Memory

Question 1

What is coding?

Answer 1

The way in which information is PROCESSED into memory

Question 2

What is storage?

Answer 2

Involves RETAINING information in memory. The storage can be both temporary OR permanent.

Question 3

What is retrieval?

Answer 3

involves the accessing information stored in memory

Question 4

What is Capacity?

Answer 4

The AMOUNT of information the memory store holds

Question 5

What is the capacity of STM?

Answer 5

limited to 7+/-2 items (5-9)

Question 6

What happens when capacity is exceeded in STM?

Answer 6

when new info comes into STM it pushes the old info ( known as displacement) due to it’s limited capacity.

Question 7

What is the research into STM Capacity?

Describe this research.

Answer 7

Miller (1956) ‘Digit span technique’.

+Involves reading a series of digit sets that get progressively longer.

+ The individual is asked to immediately repeat the digit set back in the right order.

+Miller found that participants could recall on average 7 +/- 2 digits (i.e. 5-9 items).

+concluded that STM has a limited capacity and that new information coming into STM ‘pushes out’ (displaces) the old information due to this limited capacity.

Question 8

What is the capacity for LTM?

and what research has taken place in this area?

Answer 8

unlimited

LTM capacity is difficult to measure so there is very little research in this area.

Question 9

What is Duration?

Answer 9

the length of time the memory store holds information

Question 10

What is the duration for STM?

Answer 10

Info can be held in STM for a LIMITED time (18-30 seconds)

However- can be extended through rehearsal (repeating something over and over again)

Question 11

What is the research into STM duration?

Describe the findings and the research method.

Answer 11

Peterson and Peterson (1959)
asked 24 students to listen to a ‘consonant trigram’

+ Immediately after hearing the trigram, they heard a random 3 digit number and they were asked to count backwards in 3s from this number.

+This was in order to prevent rehearsal of the trigram.

+ They were asked to recall the trigram after 3, 6, 9, 12, 15 or 18 seconds.

+It was found that the highest level of recall was after 3 seconds (90% recalled the trigram)

but this decreased rapidly as the duration increased until there was only 2% recalled after 18 seconds.

Question 12

What is the duration for LTM?

Answer 12

unlimited. Even if info cannot be retrieved, it doesn’t mean the info isn’t stored in LTM.

Question 13

What is the research into LTM duration?

Describe the findings and the research method.

Clue= includes year book in the study

Answer 13

Bahrick et al (1975)

+asked 392 participants aged 17-74 to name old classmates from their high school (Free Recall test).

+They were then given 50 photos, some from the participants’ high school yearbook and asked if they could recognise their classmates from these photos (Recognition Test).

+They found that 15 years after graduation, free recall was about 60% accurate. After 48 years this dropped to 30%.

+ Recognition was 90% accurate after 15 years, dropping to about 70% after 48 years.

+This suggests LTM could have a potentially unlimited duration and that even if a long-term memory cannot be freely recalled, this does not mean it is no longer stored, it may just need assistance to be retrieved (i.e. recognition rather than free recall).

Question 14

What is coding?

Answer 14

the way information is processed so it can be stored in memory.

Question 15

What is the coding for STM?

Answer 15

coding in STM is mainly acoustic.

Question 16

What is the research into STM coding?

Describe the findings and the research method.

Clue= list of acoustically similar and non similar words

Answer 16

Baddeley (1966)

+he found that if participants were presented with a list of words that were acoustically similar (e.g. cat, cab, can) and asked for immediate recall then they made more errors than they did when presented with a list of acoustically different words (e.g. pit, few, cow).

+He concluded that this was because there was confusion based on the way the words sounded. This suggests that STM encodes information acoustically.

Question 17

What is coding for LTM?

Answer 17

coding for LTM is mainly semantic

Question 18

What is the research into LTM coding?

Describe the findings and the research method.

Answer 18

Baddeley (1966)

+as he found that if participants were presented with a list of words that were semantically similar (e.g. great, large, big) and asked for recall 20 minutes later, they made more errors than they did when presented with a list of semantically different words (e.g. good, huge, hot).

+He concluded that this was because there was confusion based on the meaning of the words. This suggests that LTM encodes information semantically.

Question 19

Describe how the Multi-Store Model of Memory works

Answer 19

SENSORY REGISTER

goes to STM through process of paying attention

STM- if maintenance rehearsal doesn’t take place, memory decays or fade.

goes to LTM through process of elaborative rehearsal (rehearsed and understood)

LTM- when info needs to be recalled from LTM to STM it is retrieved.

STM- information can be forgot due to displacement or decay

SR- info not encoded decays

LTM- info forgot due to retrieval failure or interference

Question 20

What is the sensory register( MSM)

Answer 20

where information is held at each of the senses.

