Contemporary Study: Sebastian & Hernandez-Gil (2012)

Question 1

Define ‘digit span’.

Answer 1

How many numbers we can hold in the STM at any one time.

Question 2

What were the aims of this study?

Answer 2

• To investigate the development of the phonological loop and digit span
• To investigate whether digit span declines in older people
• To investigate whether language affects digit span

Question 3

Who were used in the sample in ‘Part 1’ of the study?

Answer 3

• 570 volunteers
• 5-17 years old
• Spanish
• Primary data

Question 4

Who were used in the sample in ‘Part 2’ of the study?

Answer 4

• 25 healthy older ppts
• 25 Alzheimer’s patients
• 9 Frontotemporal dementia
• Secondary data

Question 5

What type of method was used?

Answer 5

Lab

Question 6

Briefly describe the procedure of of this contemporary study.

Answer 6

• Primary data of 570 Spanish volunteers aged 5-17 were used
• A list of digits were read aloud, one per second with each of the 3 lists starting with 3 digits
• Each time the ppts recalled the list in order, one more digit was added
• The most number of digits recalled accurately indicated the digit span
• This data was then compared with secondary data of the digit spans of 25 healthy people and 25 Alzheimer’s patients

Question 7

What was the IV and DV?

Answer 7

IV = The addition of a digit every time they recalled the order correctly
DV = How many digits were recalled in the correct order

Question 8

What were the results of ‘Part 1’ this study?

Answer 8

• Digit span increased from 3.7 (5) to 5.9 (17)

- Due to significant increase from age 5-8 (4.6), learn that at the age of 7 you can subvocally recall

Question 9

What were the results of ‘Part 2’ this study?

Answer 9

• Alzheimer’s had a digit span of 4.2
• Healthy ppts had a digit span of 4.4
• Alzheimer’s patients performed significantly better than 5 year olds however didn’t differ significantly from other age groups

Question 10

Describe the conclusion of this experiment.

Answer 10

• Digit span increases with age, until aged 15
• Subvocal recall develops at age 7
• The adult span is about 7
• Digit span is affected by age, not dementia

Question 11

How does subvocal rehearsal impact the digit span of English people and Spanish people.

Answer 11

Due to the increased length of Spanish words, it takes longer to say the digit and so they are more likely to decay before English words as there is less to rehearse for them.

Question 12

Due to subvocal rehearsal not developing until the age of 7, what does this mean for the results of English and Spanish children below age 7?

Answer 12

There should be less difference between the results under age 7 compared to above age 7 due to subvocal recall not being developed yet.

Question 13

Evaluate the generalisablity using a high and low point.

Answer 13

P - High
E - Large sample of 570 from a range of schools
E - Findings can be generalised to the wider Spanish population
P - Low
E - Secondary data only involved 59, mostly female ppts
E - Results are gynocentric and so is harder to represent males

Question 14

Evaluate the reliability using 2 high points.

Answer 14

P - High
E - Lab experiment allows for control of EVs and uses standardised procedure (e.g. each digit for 1 second)
E - Can replicate the study accurately
P - High
E - Other research has shown similar cultural issues on digit span
E - There are a range of studies to support the idea that language and the phonological loop are interrelated

Question 15

Are there any applications?

Answer 15

P - Yes
E - Helps us to understand the development of the phonological loop in children
E - We can therefore find ways to assist children who may experience difficulty associated with rehearsal of spoken or written information to improve their memory and learning

Question 16

Evaluate validity using a high and low point.

Answer 16

P - High validity
E - The 570 Spanish ppts were matched for the task due to not having any learning disabilities
E - And so there were no individual differences to affect the outcome leading to establishing cause and effect between age and digit span
P - Low task validity
E - The task of recalling digits is not an everyday activity to do with memory
E - Findings may not reflect memory in real life due to lacking mundane realism

Question 17

Evaluate an ethical issue and consideration.

Answer 17

P - Unethical
E - The 570 children volunteers are classed as a vulnerable group
E - Researchers must take care when using child participants in order to gain legitimate informed consent from parents
P - Ethical
E - Used secondary data of 25 healthy people and 25 Alzheimer’s patients
E - Therefore they would have avoided any psychological distress the dementia patients may have experienced if they were unable to recall the digit sequence