What is the role of the central executive in the working memory model?

• A. It stores verbal information.
• B. It stores visual information.
• C. It coordinates long-term memory consolidation.
• D. It oversees and coordinates the activities of the phonological loop and visuo-spatial sketchpad.

Answer: (D)

The central executive is the attentional control system of working memory. It doesn’t store information itself; instead, it directs processing, allocates cognitive resources, and decides how to use the other storage components. Its job is to oversee and coordinate the activities of the phonological loop (verbal information) and the visuo-spatial sketchpad (visual/spatial information), guiding attention, switching between tasks, and integrating information as needed to support complex thinking.

So, storage isn’t its function—that lies with the phonological loop for verbal data and the visuo-spatial sketchpad for visual data. And consolidation into long-term memory isn’t managed by the central executive within this model. The central executive’s role is to manage how the two subsystems work together to handle the task at hand.