They are constantly receiving and coding modality specific info.

incoming data remains here for a very brief period as the SR has a LARGE CAPACITY but LIMITED DURATION (less than 0.5 seconds)

Question 21

Describe why this is a strength of MSM:

ONE STRENGTH OF THE MSM IS THAT EVIDENCE SUPPORTS THE VIEW THAT MEMORY IS MADE UP OF DIFFERENT STORES.

Answer 21

+This means- case study have shown that there are separate stores

+Evidence= KF.

motorcycle accident.
suffered brain damage.
STM damaged for verbal.
Visual STM mostly unaffected.
LTM remained intact.

supports MSM- shows us there are separate stores for LTM and STM. If there wasnt- he would have lost his LTM as well.

Question 22

Describe why this is a weakness of MSM:

HOWEVER A WEAKNESS IS THAT EVIDENE ALSO SUGGESTS THE STM STORE IS NOT UNITARY.

Answer 22

This means- the MSM argues that there is only one type of STM BUT research shows this might be false.

Evidence comes from KF.- STM was damaged for VERBAL but mostly unaffected for VISUAL.

PROBLEM FOR MSM- it goes against the view of STM being a unitary store otherwise damage to KF’s STM would have affected all of STM equally. therefore MSM is insufficient to explain STM on it’s own.

Question 23

Describe why this is a weakness of MSM:

ANOTHER WEAKNESS OF THE MSM IS THAT EVIDENCE SUGGESTS LTM IS NOT UNITARY.

Answer 23

This means-the MSM argues that there is only one type of STM BUT research shows this might be false.

Evidence - Clive Wearing

Highly talented musician who contracted a viral infection causing extensive brain damage.

Lost his episodic memory (no memory of wedding)

But still had use of his procedural memory (can still play piano)

WHY IS IT A PROBLEM FOR MSM- goes against the view that LTM is one unitary store otherwise damage to Clive Wearing’s LTM would have affected all of his LTM equally. therefore, MSM is insufficient to fully explain LTM on it’s own.

Question 24

Describe why this is a strength for the MSM:

EVIDENCE TO SUPPORT THE FEATURES OF THE SENSORY REGISTER COMES FROM SPERLING (1960).

Answer 24

When participants were shown a chart for 50 milliseconds and asked to recall as many letters as possible- only 3 letters recalled on average.

HOWEVER- a high, medium, low pitch tone was played immediately after the chart to indicate the top or bottom row of letters, participants could report 3 letters from any row.

POSTIVE- supports idea that SR has large capacity and short duration as participants clearly had no problem holding a memory of the entire image which fades in the time it takes to report back the items.

Question 25

describe why this is a strength of the MSM:

FURTHER SUPPORT FOR THE IDEA OF SEPERATE STM AND LTM STORES COME FROM MURDOCK (1962)

Answer 25

Murdock’s serial position research found that:

no matter how many words a person is shown and then asked to recall, items at the beginning of the list have a greater recall that those in the middle of the list (called primacy effect) and words at the end have a greater recall that those in the middle too (recency effect).

Question 26

describe the Working Memory Model (WMM)

Answer 26

WMM suggests STM is more active and complex than the MSM proposed.

CONSISTSTS OF 4 DIFFERENT COMPONENTS.

1. CENTRAL EXECUTIVE
   +supervisory component
   +directs attention to incoming info and starts off rehearsal process
   +codes info any modality
   +limited storage but can delegate info to its slave systems
2. PHONOLOGICAL LOOP
   + pl codes and acts as temporary storage for holding acoustic info
   +preserves the order in which info arrives
   +limited capacity and can be subdivided into
   phonological store ( inner ear)-linked to speech perception and rehearses sounds you hear
   articulatory process (inner voice)- linked to speech production and silently repeats the words we are preparing to speak
3. VISUALSPATIAL SKETCHPAD
   +codes visual information and spatial info
   +limited capacity of 3-4 objects
4. EPISODIC BUFFER
   +often seen as storage component of the CE that integrates info from the CE, PL and VSS as well as linking working memory to LTM
   +has limited capacity but it able to code info from any modality.
   +Maintains a sense of time sequencing which allows it to record events which are happening as a single memory rather than separate strands.

Question 27

describe why this is a strength of WMM:

A STRENGTH OF WMM IS THAT EVIDENCE SUPPORTS THE VIEW THAT STM IS NOT UNITARY

Answer 27

This means- research has shown there are separate stores within STM

Evidence- KF
verbal STM damaged
visual STM remained intact

POSTIVE FOR WMM - supports the view that stm does have separate verbal and visual stores otherwise damage to the memory would have damaged all of KF memory equally

Question 28

What are the descriptions/research into explanations for forgetting?

(Retro and Pro)

Answer 28

Retroactive interference = occurs when newly learned info disrupts our recall of older memories

This is because the later memory task interferes with the recall of the original, associated memory.

Eg struggling to remember the MSM because you have now learned the WMM

Proactive interference= occurs when older memories disrupts our ability to learn and recall new info

This is because the original memory interferes with the new, associated memory.

Eg calling your new partner by your ex partners name

Question 29

What is the research into the effects of leading questions on the accuracy of eyewitness testimony?

Answer 29

Loftus and Palmer (1974)

+ research took place in a laboratory
+ 45 students split into groups and watched 7 different videos of car crashes
+ after each video they were required to fill out a questionnaire about the video they had watched
+there was 1 critical question ‘how fast were the cars going when they HIT each other?’
+ 1 group got that exact question
+the other 4 groups had hit replaced with either smashed,contacted,collided or bumped
+ they then calculated the mean estimate for their groups
It was found that the highest mean estimate was for the word smashed (41.8mph) and the lowest was contacted (30.8mph)

+it was concluded that misleading information in the form of leading questions can indeed effect the accuracy of eye witness testimony and that is may even cause the information to be changed before it is stored so that memory is permanently affected

Question 30

What are the strengths and weaknesses of the loftus and palmer research on leading questions and EWT?

Answer 30

Strength= high degree of control over other variables
Strength= the findings have pratical applications
Weakness= using students means the research can’t be generalised
Weakness= research lacked ecological validity
Weakness= evidence against Loftus and Palmers research comes from Yuille and Cutshall

Question 31

What are the strengths and weaknesses of explanations for forgetting?

(Retro and proactive interference)

Answer 31

Strength= evidence to support the RI explanation comes from McGeogh and McDonald (1931)

Strength=evidence to support the PI explanation comes from underwood (1957)

Weakness = a problem with RI and PI is that the research support for these explanations uses materials which are meaningless.

Question 32

What is research/description into explanations for forgetting?

(Retrieval failure due to absence of cues)

Answer 32

Retrieval failure due to absence of cues= occurs when a memory is available but we cannot access it because we do not have the necessary triggers or cues.

This is because when the memories are initially coded, we often code where we were at the time the info was learned ie context or how we felt ie state.

Context dependent forgetting = inability to retrieve a memory due to an absence of environmental triggers or cues at the time of retrieval. Eg learning a fact in one classroom and struggling to remember it when asked to recall in a different classroom. Or struggling to remember a word until you are given the first letter (known as a prompt)

State dependent forgetting= inability to retrieve a memory due to being in a different mental state at the time of retrieval to when that memory was initially coded. Eg learning new information whilst upset and struggling to remember it when feeling happier.

Question 33

What are the strengths and weaknesses of explanations for forgetting?

(Context and state dependent forgetting)

Answer 33

Strength= evidence to support context-depending forgetting comes from different studies
Strength= further strength into forgetting is that it has real-world applications
Strength = evidence to support state-dependent forgetting comes from Goodwin et al (1969)

Question 34

What are the strengths and weaknesses of WMM?

Answer 34

Strength= evidence supports the view that STM is not unitary
Strength= further support for a non-unitary STM comes from dual task research
Strength= brain scan evidence further support the slave systems of the WMM
Strength= real life applications
Major criticism= very little is know about the functions of the central executive

Question 35

What is research/ description into long term memory?

Answer 35

Tulving (1985)- first to realise that the msm was too simplistic and although the WMM had addressed many of these issues with the msm’s view of stm, it had not addressed the msm’s simplistic view of ltm. Tulving proposes that there are 3 LTM stores.

1. EPISODIC MEMORY = memory of personal memories, events or episodes from a specific point in time. Stored in reference to context and emotion. Eg first day at school, wedding day, first kiss. You have to make a CONSCIOUS effort to recall + declarative + explicit
2. SEMANTIC MEMORY= memory of meaningful info such as facts and general knowledge which is shared by everyone. These memories may be concrete ie facts as knowing the capital of England is London or abstract such as concepts in mathematics. Examples include knowing what an orange tastes like or what behaviour is approximate in certain places. Do not necessarily involve emotional memory. You have to make a conscious effort to recall semantic memories + explicit + declarative
3. PROCEDURAL MEMORY= memory of skills actions or how things are done. Sometimes referred to as muscle based memories. These memories are automatic as they cannot easily be stated out loud unlike explicit memories. Examples include walking, signature, singing, talking and whistling. You can usually recall these memories without making a conscious effort as the info is not available for conscoius inspection + implicit+ non declarative.

Question 36

what are the strengths and weaknesses of types of long term memory?

Answer 36

Strength = evidence supports this view
Weakness = problems with the evidence from brain damaged patients
Strength= physiological evidence from brain scans also supports the idea of different types of LTM
Weakness= focusing on 3 types of LTM may ignore a fourth type
Strength= has real life applications

Question 37

What is the research into post-event discussion effecting the accuracy of EWT?

