4: Attention and short term working memory Flashcards by Gir Flynn

Modal Model:

What are the 3 registers for incoming stimuli?

(Hint: IEH)

Iconic memory.
Echoic memory.
Haptic memory.

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Modal Model:

Stimuli enters via 3 memory registers (iconic, echoic, haptic), which is then transferred to our:

short-term memory

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Modal Model:

What is iconic memory?

Visual sensory memory.

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Modal Model:

What is echoic memory?

Auditory info/sound memories.

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Modal Model:

What is haptic memory?

Feeling and touch memories.

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Short term memories are transferred to and from long-term memory via ________ and _________.

Short term memories are transferred to and from long-term memory via encoding and retrieval.

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Mental processes that facilitate perceptual processing and thought, is called:

attention.

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What are the 2 primary metaphors used to describe attention?

hint: PR

Process.

2. Resource

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Describe the process metaphor of attention:

Filtering out or enhancing something for further processing.

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Describe the resource metaphor of attention:

We have a limited capacity of energy that can be applied to processing.

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What are the 2 forms of attention?

Covert

2. Overt

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What is covert attention?

Selectively filtering input by focusing the internal ‘spotlight’ of attention.

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What is overt attention?

Selectively filtering input by physically changing the sensory array. E.g. Moving our eyes to look at something interesting.

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The decoupling of overt and covert attention was achieved by Posner (1980) using a:

(Hit: S-CT)

Spatial-Cueing Task

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What was the hypothesis of Posner (1980) Spacial-Cueing Task?

Covert attention requires time to shift from one location to another.

Overt attention is limited by its spatial ability.

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What was the method and logic of Posner (1980) Spacial-Cueing Task?

Subjects maintained gaze on a central location, where a cue indicated the location of a briefly displayed peripheral target letter.

Subjects were asked to indicate the target letter’s identity as quickly and accurately as possible.

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What were the 3 IV conditions in Posner (1980) Spacial-Cueing Task?

Valid cue.
Invalid cue.
Neutral cue.

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In Posner (1980) Spacial-Cueing Task experiment, what percentage of the time did the valid cue condition indicate the correct location of the target letter to participants?

80% of the time.

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In Posner (1980) Spacial-Cueing Task experiment, what percentage of the time did the invalid cue condition indicate the correct location of the target letter to participants?

20% of the time.

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In Posner (1980) Spacial-Cueing Task experiment, what percentage of the time did the neutral cue condition indicate the correct location of the target letter to participants?

50% of the time.

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What were the results of Posner (1980) Spacial-Cueing Task experiment?

Participants reaction times were greatest in the invalid cue condition, and shortest in the valid cue condition.

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According to Treisman and Galade (1980), why is attention necessary?

Attentions binds together features of objects. so that we can form mental representations of them and understand spatial locations.

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What was the method and logic of Treisman and Galade (1980) experiment on attention?

Subjects performed a visual search for target objects, with varying numbers of distractor objects. The time it took for subjects to find target objects was measured.

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What were the 2 basic IV conditions in Treisman and Galade (1980) experiment on attention?

Disjunctive search.

2. Conjunctive search.

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Describe the disjunctive search condition in Treisman and Galade (1980) experiment on attention?

Target objects were defined by a single feature.

Describe the conjunctive search condition in Treisman and Galade (1980) experiment on attention?

Target objects were defined by two features.

What were the results of Treisman and Galade (1980) experiment on attention? Disjunctive search condition: Conjunctive search condition:

Disjunctive search condition: Reaction times remained the same, regardless of the number of distractor objects present. Conjunctive search condition: Reaction times increased when more distractor objects were present.

What was the conclusion of Treisman and Galade (1980) experiment on attention?

As attention binds together features of objects, the more features a target object has, the longer it takes us to focus on it when other objects are present.

What are the 2 basic processes involved in attention? | Hint: AC

1. Automatic processes. | 2. Controlled processes.

Attention as a resource: What are 5 features of automatic processes?

1. Non-intentional. 2. Not open to introspection. 3. Do not consume mental resources. 4. Do not conflict with other mental processes (e.g. can multitask). 5. Very fast (< 1 sec)

Attention as a resource: What are the 5 features of controlled processes?

1. Intentional. 2. Open to introspection. 3. Consume mental resources. 4. Conflicts with other mental processes. 5. Slow.

Attention as a resource: Controlled processes can eventually become:

automatic.

