Tracking how attentional focusing in working memory benefits long-term memory

Human working memory serves as a key gateway to the formation of lasting memories in long-term memory. While it is well established how attentional focusing during working memory can prioritize internal representation for an imminent task, how such internal focusing affects subsequent long-term memory remains less understood. Here, we developed a two-stage visual working memory/long-term memory task in which we cued attention during working memory and tracked the dynamics of attentional deployment through a recently established gaze marker of internal focusing. Across two experiments, we found that attentional focusing in visual working memory reliably affects subsequent visual long-term memory, driven by a benefit to internally attended objects without a cost to unattended objects. Gaze biases associated with internal focusing revealed how this benefit was mediated by the speed – but not necessarily the degree – of attentional deployment, with faster attentional deployment predicting better subsequent memory. Together, these results highlight how attentional focusing in working memory benefits subsequent long-term memory, and uncover the dynamic processes that instill such lasting benefits – offering new insights into the catalyst function of attention in bridging working memory and long-term memory.