Answer 37

Gabbert et al (2003)

+120 participants were put into pairs and shown a video of the same event but were shown from different points of view
(A girl returning a borrowed book to an empty university office)

+this meant that each participant could see elements in the event that their partner could not.
Eg only one partner in each pair could read the title of the book that the girl was returning, but equally only one partner could see the girl commit a crime of sliding a £10 note out of a wallet and into her pocket.

+both participants then discussed what they had seen before individually completing a test of recall

IT WAS FOUND THAT= 71% of participants mistakingly recalled aspects of the event they did not see in the video but had picked up from discussion.

The corresponding figure in a control group where there was no discussion, was 0%.

60% of the participants who could not see the crime reported the girl as being guilty of the crime despite not having actually witnessed it taking place.

CONCLUSION= witnesses often go along with each other due to ‘memory conformity’ - going along with the testimony of others either to win their social approval or because they believe the other witnesses are right and they are wrong.

Question 38

What are the strengths and weaknesses of post-event discussion on the accuracy of EWT research?

Answer 38

Strength= easy to replicate
Strength= evidence to support Gabbert et al’s findings comes from Bodner et al (2009)
Strength= real-world applications
Strength= this knowledge can have a positive effect on the economy
Weakness= lacks the consequences of real-life crimes

Question 39

What is the research into Anxiety on the accuracy of EWT?

Answer 39

Johnson and Scott (1976) - aimed to study test the effects of the anxiety caused by a weapon being present on the accuracy of EWT

+conducted a laboratory experiment in which participants were split into two conditions and instructed to wait outside a room before the study began

+in both conditions participants had heard a discussion in a neighbouring room

+ condition 1= a man came out holding a pen with grease on his hands

+ condition 2= the discussion was rather more heated and a man emerged holding a paper knife covered in blood.

+ the participants were later asked to identify the man from 50 photographs

IT WAS FOUND THAT= participants in condition 1 were 49% accurate and those in condition 2 were only 33% accurate.

CONCLUSION= the anxiety caused by the weapon narrows the focus of attention making their recall less detailed and accurate which may explain why eyewitnesses sometimes have poor recall for certain violent crimes.

Question 40

What are the strength and weaknesses of anxiety and EWT research?

Answer 40

Strength= high degree of control over other variables
Weakness= may be testing surprise rather than anxiety
Strength= support for Johnson and Scott’s findings comes from Loftus et al (1987)
Weakness= contradictory evidence to suggest anxiety can actually improve the accuracy of EWT
Strength= evidence that explains the apparent contradiction in research into anxiety and EWT is the Yerkes-Dodson Law

Question 41

What is the research into improving the accuracy of EWT including the use of cognitive interview?

Answer 41

Fisher and Geisleman developed the cognitive interview which was based on demonstrated psychological principles concerning effective recall.

4 techniques=

1. Context reinstatement= asking the eye witness to image themselves back at the scene of the crime again. To help them do they they can be encouraged to try and image everything from how they were feeling at the time to recreate that feeling, as well as aspects of the environment such as the scene,noises and the weather. This provides retrieval cues to help them access their memory of the event
2. Report Everything= the interviewer encourages the eyewitness to report every single detail of the event, even though it may seem irrelevant. This is because what might seem irrelevant to the eyewitness may actually be of importance to the investigation and also, irrelevant details may serve as retrieval cues to help prompt more relevant details to be recalled. The purpose is to disrupt the impact of schema on recall.
3. Change the perspective= the witness is asked to recall the incident from multiple perspectives and not just from their own. For example, by imagining how it would have appeared to other witnesses present at the time. This is done because psychological research has shown memories can be retrieved through a number of different routes and therefore it is more productive to vary these access routes during questioning. The purpose is to disrupt the impact of schema on recall.
4. Reverse the order= the interviewer may try alternative ways through time line of the incident. For example, they may reverse the order and get the eyewitness to recall the target event starting at the event and tracking backwards. Again this is to try and retrieve memories via a number of different routes to increase accuracy and detail of recall. It also disrupts the impact of schemas and expectations.

The enhanced Cognitive Interview= Fischer et al developed some additional elements of the CI to focus on the social dynamics of the interview. It was built on the four main techniques of the CI by ensuring:
+ the interviewing knows when to establish eye contact and when not to
+how to reduce eyewitness anxiety
+ how to minimise distractions
+ encourage the witness to speak slowly
+ ask open ended questions

Question 42

What are the strengths and weaknesses of the cognitive interview?

Answer 42

Strength= evidence to support the effectiveness of the cognitive interview comes from kohnken et al (1999)
Strength= it may have a
Weakness= conducting cognitive interviews may raise PTSD/ trauma
Weakness= the police have criticised the amount of time cognitive interviews take
Weakness= may increase inaccurate recall