Chapter 12 Memory Psychology

Question 1

What is coding?

Answer 1

format in which information is stored in the memory system

Question 2

What is capacity?

Answer 2

The amount of information that can be held in the memory store

Question 3

What is duration?

Answer 3

length of time info can be held in memory

Question 4

Difference between acoustic and semantic

Answer 4

acoustic is words that sound the same

semantic are words that mean the same

Question 5

Experiment 1: test for memory (coding)

Answer 5

Allen Baddely tested 4 groups of ppts
Group 1: acoustically similar 
Group 2: acoustically dissimilar 
Group 3: semantically similar
Group 4:semantically dissimilar 
Baddely asked them to memorise these words, then recall them immediately in correct order

Question 6

Findings for Baddely experiment for memory

Answer 6

Participants did worse in the acoustically similar words
If ppts recalled after 20 mins they did worse with semantically similar words. Shows that information is coded in the LTM.

Question 7

Eval for Baddely experiment

Answer 7

-ve: Artificial stimuli
Baddely used words with no personal meaning for ppts, cannot generalise findings to different memory tasks. For example when processing more meaningful info people may use semantic encoding for the STM tasks. This suggests that the findings have limited application.

Question 8

What does digit span mean

Answer 8

How much info can be held in the STM (capacity)

Question 9

Experiment 2 : Who developed a technique to measure digit span?

Answer 9

Joseph Jacobs

Question 10

Procedure to measure Digit span

Answer 10

Researcher gives 4 digits, ppts asked to recall these in correct order out loud. If correct researcher reads out more digits until they answer incorrectly
This determines the individuals digit span

Question 11

Findings of measuring digit span

Answer 11

Jacobs found the mean span for digits was 9.3 items, mean was 7.3. Did better with numbers than letters.

Question 12

Eval for Digit span

Answer 12

-ve: lacking validity

Conducted long time ago, lacked control, results not valid, cofounding variables.

Question 13

What did Miller observe?

Answer 13

Observed everyday life, notices most things come in 7s. Concluded that the persons average span is around 5-7 items.

Question 14

Eval for Miller

Answer 14

-ve: they overestimated the capacity of STM. That the capacity is more on the lower end of 5-7.

Question 15

Duration of STM

Answer 15

Limited capacity, encoded acoustically

Capacity is around 5-9 items, duration of info stored is 18-30 secs

Question 16

Duration of LTM

Answer 16

Permanent memory store, Semantically encoded

Unlimited capacity.

Question 17

Experiment 3: Duration of STM

Answer 17

Margaret and Lloyd tested 24 undergrads. 8 trails, on each one they were given a syllable to remember. They were also given a 3 digit number, they were asked to count backwards from the number. On each trial they were told to stop at different times: retention interval

Question 18

Experiment 4: Duration of LTM

Answer 18

Researcher Harry Bahrick did a study on 392 ppts from America from the ages of 17-74. Their highschool year books were used. They were tested on:

• Photo recognition
• Recall peoples names in their class

Question 19

Findings of Duration of LTM

Answer 19

Ptps who were tested within 15 years of graduation were 90% accurate in photo recognition. After 48 years, recall declined to 70%. Recalling peoples names was worse, at 15 years it was 60%, 48 years was 30%.
This shows LTM can last a long time.

Question 20

Eval duration for STM

Answer 20

-ve: meaningless stimuli
Stimuli material was artificial, memorising digits didn’t reflect real life, cannot generalise findings across different memory stores ect

Question 21

Eval duration for LTM

Answer 21

+ve: used real-life, meaningful memories

natural experiment

Question 22

what is maintenance rehearsal

Answer 22

when we repeat material to ourselves over and over again. Keeps info in our STM as long as we rehearse it over and over again until it goes into our LTM.

Question 23

what are the two stores in the sensory register?

Answer 23

iconic and echoic

Question 24

what is a iconic system?

Answer 24

deals with visual information

Question 25

what is a echoic system

Answer 25

deals with auditory information

Question 26

capacity and duration of the stm?

Answer 26

limited capacity, 5-9 items (mostly 5)

coded acousitically, duration: lasts around 18-30 seconds

Question 27

capacity and duration of ltm?

Answer 27

permanent memory store, rehearsed for a prolonged time. capacity is unlimited.

Question 28

eval of MSM

+ supporting evidence

Answer 28

+ve: supporting evidence
research shows that STM and LTM are different.
Baddeley claimed that we mix up words that sound the same in the STM (acoustically similar) and we mix up words that mean the same in the LTM (semantically)
Strength as it shows coding in both stores are different , supports MSM that the two stores are different

Question 29

eval of MSM

-ve: more than one STM

Answer 29

-ve: more than one type of STM
MSM states there is only one STM, however evidence shows that it isn’t true
Shallice and Warrington studied a patient with amnesia (KF). Found that KF’s STM for digits was poor. But recalling the digits to himself was normal.
Suggests there could be another type of STM

Question 30

eval of MSM

-ve: there is more than one type of rehearsal

Answer 30

-ve: According to the MSM the more you rehearse the more likely it will go into the LTM. Crain and Watkins found that this prediction is wrong. It is the type of rehearsal you do.
Two types: maintenance and elaborative rehearsal

Question 31

what is elaborative rehearsal?

Answer 31

when you link information to your existing knowledge

Question 32

Three types of long term memory

Answer 32

Episodic memory, semantic memory, procedural memory

Question 33

episodic memory

Answer 33

Recalling events from our lives, recalling people,places, objects, behaviours

Question 34

semantic memory

Answer 34

knowledge of the world, facts, no correlation of time

Question 35

procedural memory

Answer 35

memory for actions or skills

Question 36

eval for Long term memory

+VE: clinical evidence

Answer 36

Research evidence, case of HV and clive wearing. Episodic memory