No evidence that self-rated negative emotion boosts visual working memory precision.

Emotion is assumed to change how people process information by modulating attentional focus. Two recent studies (Spachtholz et al., 2014; Xie & Zhang, 2016) reported that self-reported negative emotion boosted the precision with which was stored in visual working memory. Here we attempted and failed replicate these findings across seven conducted four countries. induced presenting emotional images (negative, neutral, positive) before each trial of a memory task (six experiments) or were combined music during 3-min induction phase (one experiment) occurring prior task. In task, participants (emotionally neutral) continuously varying colored dots oriented triangles. At test, color orientation probed item reproduced. Although changes their state commensurate manipulations, six experiments showed substantial evidence against (and quantity) under comparison whereas one condition, study, increased both positive compared neutral. These results challenge view modulates quality quantity. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved).