Long-term memory

Question 1

Explicit memory

Answer 1

• Those we consciously remember and recall.
• Can be split further into episodic and semantic.

Question 2

Procedural memory

Answer 2

• Stores the knowledge of how to perform actions.
• There is no conscious recall of procedural memory.

Question 3

Semantic memory

Answer 3

• Semantic means having to do with language and knowledge about language.
• Stored in our semantic memory is knowledge about words, concepts, and language-based knowledge and facts.

Question 4

Episodic memory

Answer 4

• Episodic memory is information about events we have personally experienced.
• Episodic memory involves the recollection of visual imagery as well as the feeling of familiarity.

Question 5

Glanzer & Cunitz (1966) The Serial Position Effect - Procedure

Answer 5

• Participants were given a list of common words to memorise. They were then asked to recall as many as possible.

Question 6

Glanzer & Cunitz - Results

Answer 6

• Participants remembered more words on average from the beginning (the tendency to remember more words from the beginning is called the primacy effect) and end (the tendency to remember more words from the end is called the recency effect) of the list than the middle. This is known as the serial position effect.

Question 7

Glanzer & Cunitz - Conclusion

Answer 7

• Participants remembered more words from the beginning of the list because they had been transferred by rehearsal to the long-term memory.
• Words at the end of the list were still in the STM.
• Words in the middle were forgotten because of the limited capacity of the STM (7 +/– 2 (Miller)).
• This supports the theory that the MSM that STM and LTM are separate stores.

Question 8

Evaluation of Glanzer & Cunitz - Strengths

Answer 8

• Reliable – easy to replicate.
• Practical applications for improving memory of important information.

Question 9

Evaluation of Glanzer & Cunitz - Limitations

Answer 9

• Lacks ecological validity – not how we use memory in everyday life.

Question 10

Case Study on Epilepsy Patient HM

Answer 10

• HM suffered from severe epilepsy. He underwent surgery. However, the surgery went wrong and destroyed his hippocampus, leaving him with severe anterograde amnesia. This meant he was unable to make any new memories.

Question 11

Milner et al (1966) - Case Study on Epilepsy Patient HM Aim and Method

Answer 11

• Research aim: To investigate anterograde amnesia.
• Research method: A case study using numerous psychometric tests, experiments and observations.

Question 12

Milner et al - Results

Answer 12

• HM did have the ability to learn new motor skills so his procedural memory was intact. But he could not make new episodic or semantic memories. He had a working memory as he was able to hold conversations.
• His issue was that his STM and LTM were no longer connected.

Question 13

Milner et al - Conclusion

Answer 13

• Cases of brain damage, such as HM, support the distinction between LTM and STM.
• Damage to the hippocampi destroys LTM and leaves patients trapped in a world of experiences which only last as long as their STM.

Question 14

Evaluations of Milner et al

Answer 14

Strengths
- In depth and detailed.
Limitations:
- Cannot generalise from a case study.

Question 15

Korsakoff’s syndrome

Answer 15

• Chronic alcoholics sometimes develop Korsakoff’s syndrome, which causes brain damage.
• However, it has little effect on STM, but severely impairs LTM. This suggests that STM and LTM are stored in different areas of the brain. This provides further evidence to support the multistore model of memory.