Memory Flashcards
What is the multi-store model of memory?
environmental stimuli - sensory register - attention - short term memory (maintenance rehearsal) - elaborative rehearsal - long term memory - retrieval from short term memory
What is the encoding of the sensory register in MSM?
Iconic and echoic
What is the duration of short term memory in MSM?
18 - 30 secs
What is the duration of the sensory register in MSM?
0.5 secs
What is the encoding of short term memory in MSM?
Acoustic
What is the capacity of the sensory register in MSM?
Unlimited
What is the capacity of short term memory in MSM?
Limited 5 - 9 terms
What is the duration of long term memory in MSM?
Potentially permanent
What is the encoding of long term memory in MSM?
Semantic
What is the capacity of long term memory in MSM?
Unlimited
What is the research for the duration of the sensory memory in MSM?
Walsh and Thompson (1978) flashed images of the letter o twice with a brief interval between. The researchers recorded the interval from which pts could report that they saw a continuous stimulus. It was found that the iconic sensory had an average duration of 500 millisecond. This suggests duration is limited.
What is the research for the capacity of the sensory memory in MSM?
Sperling (1960) studied the sensory memory for vision. He asked pts to recall as many letters as they could from a grid of 12 symbols that he displayed on a screen for just 50 milliseconds, and found that while they could only recall around 4 of the symbols before the grid faded from their sensory memory, they typically reported seeing a lot more than they had time to report
What research is there to support the duration of short term memory in MSM?
Peterson & Peterson (1959)
Nonsense trigrams were read to pts and were asked to count backwards in 3s from a large random 3 digit number for varying periods of time. After a 3 second delay, there was a 90% recall compared to just 2% after 18 secs. This shows that duration is very limited.
What research is there to support the coding of short term memory in MSM?
Baddeley (1966)
Gave pts four sets of words. Set 1 had similar sounding words and set 2 were different. Set 3 had similar meaning words and set 4 had different meanings. When asked to recall immediately they made more mistakes on words sounding alike. This shows it is encoded acoustically.
What research is there for the capacity of short term memory in MSM?
Jacobs (1887)
Serial digit span method where pts are presented with increasingly long lists of numbers or letters and have to immediately recall them in the right order. Capacity for numbers was 9.3 items and for letters it was 7.3 items. Supports capacity being 5 - 9 items.
What research is there for the duration of long term memory in MSM?
Bahrick et al (1975)
392 US ex high school students between 17 and 74 were tested by free recall and a photo recognition test. They were asked to identify former classmates from a set of 50 photos. Recognition was 90% accurate after 14 years and 60% accurate after 47 years. This shows that duration is potentially unlimited.
What research is there for the coding of the long term memory in MSM?
Baddeley (1966)
Demonstrated it is semantic. Pts given four sets of words.
Set 1 = similar sounding
Set 2 = different sounding
Set 3 = similar meaning
Set 4 = different meaning
After a delay of 20 minutes, pts had more difficulty remembering the semantically similar words.
What is the research for the capacity of long term memory in MSM?
Wagenaar (1986)
Created a diary of 2400 events over 6 years and tested himself on recall of events rather than dates. He had excellent recall, suggesting capacity is unlimited.
What are some criticisms of the research being unrealistic?
Studies are not in natural environments
Tasks are not everyday tasks
Stimuli is not realistic
Collection techniques similar
What is some evidence supporting MSM?
Glanser and Cunitz
Presented two groups of pts with same list of words. One recalled immediately after, whilst other waited for 30 secs. Both tended to remember first few and last words. Supports LTM and STM sores because of primary and recency effects.
Is there naturalistic research to support MSM?
Case study of HM. Male patient who suffered from epilepsy who underwent major surgery to relieve the symptoms. Temporal lobes of both sides of the brain were removed, and since then HM has been unable to form new long term memories. His STM was relatively normal but he was unable to transfer information, proving that there are separate stores.
Are there alternative theories to MSM?
WMM is a more recent approach to understanding the STM. It takes into account that each store is not a single structure and consists of several structures. It doesn’t oversimplify memory and it has practical applications. Suggests MSM is too simplified.