According to Shiffrin and Schneider (1977), how does automaticity develop?

With constant practice.

What was the method and logic of Shiffrin and Schneider (1977) experiment on automaticity?

Subjects search for target letters in visual arrays, of varying set size, across thousands of trials.

What were the 2 basic conditions in Shiffrin and Schneider (1977) experiment on automaticity?

1. Consistent mapping. | 2. Varied mapping.

Describe the consistent mapping condition in Shiffrin and Schneider (1977) experiment on automaticity?

Targets and distractors always came from discrete sets of non-overlapping items.

Describe the varied mapping condition in Shiffrin and Schneider (1977) experiment on automaticity?

Targets and distractors came from a set of common items and varied from trial to trial.

What were the results of Shiffrin and Schneider (1977) experiment on automaticity?

After lots of practice, automaticity developed in the consistent mapping condition but not in the varied mapping condition.

What are the 3 pros of automatic behaviours?

1. Less resource demanding. 2. Less prone to error. 3. Can be transferred to similar tasks.

What are the 2 cons of automatic behaviours?

1. Can results in errors. | 2. Negative transfer.

Descrive 'negative transfer' in the context of automatic behaviours:

Making incorrect inferences when learning new tasks. | E.g. driving on the wrong side of the road when moving to a new country.

The characteristic curve observed in a graph, describing the probability of freely recalling items in any order from a list, is called the: (Hint: SPC)

Serial Position Curve

Who first discovered the Serial Position Curve, using themself as a subject?

Ebbinghaus

What are the 2 main effects observed in the Serial Position Curve?

1. Primacy effect. | 2. Recency effect.

In the Serial Position Curve, what is the primacy effect?

Items in the beginning of a list tend to be recalled better than ones in the middle as they are in the LTM.

In the Serial Position Curve, what is the recency effect?

Items at the end of a list tend to be recalled better than items in the middle as they are in the STM.

When one variable affects one of the memory systems, and another variable affects another one of the memory systems, these are known as: (Hint: DD)

Double Dissociations

Recalling items in their correct chronological order is called: (Hint: SR)

Serial Recall

Describe a procedure to demonstrate double dissociations.

Using serial recall tasks instead of free recall ones.

Using serial recall instead of free recall eliminates the ______ effect, but has no impact on the ______ effect.

Using serial recall instead of free recall eliminates the recency effect, but has no impact on the primacy effect.

Using free recall, increasing the number of items on a list tends to reduce the probability of recalling items in the middle, but not the end. This is known as: (Hint: L-LE)

List-Length Effects

Having a secondary task (e.g. counting backwards) prior to free recall, eliminates the recency effect, but leaves the primacy effect intact. These are known as: (Hint: DT)

Distractor Tasks

Using free recall, increasing the presentation rate (number of words shown per minute) reduces the probability of remembering words in the middle of the list, but not at the end of the list. These are known as: (Hint: I-SE)

Item-Spacing Effects

All the available evidence from list-learning experiments suggests that, unlike LTM, STM is a: (Hint: L-C RB)

Limited-Capacity Rehearsal Buffer

STM is important for 2 types of basic operations: 1. 2.

1. Maintenance rehearsal. | 2. Transfer (encoding).

What is maintenance rehearsal?

Recycling information in STM.

What is transfer (encoding)?

Moving info from STM into LTM.

What is Millers (1956) "magic number"?

People can retain 7 (+/- 2) items of in STM.

Items in STM are better referred to as "chunks" of information due to:

recoding.

In STM, meaningful information can be _______ (recoded), allowing the retention of 7 (+/- 2) chunks of information, which can be later _______.

In STM, meaningful information can be compressed (recoded), allowing the retention of 7 (+/- 2) chunks of information, which can be later decompressed.

What were the results of Ericsson and Chase (1982) study on STM?

A long distance runner could remember strings of 80+ digits due to separating the digits into large chunks.

How can a person retain larger chunks of information in their STM?

By making information meaningful, using knowledge in their LTM.

A cognitive exercise used to test the limits of working memory capacity, when subjects cannot use recalled techniques (e.g. mnemonics) is called the: (Hint: B-P P)

Brown-Peterson Paradigm.

What were the results of Brown (1958) and Peterson & Peterson (1959) Brown-Peterson Paradigm?

Information in STM rapidly decays if it is not rehearsed.

What two ways is information accessed from our STM?

