, I might forget to switch my attention back, like that example of last April.