Is there a theoretical problem with MSM?
Mainly emphasises on the structure of memory and tends to neglect the process. MSM only focuses on cognition and ignores when events are emotionally charged. MSM states that LTM is semantically encoded but does not expand to wider emotional connections.
Are there practical applications of MSM?
First suggestion that the memory is made up of various sections, which led to other psychologists looking at better models. this suggests that further research can be linked back to MSM.
Extension evaluation point on KF
Had a motorbike accident in his 20’s. Parietal-occipital area was damaged, which affected his STM as he was only able to recall 1 or 2 items acoustically. However it could retain information if it was presented visually. LTM remained intact.
What is encoding?
Changing incoming information into a form usable to different kinds of memory.
What is semantic encoding?
Coded according to its meaning
What is acoustic encoding?
Coded according to its sound
What is iconic encoding?
Coded according to the images
What is haptic encoding?
Coded according to touch
What is capacity?
Holding information in the memory system
What is retrieval?
Recovering information from storage
What is elaborative rehearsal?
A way to more effectively memorise information and maintain it from long term memory. By making associations between the new information you’re trying to learn and the information you already know.
What is maintenance rehearsal?
Simple repetition of items that need to be remembered in order to prevent them from fading out of short term memory.
What is the concept of the working memory?
Baddeley and Hitch (1974)
Developed as a new approach to understanding short term memory
Accounts that STM is not a single store but a workspace in which we carry out various tasks.
Links to long term memory through the episodic buffer
What is the encoding of the central executive?
Modality free - any senses
What is the capacity of the central executive?
limited
What is the central executive?
Determines how resources are allocated
Involves reasoning and decision making tasks
Collects information from the inner ear, eyes and LTM
What research is there to support the central executive?
Bunge (2000)
Experiment in which MRI scanner was used to see which parts of the brain were most active when pts were performing a single task and also two tasks at once.
What did the research into the central executive show?
Significantly more activity in the brain when two tasks were performed, indicating that there was an increased demand for attention when performing two tasks simultaneously.
What is a strength of the central executive?
Baddeley suggested it was more like a system which controls attentional processes rather than a memory store, unlike phonological loop and visuo-spatial sketchpad. It allows the working memory system to selectively attend to some stimuli and ignore others.
What is a weakness of the central executive?
Very vague in its explanation and processes. Model also suggests there is one single CE, which is unlikely. It is more likely to have several components, which is not factored into the model.
What is the encoding of the visuo-spatial sketchpad?
Visual
What is the capacity of the visuo-spatial sketchpad?
Limited - approx 3 - 4 objects
What is the visuo-spatial sketchpad?
Stores visual and/or spatial information when required
What is the visual cache?
Part of the visuo-spatial sketchpad which stores visual data
What is the inner scribe?
Part of the visuo-spatial sketchpad which records the arrangement of objects in the visual field
What research is there for the visuo-spatial sketchpad?
Brookes (1968)
Pts had to mentally visualise a letter, and then were asked some questions about it. They had to either speak allowed, tap or point to a yes/no sign to respond.
What did the research for the visuo-spatial sketchpad show?
It found that the response was faster when it was spoken or tapped, indicating they have the same limited capacity component.
What is a strength of the visuo-spatial sketchpad?
Has real life applications. Plays an important role in helping us keep track of where we are in relation to other objects as we move through our environment. It has high mundane realism.
What is a weakness of the visuo-spatial sketchpad?
The model implies that all information starts as visual and then turns spatial. However, this is unlikely to be the case all of the time. Lieberman (1980) argues that blind people have excellent spatial awareness, although they have never received any visual information. Based on this, Lieberman suggests that the VSS should be separated into two different components.
What is the encoding of the phonological loop?
Acoustic
What is the capacity of the phonological loop?
Limited - approx 2 secs
What is the phonological loop?
Deals with auditory information and preserves word order.
Inner ear.
What are the two parts of the phonological loop?
Baddeley subdivided it in 1986
Phonological store
Articulatory loop
What is the phonological store?
Holds words heard
What is the articulatory loop?
