LT1 - MSM & LOP

Question 0

What are the 3 characteristics?

Answer 0

Capacity, duration and encoding.

Question 1

What’s the name of the 3 seperate information stores?

Answer 1

SM - sensory memory
STM - Short Term Memory
LTM - Long Term Memory

Question 2

Why is rehearsal seen as a key cognitive process?

Answer 2

It keeps information in the STM, and is responsible for transferring it to the LTM.

Question 3

Name the senses in the sensory memory? And how long they are there for?

Answer 3

Sight, sound, smell, taste and touch. Up to 2 seconds.

Question 4

How is the information stored in the sensory memory?

Answer 4

It’s stored in the same format as it is received e.g. What is heard is stored as sound.

Question 5

What do you have to do to get information from the SM to the STM?

Answer 5

You have to PAY ATTENTION so the information paid attention to is transferred to the STM the rest isn’t registered and therefore lost.

Question 6

What is the capacity and duration of the STM?

Answer 6

Capacity of 5 - 9 (7+/-2) items and duration of 20 seconds

Question 7

What happens if information is not rehearsed?

Answer 7

It’s lost… >

Question 8

What happens if information is rehearsed in the STM?

Answer 8

Information remains in the STM long enough to be transferred to the LTM.

Question 9

What is the capacity and duration of the long term memory?

Answer 9

Infinity

Question 10

What is the supporting research of MSM? What does it suggest?

Answer 10

Clive Wearing case study. It provides evidence for the distinction between STM & LTM as it showed that an area of the brain (hippocampus), if damaged prevents new LT memories from being formed.

Question 11

How does the MSM contribute to society?

Answer 11

The MSM helps us to understand the way that information is processed, like in the retrieval of information from LTM & STM. We can use the knowledge to help students do well in exams by encouraging revision before exam. E.g. Revision strategy eye-witness testimony.

Question 12

*What is another supporting research other than Clive Wearing?

Answer 12

Glanzer and Cunitz (1966) found evidence of separate STM and LTM stores through their research into the primacy recency effect suggesting that there are separate memory stores.

Question 13

What is the opposing research of the MSM?

Answer 13

KF (Shallice & Warrington 1970) case study showed a victim of a motorbike accident, was able to new LT memories even after his STM was damaged.
This suggests that the MSM is incorrect as the STM is not needed to create new LT memories.

Question 14

The MSM is oversimplified. Explain why?

Answer 14

The MSM does not describe the complexity of our memories as it does not take into account the evidence that suggests there are different types of LT memories.
* the LTM is thought to be more than single store that can include different types of encoding including semantic and procedural (how to do things). The MSM also doesn’t take into account that durable memories are due to deep processing rather than rehearsal of information.

Question 15

• How does the experimental support lack ecological validity?

Answer 15

Glanzer and Cunitz (1966) study was conducted using words in stimulus lists that may affect the memory. Lab research may give an unnatural view of memory so the results cannot be generalised to real life situations e.g. Exam studying.

Question 16

What did Craik and Lockhart argue the LOP explains?

Answer 16

It explains the transfer of information into the LTM without rehearsal. The theory states memories are a CONSEQUENCE of how we process information. The deeper we process it; the easier it will be remembered.

Question 17

What are the 3 levels of processing?

Answer 17

Structural, phonetic and semantic.

Question 18

What does structural mean?

Answer 18

What something looks like e.g. Is it in capitals or visual.

Question 19

What does phonetic mean?

Answer 19

Acoustic or what something sounds like e.g. Does it rhyme with cat?

Question 20

What does Semantic mean?

Answer 20

What something means e.g. Does this word fit into the following sentence.

Question 21

What is the shallowest level of processing?

Answer 21

Structural because it’s not very durable.

Question 22

What is the deepest type of processing?

Answer 22

Semantic (analysis) because it’s more durable.

Question 23

What does elaborating rehearsal do?

Answer 23

Processes deeply and produces a longer lasting memory traces.

Question 24

What is maintenance rehearsal?

Answer 24

It simply retains items for short period of time but creates no memory trace. It is used by shallow processing.

Question 25

What is the supporting research for levels of processing?

Answer 25

Craik & Tulving (1975) had a lab experiment that found that semantically processed words were more deeply processed and therefore better recalled than other shallow information.
* 80% of semantically processed words were recalled compared to 18% of words structurally processed therefore highlighting deep processing does lead to more durable memory.

Question 26

How does LOP contribute to society?

Answer 26

Students can be taught to make notes that have meaning. e.g. Mind maps rather than just reading the information that makes no sense to them. This should help them in exams

Question 27

A disadvantage of LOP is that it has opposing evidence from Eysenk and Eysnek (1980) what does it suggest?

Answer 27

Shallow processing can lead to durable memory of material is distinctive it creates a strong mental image.

Question 28

What is another opposing evidence of LOP other than Eysenk&Eysenk?

Answer 28

Morris et al (1977) found that pps recalled more words that were phonetically processed than semantically. This is direct evidence against LOP.
* Morris believed if pps were given a list of words to remember, phonetic processing is more likely to be used, because the nature of the task determines the depth of processing used, rather than depth determining durability directly.

Question 29

What is the oversimplification of the LOP as it is seen as a reductionist?

Answer 29

Craik & Lockhart pointed out that they could not accurately define what was meant by ‘deep’ processing.

• They couldn’t conclude whether it is the time taken to process information, the effort used in processing of the adding of meaning that leads to improved recall.
• LOP theory also doesn’t take into consideration the idea that we may have seperate memory stores such as ST & LT.

Question 30

Like the MSM the LOP lacks ecological validity, why?

Answer 30

Craik & Tulvings (1975) study was conducted in an artificial lab environment, involving unnatural equipment & word lists not relevant in generalised to real-life situations such as preparing for exams.