Memory

Question 1

Describe the multi-store model of memory

Answer 1

sensory memory (SM) -attention-> short-term memory (STM) <-retrieval, rehearsal-> long-term memory (LTM)

Question 2

describe the duration, encoding and capacity of sensory memory (SM)

Answer 2

duration: 0.25-2seconds
encoding: 5 senses
capacity: very large

Question 3

describe the duration, encoding and capacity of short-term memory (STM)

Answer 3

duration: 18-30seconds
encoding: acoustic
capacity: 5-9items

Question 4

describe the duration, encoding and capacity of long-term memory (LTM)

Answer 4

duration: forever
encoding: semantic
capacity: unlimited

Question 5

what are the three types of long-term memory (LTM)

Answer 5

episodic, semantic and procedural

Question 6

describe episodic memory

Answer 6

responsible for storing information about events we have experienced in our lives. Conscious thought based on events in time and place

Question 7

describe semantic memory

Answer 7

responsible for storing facts. also known as our dictionary of knowledge

Question 8

describe procedural memory

Answer 8

responsible for knowing how to complete actions.. also known as motor skills. unconscious thought

Question 9

describe the working memory model (WMM)

Answer 9

central executive into phonological loop and visuo-spatial sketchpad which combine into one memory through the episodic buffer into long-term memory (LTM)

Question 10

describe the difference between the phonological loop and the visuo-spatial sketchpad

Answer 10

the phonological loop refers to our sound processor or articulatory control system. it remembers our hearing of a memory. the visuo-spatial sketchpad refers to our sight processor or inner scribe. it remembers our sight of a memory

Question 11

what is the job of the episodic buffer

Answer 11

to combine the memory from the phonological loop and the memory from the visuo-spatial sketchpad into one memory to be transferred to our long-term memory (LTM)

Question 12

what are the two explanations for forgetting

Answer 12

interference and cue-dependency

Question 13

describe the interference explanation for forgetting

Answer 13

consists of proactive and retroactive interference.
proactive: old memories interfere with new memories
retroactive: new memories interfere with old memories
(PORN)

Question 14

describe the cues-dependency explanation for forgetting

Answer 14

retrieval failure due to absence of cues
types of clues include: context (environmental stimuli), state (internal or external state), organisational (change in organisation)

Question 15

what are the three main factors which affect the accuracy of eyewitness testimony (EWT)

Answer 15

leading questions, post event discussion, anxiety

Question 16

describe leading questions and how they affect the accuracy of eyewitness testimony (EWT)

Answer 16

questions designed to influence the individual into giving the desired answer by the police, even if it didn’t necessarily happen
can change what the witness believed happened

Question 17

describe post event discussion and how it affects the accuracy of eyewitness testimony (EWT)

Answer 17

post event discussion can cause the story to change based on: retroactive interference, media coverage, conformity, repeat interview.

Question 18

describe anxiety and how it can affect the accuracy of eyewitness testimony (EWT)

Answer 18

too much or too little anxiety can cause individuals to forget what happened causing witnesses to become unsure of what they may have seen

Question 19

how can you improve the accuracy of eyewitness testimony (EWT)

Answer 19

the cognitive interview is used rather than the standard police interview (SPI)

Question 20

what are the four events involved in a cognitive interview

Answer 20

mental reinstatement return witness to original external state (environment) elimination retrieval failure.
report everything: recall everything the witness possibly can no matter how irrelevant it seems.
change order: repeat order in reverse
change perspective: recall events from the perspective of someone else. commonly asked to recall from the perspective of someone involved

Question 21

give research support for sensory memory

Answer 21

sperling (1960): had ppt recall as many letters as they could from a grid of 12 symbols which were displayed for 50ms. only able to recall 4 symbols proving sensory memory decays very quickly

Question 22

give research support for short-term memory

Answer 22

Jacobs (1887): tested STM capacity with increasingly long lists of numbers or letters and ppt had to immediately recall them in the right order. numbers showed 9.3 capacity. letters showed 7.3 capacity

Question 23

give research support for long-term memory

Answer 23

Bahrick et al (1975): had ppt remember names and faces from school from 50 names or faces. 90% accurate after 14 years. 60% after 47 years.

Question 24

give research support for the working memory model

Answer 24

Baddley (1975) on phonological loop: had ppt randomly press keys without making words whilst either; reciting alphabet, counting from 1, alternating between letters and numbers

Question 25

give research support for cue-dependency

Answer 25

Godden and Baddeley (1975): divers learned 36 unrelated words with 4 conditions.
|beach| water
recall beach | 13.5 | 8.5
recall water | 8.6 | 11.4

Question 26

give research support for the weapons focus effect

Answer 26

Johnson and Scott (1976): ppt who were exposed to a knife had higher anxiety and were more likely to focus their attention on the weapon and not the face

Question 27

give research against the weapons focus effect

Answer 27

Pickle (1998): had ppt watch a video of someone have a business meeting either appear empty handed or holding a non-threatening object and asked them to describe their clothes. found without object recalled better than with non-threatening object

Question 28

give research against the cognitive interview (CI)

Answer 28

Memon et al (1994): deemed a CI was ineffective and in some cases worse than a SPI as police aren’t given sufficient training

Question 29

give research support for the duration of short-term memory

Answer 29

Peterson and Peterson (1959):
24 psychology students had to remember meaningless three letter sequences in increasing intervals. found ppts recalled correctly 80% of the time after 3 seconds and 10% of the time after 18 seconds

Question 30

give research support for anxiety as a factor affecting EWT

Answer 30

Yerkes and Dodson’s inverted u hypothesis (anxiety/arousal)

Question 31

give research support for interference as an explanation of forgetting

Answer 31

Baddeley and Hitch (1977):
asked rugby players to recall the names of the teams they had faced in the previous season.
those who had been playing longer got more wrong as they had faced more teams

Question 32

give research support for leading questions as a factor affecting EWT

Answer 32

Loftus and Palmer (1974):
had 45 American students estimate the speed of a car when it crashed in a video when the researchers used different words to describe the crash (e.g. smashed, hit, collided, bumped, contacted)
contacted - 31.8
smashed - 40.8
collided - 39.3
hit - 34
bumped - 38.1

result - the more aggressive the terminology used, the faster the estimate
conclusion - EWT may be biased depending on the terminology used during interviews