This study, based on Arousal-Biased Competition Theory (Mather & Sutherland, 2011), examined how cognitive load and emotional arousal affect visual working memory for object location. According to the theory, high-arousal stimuli enhance memory performance for prioritized neutral stimuli. Participants recalled the locations of neutral, low-arousal, and high-arousal images under high and low cognitive load conditions. Experiment 1 examined the effects of pairing neutral stimuli with stimuli of varying arousal levels and cognitive load conditions on visual working memory performance during encoding, with top-down processes guiding the target. In Experiment 2, the effects of bottom-up processes on visual working memory for neutral stimuli were investigated. Experiment 3 is examining the effects of pairing neutral stimuli with stimuli of different arousal levels and cognitive load conditions on visual working memory performance when bottom-up perceptual priority is eliminated. The findings showed that participants' response accuracy was higher under low cognitive load than under high cognitive load. Neutral stimuli paired with high-arousal images were more easily remembered than those paired with low-arousal pictures, consistent with the Arousal-Biased Competition Theory. When comparing Experiment 1 (top-down driven) to Experiment 2 (bottom-up driven), there was no significant difference in response accuracy. However, under low cognitive load, the location of neutral stimuli presented with high-arousal pictures was remembered better in the top-down group than in the bottom-up group. Data collection for Experiment 3 is now proceeding. These results indicate that arousal and cognitive load influence visual working memory performance, supporting the Arousal-Biased Competition Theory.