Chapter 5

Question 1

long term memory

Answer 1

Memory held in permanent storage, available for retrieval at some time in the future (contrasts with short-term memory).

Question 2

short-term memory

Answer 2

Memory held in conscious awareness, and which is currently receiving attention (contrasts with longterm memory).

Question 3

dual-store theory of memory

Answer 3

we have two distinct kinds of memory, a short-term and a long-term memory
Distinction first made by William James

Question 4

the dual-store model of memory

Answer 4

input to the STM gets (1) immediately forgotten, (2) rehearsed, (3) consolidated into LTM. From the LTM, information can be retrieved by the STM
Atkinson and Shiffrin (1968)

Question 5

clinical evidence for STM/LTM distinction

Answer 5

both kinds of memory can be seperately impaired, while the other one can stay intact
–> double dissociation

Question 6

recency effect

Answer 6

items presented at the end of a list are well remembered because they are recent. This effect disappears when delay is introduced between learning a word list and recalling it. This further supports the dual-store theory, showing that the last items of a list are held in STM

Question 7

Brown-Peterson task

Answer 7

three letters are presented, then the person must count back in threes, thereby preventing the rehearsal of the initial three letters. In this task, most items are forgotten after 5-10 seconds

Question 8

duration of short term memory

Answer 8

items need rehearsal to keep them in conscious attention, when this is prevented, items are lost very quickly. It takes 5-10 seconds in the brown-peterson task (Brown-Peterson) and 3-4 seconds in a task where the target does not expect to be tested and thereby does not rehearse (Muter)

Question 9

immediate memory span

Answer 9

you read a row of digits and immediately write them down. On average, people can write down seven digits (plus minus 2) without a mistake

Question 10

capacity of the STM

Answer 10

it is thought that the immediate memory span task overestimates the capacity because of chunking and other use of LTM. Based on the recency effect, we can make an estimate of three or four items. Using the running memory task, we arrive at the same number (about 4) which is seen as a more accurate estimate

Question 11

running memory task

Answer 11

listening to a sequence of digits which is suddenly ended, at which point the participant must recall as many numbers as possible. people normally remember 4 items

Question 12

working memory

Answer 12

A hypothetical shortterm memory system which serves as a mental workspace in which a variety of processing operations are carried out on both new input and retrieved memories. a workspace where analysis and processing of information would take place

Question 13

storage memory

Answer 13

the same as long-term memory, but in the working memory model. The function of the memory is emphasized instead of the duration
Baddeley and Hitch (1974)

Question 14

dual-task paradigm

Answer 14

a subject has to carry out two working memory tasks at the same time. When these two tasks use the same kind of working memory they interfere with each other. It has been found that a task that involves auditory input does not interfere with one which uses visual input. This thing is super important and is used for all kinds of differentiation

Question 15

the two short-terms stores of working memory

Answer 15

phonological loop and visual sketchpad. The central executive is served by these two short-term stores

Question 16

central executive

Answer 16

A hypothetical mechanism which is believed to be in overall control of the working memory. It is assumed to control a variety of tasks, such as decision-making, problem-solving and selective attention

Question 17

phonological loop

Answer 17

A hypothetical component of working memory, which is assumed to provide brief storage for verbally presented items.

Question 18

visuo-spatial sketchpad

Answer 18

hypothetical component of working memory, which is assumed to provide brief storage for visually presented items

Question 19

articulatory suppression

Answer 19

A task used to occupy the articulatory control process of the working memory, normally involving the repetition of a sound (such as “the”) which requires articulation but little processing. Used as task in testing the dual-task paradigm

Question 20

word-length effect

Answer 20

The finding that word span in immediate recall is greater for short words than for long words. It is not about the number of items but about the time it takes to speak them. The average length of the phonological loop is two seconds
Baddeley (1975)

Question 21

sub-components of the phonological loop

Answer 21

phonological store and articulatory control process. During articulatory suppression people were still able to make phonological judgements, suggesting to separate systems

Question 22

phonological storage

Answer 22

stores auditory information. Auditory word input directly enters the phonological storage

Question 23

articulatory control process

Answer 23

sub-vocal rehearsal of information. During articulatory suppression, reading is more difficult. This means that the articulatory control process is used to transfer visual word input into the phonological store

Question 24

irrelevant speech effect

Answer 24

listening to spoken material disrupts the retrieval of visually represented words. This is because the irrelevant speech uses some of our articulatory control process resources, so that reading (which uses the same resource) is more difficult

Question 25

non-speech sounds influence on the phonological loop

Answer 25

it is disputed if non-speech sounds use the phonological loop. In one patient there was a dissociation between verbal and nonverbal storage.

Question 26

real life function of the phonological loop

Answer 26

to hold on to a sentence for long enough to analyse it for logic, word order and overall meaning. Maybe, it is more important for the acquisition of language rather than its use.

Question 27

corsi blocks test

Answer 27

the experimenter touches blocks in a certain order which must then be copied by the subject

Question 28

sub-components of the visual spatial sketchpad

Answer 28

the visual cache (shapes and colors) and the inner scribe (spatial information and control of physical actions)

Question 29

three main central executive functions

Answer 29

inhibiting, switching, updating (Miyake)

Question 30

dysexecutive syndrome

Answer 30

A collection of deficits observed in frontal lobe patients which may include impaired concentration, impaired concept formation, disinhibition, inflexibility, perseveration, impaired cognitive estimation and impaired strategy formation.
mainly associated with frontal lobe lesions

Question 31

episodic buffer

Answer 31

A hypothetical component of working memory which integrates information from different sense modalities, and provides a link with the LTM.
Alzheimer patients do not have it.
It might be the residence of consciousness.

Question 32

unitary theories of memory: feature model

Answer 32

No need for dual store model. Their ‘feature model’ postulates that WM retrieval
depends on matching the features of a WM trace with those of an SM (storage memory) trace, the main limitation being that the SM trace is degraded by interference.

Question 33

unitary theories of memory: controlled attention theory

Answer 33

Cowan (2005, 2010) argues that WM consists of the temporary activation of a part of the SM, rather than being a totally separate system. In this model, WM depends primarily on controlled attention, which temporarily activates one part of the SM before moving on to another part shortly afterwards

Question 34

Predictions that can be made with WM

Answer 34

WM correlates highly with all sorts of stuff, namely self-control, fluid intelligence, academic performance. WM peaks at 20 years of age, declining from there on

Question 35

main brain areas involved with working memory

Answer 35

prefrontal: central executive
left parietal: phonological loop
left frontal/Broca's area: articulatory control process
occipital: spatial tasks
inferior temporal: visual cache