1. Recognition. | 2. Recall.

In STM, what is recognition?

If a stimulus is present, whether or not it is already in memory.

In STM, what is recall?

When a stimulus is not present, information about that stimulus must be accessed from memory.

What are the 2 methods used to estimate the duration of a cognitive process?

1. Subtractive method. | 2. Additive method.

List the 4 steps in Sternberg (1966) process model: | Hint: ECDR

1. Encode 2. Compare 3. Decide 4. Respond

What were the 2 theoretic questions asked in Sternberg (1966) research into STM?

1. How long does it take to recognise information in STM? | 2. What is the architecture of the process that allows info in STM to be recognised?

What was the method and logic of Sternberg (1966) experiment on STM?

In each trial, subjects encoded a set of 1-4 letters into STM. Subjects then viewed a single problem letter and said whether or not the probe letter was the same.

What was the conclusion of Sternberg (1966) experiment on STM?

People perform an exhaustive serial search when retrieving info from STM.

Scanning items in STM one at a time is called: | Hint: SP

serial processing.

Scanning items in STM all at once is called:

parallel processing.

In Sternberg's (1966) experiment on STM, participants did not stop responding when they found a match, but continued searching the entire display in their memory. This is called an: (Hint: ES)

exhaustive search.

What are the 3 possible ways of searching our STM? Hint: 1. SS-TS 2. PS 3. SES

1. Serial Self-Terminating Search. 2. Parallel Search. 3. Serial Exhaustive Search.

Searching each letter in STM one at a time, until you find a match or don't, then stop searching, is called a:

Serial Self-Terminating Search

Looking for your car keys at home would be a:

Serial Self-Terminating Search

Searching all letters in STM in parallel, at the same time, until you do/don't find a match, then stop searching, is called a:

Parallel Search

Looking for a yellow banana in a bowl of red apples, would be a:

Parallel Search.

Searching each letter in STM, one at a time, continuing even if you find a match, is called a:

Serial Exhaustive Search

In the Serial Self-Terminating Search, when set size increases, reaction times ______.

In the Serial Self-Terminating Search, when set size increases, reaction times increase.

In the Parallel Search, when set size increases, reaction times _________.

In the Parallel Search, when set size increases, reaction times stay the same.

In the Serial Self-Terminating Search, when set size increases, reaction times _______.

In the Serial Self-Terminating Search, when set size increases, reaction times increase.

Original conceptualisations of STM claimed it only held _______ information, whereas, evidence suggests it holds a variety of codes.

Original conceptualisations of STM claimed it only held acoustic information, whereas, evidence suggests it holds a variety of codes.

Original conceptualisations of STM claimed it had a fixed capacity of 7 (+/- 2) chunks of information, whereas, evidence suggests capacity is influenced by:

the nature of the task being performed.

According to Baddeley (1986) (2000), working memory consists of: 1. 2.

1. Central executive (control system). | 2. Slave systems.

According to Baddeley (1986) (2000), what are the three slave systems of working memory?

1. Articulatory (phonological) loop. 2. Visuo-spatial sketchpad. 3. Episodic buffer.

According to Baddeley (1986) (2000), what does the Central executive system do in working memory?

Controls the flow of information to and from its slave systems.

According to Baddeley (1986) (2000), what does the articulatory (phonological) loop slave system in working memory deal with?

Sound or phonological information.

According to Baddeley (1986) (2000), what does the visuo-spatial sketchpad slave system in working memory deal with?

Visual information for manipulation.

According to Baddeley (1986) (2000), what does the episodic buffer slave system in working memory deal with?

Links information across other domains (visual, spatial, sound) into integrated units.

What was the method and logic of Brooks (1978) experiment on STM? Primary task: Secondary task:

Primary task: Indicate via button presses the upper and lower parts of an imaginary letter 'F'. Secondary task: either 1. Concurrent articulation (E.g. "American Bourbon whisky is the best...American B-) 2. Visual tracking of moving point of light

What were the results of Brooks (1978) experiment on STM?

Those who engage in concurrent articulation were significantly more accurate in the primary task than those who did the visual tracking task.

What can we conclude from Brooks (1978) experiment on STM?

If visual memory and visual perception involve overlapping cognitive functions, the visual input of irrelevant material has a disruptive effect on that task.

What might be an everyday example of Brooks (1978) experiment on STM?

People testing while driving running through a red light.