Silently repeats words like an inner voice
What is the research for the phonological loop?
Baddeley (1975)
He found that pts recalled more short words in serial order than longer words. Supports capacity of PL is set by how long it takes to say words rather than number of words.
What does the research into the phonological loop show?
This suggests that aspects of the WMM appear correct and credible
What is a strength of the phonological loop?
See the supporting research
What is a weakness of the phonological loop?
Due to the short capacity, in some cases, one might unintentionally not pay attention or remember words in a conversation that might be a longer length. Therefore the capacity of the PL may be damaging to our articulation when we are processing a conversation in real life.
What is the encoding of the episodic buffer?
Modality free
What is the capacity of the episodic buffer?
Limited - approx 4 chunks of information
What is the episodic buffer?
Baddeley (2000) added the episodic buffer as he realised the model needed a more general store. CE has no storage capacity.
Buffer is an extra storage system but with a limited capacity.
Integrates information from all other areas.
What is the research to support the episodic buffer?
A patient with severely impaired LTM demonstrated an STM capacity of up to 25 items - Alkhakifa
What did the research into the episodic buffer show?
This exceeds the capacity of both PL and VSS, so we must need a buffer for this
What is a strength of the episodic buffer?
The EB is multi model - it’s not limited to one sense like the other two slave systems.
Its job seems to be to bind memories together, weaving visual memories and phonological memories into single episodes, which then get stored in the episodic LTM, an important role.
What is a weakness of the episodic buffer?
The episodic buffer has little information and is not understood fully. Due to being added to the WMM at a later date, research is still in its infancy. Lack of research and understanding impacts the credibility of this slave system.
Is there further naturalistic research to support the WMM?
Patient KF injured in motorcycle accident. He was able to recall stored information from the LTM however he had issues with his STM. He was able to remember visual images but only 1 or 2 items acoustically.
Is there further research to support the WMM?
Use one of the previous research
Brookes (1968)
What is a weakness of the experiments for WMM?
Environment is artificial as most of the variables have been controlled. This creates unrepresentative results implying that the research lacks credibility.
Does the WMM have any theoretical flaws?
May still be oversimplified as the nature of the CE is still unclear and may not be a single entity. EVR had brain tumour removed, resulting in poor decision making skills but good reasoning skills, suggesting there may be separate components.
Does the WMM have any useful practical applications?
Park et al (1999) concluded that patients with schizophrenia tend to have problems with working memory that can be identified on dual tasks. Hence it is now easier to test for schizophrenia based on the WMM.
Is there contradictory evidence to the WMM?
Lieberman (1980) criticises the VSS because it implies that all spatial information was first visual. Blind people have excellent spatial awareness. He argues that it should be separated into two. Shows there are theoretical flaws.
What is implicit LTM?
LTM that does not require a conscious effort to retrieve
What is explicit LTM?
LTM that does require a conscious effort to retrieve
What is declarative LTM?
LTM that can be described / explained
What is non declarative LTM?
LTM that can’t be or is very difficult to describe / explain
Who proposed a difference between three types of LTM?
Tulving (1972)
What are the three types of LTM?
Episodic
Semantic
Procedural
What is procedural memory?
Responsible for knowing how to do things and does not involve conscious thought. Strong memories that are nearly immune to forgetting.
What is semantic memory?
Responsible for storing information about the world. Factual information including meaning of words.
What is episodic memory?
Responsible for storing information about events we have experienced. Involves conscious thought.
Comparison of procedural and semantic?
Procedural memories are non-declarative whereas semantic memories are declarative
Formation of procedural memories does not involve the hippocampus but the hippocampus is involved in the formation of semantic
Comparison of procedural and episodic?
Procedural are motor skills whereas episodic are memories of life events
Procedural is more resistant to forgetting or amnesia than episodic
Comparison of episodic and semantic?
Both are declarative
Semantic are much more robust and less prone to distortion and forgetting than episodic.
What are the two types of interference?
Retroactive and proactive
What is proactive interference?
When previous memories interfere with recent similar memories
What is retroactive interference?
