Memoriy Flashcards
What did Alan Baddeley’s research investigate?
Alan Baddeley’s research investigated how information is coded in short-term memory (STM) and long-term memory (LTM).
What were the four groups of words used in Baddeley’s study?
The four groups of words were:
1. Acoustically similar (sound similar)
2. Acoustically dissimilar (sound different)
3. Semantically similar (similar meanings)
4. Semantically dissimilar (different meanings)
How were participants asked to recall the words in Baddeley’s study?
Participants were asked to recall the words in the correct order. This was tested for both short-term memory (STM) and long-term memory (LTM).
What were the findings when participants were asked to recall words immediately after presentation (STM)?
Participants performed worse with acoustically similar words, suggesting that STM is coded acoustically (by sound).
What were the findings when participants were asked to recall words after 20 minutes (LTM)?
Participants performed worse with semantically similar words, suggesting that information in LTM is coded semantically (by meaning).
What does Baddeley’s study suggest about the coding of information in LTM?
Baddeley’s study suggests that information in long-term memory (LTM) is primarily coded semantically (by meaning).
How does Baddeley’s research support the idea that memory systems are different for STM and LTM?
Baddeley’s research supports the idea that STM and LTM use different coding processes: STM is coded acoustically (by sound), while LTM is coded semantically (by meaning).
What is one limitation of Baddeley’s research on memory coding related to the use of artificial stimuli?
One limitation is that the word lists used in Baddeley’s study had no personal meaning to participants, making the task artificial and not reflective of how we usually encode meaningful information in everyday life.
Why does the use of artificial stimuli in Baddeley’s research make it difficult to generalize the findings?
Since the words used in the study had no personal relevance or meaning, the results may not apply to real-life memory tasks, where we typically remember more meaningful information, such as names or life events.
How does the use of word lists in memory research limit the external validity of the findings?
The use of word lists in memory experiments is not representative of how we encounter information in the real world. In real-life scenarios, we often deal with more complex and meaningful material, not simple lists of unrelated words, so the findings may not fully reflect natural memory processes.
What does ‘capacity’ refer to in memory research?
Capacity refers to the amount of information that can be held in a memory store, such as short-term memory (STM).
How did Jacobs measure digit span in his research?
In Jacobs’ study, the researcher presented a sequence of digits (starting with 4) for participants to recall in the correct order. The number of digits increased after each successful recall, until participants could no longer correctly recall the sequence.
What were the findings of Jacobs’ digit span study?
The mean span for digits was 9.3 and the mean span for letters was 7.3, indicating people tend to remember digits better than letters in short-term memory.
What did Miller suggest about the capacity of short-term memory?
Miller suggested that the capacity of short-term memory is about 7 items, plus or minus 2. He also observed that people tend to group information into chunks, which helps them remember more.
What is ‘chunking’ and how does it affect memory?
Chunking refers to the process of grouping information into larger, more manageable units (chunks), which can increase the amount of information that can be stored in short-term memory.
What are some limitations of Jacob’s research on memory capacity?
Jacob’s study lacks validity because it was conducted a long time ago and may have lacked proper control. For example, some participants may have been distracted during the task, leading to invalid results.
How did Miller’s theory of memory capacity come under scrutiny?
Miller’s claim of a 7-item capacity for STM may have been overestimated. Cowan reviewed other research and concluded that the capacity of short-term memory is likely closer to 4 chunks, not 7.
What did Cowan’s review of STM capacity suggest?
Cowan concluded that the true capacity of short-term memory is closer to 4 chunks, suggesting Miller may have overestimated STM’s capacity.
What does ‘duration’ refer to in memory research?
Duration refers to the length of time information can be held in a memory store, such as short-term memory (STM) or long-term memory (LTM).
How did Peterson and Peterson investigate the duration of short-term memory?
Peterson and Peterson tested STM duration by giving participants a consonant syllable (a trigram) and a 3-digit number. They then asked participants to count backwards from the number for different time intervals to prevent mental rehearsal. After each interval, they were asked to recall the trigram.
What did Peterson and Peterson find regarding the duration of short-term memory?
Their findings suggested that short-term memory has a very short duration, with information being forgotten rapidly unless rehearsal occurs. The longer the retention interval, the lower the recall accuracy.
How did Bahrick et al. study the duration of long-term memory?
Bahrick et al. tested long-term memory by asking 392 participants (ages 17 to 74) to recall information from their high school yearbooks. Recall was tested through photo recognition and free recall.
What were the findings of Bahrick et al.’s study on long-term memory?
Bahrick et al. found that after 15 years, participants were 90% accurate in photo recognition, and after 48 years, recall was still high at 70% for photo recognition. This suggests that long-term memory can last a long time.
What is a limitation of Peterson and Peterson’s study on STM duration?
A limitation is that the study used meaningless stimuli (consonant syllables), which doesn’t reflect real-life memory tasks. This limits the study’s external validity, as we typically remember meaningful information in daily life.
How could Peterson and Peterson’s findings be relevant to everyday memory?
While the consonant syllables in their study were meaningless, everyday tasks like remembering phone numbers also involve recalling meaningless information. So, despite the artificial nature, the findings may have some relevance.
What is a strength of Bahrick et al.’s study on LTM duration?
A strength of Bahrick’s study is its high external validity because it involved real-life, meaningful memories (e.g., yearbook photos), making the results more applicable to everyday memory.
What is a limitation of Bahrick et al.’s study on LTM duration?
A limitation is that confounding variables were not controlled. For example, participants may have looked at their yearbooks regularly, which could have influenced their recall accuracy.