When recent memories interfere with previous similar memories
Is there research to support interference?
Underwood 1957
Nonsense syllable word lists the students had previously learnt, the greater their forgetting of new nonsense syllables after 24 hours (proactive)
What is a weakness into the research supporting interference?
Lab experiments artificial - nonsense syllables/word lists/ triograms is not how we use memory in real life. Lacks credibility.
Is interference supported by our everyday experience?
Getting a new phone number - real world applications.
We mix up the cognitive connections.
Can the interference theory be considered reductionist?
Other valid explanations such as forgetting due to an absence o clues. Therefore should not be used as only theory as it is incomplete.
Does interference have good practical applications?
Can help prevent forgetting revision notes. Should not revise similar subjects in a short time scale.
What is reductionism?
When an explanation for a theory is reduced down to its components
What is the forgetting due to absence of clues theory?
Forgetting arises when clues are not available for recall that were present during encoding.
What are the main assumptions of retrieval failure due to an absence of cues?
A memory trace is laid down as a result of the original perception of an event complete with its surroundings that act as a retrieval cue
What is a retrieval cue?
A piece of info in the individual’s cognitive environment at the time of encoding that matches the time of recall.
What is an absence of context cues?
They are cues from the environment that are ‘hoovered in’ to the memory trace
What is an absence of state cues?
They are cues from within us that are ‘hoovered in’ to the memory trace
What is an absence of organisational cues?
A special type of context cue that helps us arrange and structure knowledge and materials
Does retrieval failure due to an absence of clues have research to support it?
Baker et al
Students placed randomly into 4 groups. They either chewed gum when learning a list of 15 words for 2 mins or not. They were asked to recall immediately then again after 24 hours whilst chewing gum or not.
Gum / gum = 11
Gum / no gum = 8
no gum / gum = 7
no gum / no gum = 8.5
Retrieval failure due to absence of clues only offers an explanation for some situations?
Does not explain repression where negative memories are banished into the unconscious mind. This is known as motivated forgetting.
Can retrieval failure due to absence of clues explain everyday situations?
Tip of the tongue experience
When we know something but cannot verbalise it. Information is encoded but not available w/o right cue
Does retrieval failure due to absence of clues have good practical applications?
Use in police investigations during EWT - bring them back to scene of the crime.
When does context dependent forgetting occur?
When the external environment is different at recall to how it was at coding
When does state dependent forgetting occur?
When the internal environment is different at recall to how it was at coding
What is misleading information?
Leading questions
Post event discussion
Why does misleading information influence EWT?
Memories laid down at the time are quite fragile, so misleading information can distort it
What is a leading question?
A question which, because of the way it is phrased, suggests a certain answer
What is the Loftus and Palmer research into leading questions?
Shown videos of traffic accidents
Independent measures design - 40 students
Contacted - 32 mph
Hit - 34 mph
Bumped - 38 mph
Collided - 39 mph
Smashed - 41 mph
What is the Loftus and Zanni into leading questions?
Shown clip of car accident
‘Did you see a broken headlight’ - 7% yes
‘Did you see the broken headlight’ - 17% yes
There was no broken headlight
An issue with leading question was that research was conducted on students?
Not generalisable
Studying full time so memory skill may be better
Has the research into leading questions lead to practical applications?
Enhanced cognitive interview used by the police. Reduces errors made by EWs
Kohnken reviewed 53 studies and found that this interview procedure led to a 34% increase in correct information
How does lab experiments strengthen research into leading questions?
High internal validity.
Speed verb changed DV. Cause and effect
How does lab experiments weaken research into leading questions?
Low external validity
Artificial
Watching video of car accident is not the same as pts are expecting something to happen and emotional impact is different
What is post - event discussion?
When a witness to a crime discusses the event with others so their memories become contaminated.
Had could retroactive interference influence post event discussion?
New information may interfere with your memory of the original event. In many countries pre trial publicity is prohibited.
How could conformity influence post event discussion?
If EW heard testimonies from those with similar accounts or superior knowledge, they might consciously or subconsciously change their testimonies
How can repeat interviewing influence post event discussion?
Repeat interviewing could damage original memory of events
Police record interviews to minimise this risk
Is there research evidence to support post event discussion?
Gabbert gave a sample of 60 students and 60 older adults a video of a girl stealing money from a wallet. 71% of co witness group recalled details they had not seen as they had watched diff videos. 60% said girl was guilty. 0% of control group recalled false details in their testimony.
Does the research into post event discussion take into account other factors?
Individual differences. Older people less accurate than younger. All age groups more accurate when identifying people of their own age.
How do lab studies strengthen research into post event discussion?
Low ecological validity
Lacks mundane realism
Does the research into post event discussion have practical applications?
Police interviews
Immediately to prevent PED
What is anxiety?
Witnesses may be in a state of how arousal if there is a threat or danger
What is the Yerkes-Dodson law?
There is an optimum level of anxiety
What is the weapon focus effect?
A witness may remember more about the thing that poses the threat and less about other details
What is the Johnson and Scott research into anxiety?
Condition 1 - overheard discussion about lab equipment failure then saw person emerge from lab holding pen and grease covered hands.
Condition 2 - overheard hostile debate
heard breaking glass and crashing chairs
man came out holding a knife and covered in blood
Pts asked to recall person from 50 photos
condition 1 - 49%
condition 2 - 33%
What was the Deffenbacher research into anxiety?
Carried out meta-analysis of 63 studies found that there was an increase in EWT accuracy up to high levels of anxiety. However, extreme anxiety caused recall to drop significantly.
What was the Loftus and Burns research into anxiety?
Pts saw video of bank robbery
Condition 1 - violent
Condition 2 - non violent
Those who saw violent incident recalled significantly less
Does the research into anxiety have high internal validity?
Lab experiments well controlled meaning there is cause and effect therefore research can be easily generalised.
How does a high level of control increase reliability of research into anxiety?
Standardised procedures so can be replicated. Loftus and Barnes - 2 obvious conditions
How do lab experiments weaken research into anxiety?
Low ecological validity
Crime is viewed on video so pts will be paying attention therefore far less stressful.
How is research into anxiety inconsistent?
Christianson and Hubinette carried out survey among 110 people who had witnessed 22 bank robberies. Some were bystanders and some were directly threatened. Victims showed more accurate recall.
What is the cognitive interview technique?
Fischer and Gieselman
Procedure used by the police when interviewing witnesses to crimes. Based on research of psychologists like Loftus.
What are the four techniques used in cognitive interview?
Report everything
Reinstate the context
Reverse the order
Change perspectives
What is the report everything technique?
Witnesses encouraged to include every single detail of an event, even though it may seem irrelevant or the witness doesn’t feel confident about it. Trivial details may trigger important memories.
What is the reinstate the context technique?
The witnesses should return to the original crime scene in their mind and imagine the environment and their emotions.
What is the reverse the order technique?
Events should be recalled in a different chronological order. This is done to prevent people reporting their expectations of how the event must have happened rather than the actual event.
What is the change perspective technique?
Witnesses should recall the event from other people’s perspective. This is done to disrupt the effect of expectations and schema on recall. The scheme you have for a particular setting generates expectations of what would have happened. It is the schema that is recalled rather than what actually happened.
Is there research evidence to support the cognitive interview technique?
Kohnken conducted a meta analysis and found that CI produced a higher amount of correctly recalled details compared to standard interviewing techniques.
Is there a weakness to the research that supports the cognitive interview?
Kohnken found a nearly identical accuracy rate for both cognitive and standard interview. Therefore cognitive is more likely to produce false memories.
Is there a practical problem with the use of cognitive interview?
Memon’s study showed that the police may not be given sufficient training. Detectives only received basic interview training very similar to old training, not the extended CI training as more expensive.
Can practical problems improve EWT in the cognitive interview process?
Kebbell and Wagstaff’s survey report showed that police who used CI were worried about large amount of incorrect info and long timings
Can the way the CI is used make it more effective?
Milne and Bull found that 4 techniques used singularly produced more recall. However combination of RE and CR resulted in significantly more correct recall.
