Memory models

Question 1

What is the multi store model?

Answer 1

the multi-store model of memory was created by Atkinson and Shiffrin and consists of three stores which are the sensory information store (SIS) , the short-term memory store (STM) and the long-term memory store (LTM).

Question 2

Sensory register coding?

Answer 2

Modality specific (dependant on the senses).
iconic coding- sight.
echoic coding- hearing.
haptic coding- touch.

Question 3

Sensory register duration?

Answer 3

Less than half a second.

Question 4

Sensory register capacity?

Answer 4

very high/unlimited. But only the stimuli that are paid attention to are passed to the STM.

Question 5

STM coding?

Answer 5

acoustic- remembered by the sound of its verbal expression.

Question 6

STM capacity?

Answer 6

7 +/- 2

Question 7

STM duration?

Answer 7

18 to 30 seconds, but maintenance rehearsal keeps things in our stm.

Question 8

LTM coding?

Answer 8

semantic (meanings).

Question 9

LTM capacity?

Answer 9

unlimited

Question 10

LTM duration?

Answer 10

up to a life time

Question 11

What is retrieval?

Answer 11

Recalling a memory by bringing it into the STM from the LTM.

Question 12

Baddeley 1966:

Answer 12

A: Investigate the type of encoding which is preferred by LTM and STM
P: 4 word lists: acoustically similar, semantically similar, acoustically dissimilar and semantically dissimilar
Either recall list immediately or after a delay
F: In STM the similar words were remembered the least well- confused the words, in LTM those with similar meanings were remembered least well. This is because the LTM relies on words being semantically different, so it gets confused.
C: Encoding is mainly semantic in LTM, encoding is mostly acoustic in STM
E: low eco validity, acoustic and semantic encodings aren’t the only ones used, only 4 word lists, lacks mundane realism.

Question 13

Shalice and Warrington 1970:

Answer 13

-Studied a man with amnesia. His STM for digit recall was poor when they were read out to him, but better when he could read the words himself.
-This suggests multiple STM stores, so the MSM is wrong to suggest that there is one.

Question 14

Craik and Watkins 1973:

Answer 14

Describing the features of a coin.
Hold “G words” in memory until next one comes in a list of words. Maintance rehearsal is not effective in transferring info from STM to LTM
Semantics is also important in STM

Question 15

What research can be used for evidence for iconic conding?

Answer 15

-Sperling 1960.
-Presented a grid of letters for less than a second.
-On average 4 letters were remembered, but participants reported being aware of more letters. Shows the importance of attention.

Question 16

What research has there been into the capacity of the STM?

Answer 16

-Jacobs 1887
-Used digit span technique
-Participants try to recall as many numbers as possible after seeing or hearing them
-The amount of digits they recall before a mistake is their digit span
-Average span was 9 for digits 7 for letters
-Capacity of STM is 5 to 9 items

Question 17

What research has there been into chunking?

Answer 17

-Miller 1956.
-Suggested we could hold 7 +/- 2 item. But this memory span is determined by the amount of chunks not individual letters/digits.
-So capacity in terms of individual digits can be increased by combing the stimuli into chunks, which makes into more meaningful through organising it in line with the LTM.

Question 18

What research has there been into the duration of the STM?

Answer 18

-Peterson and Peterson 1959.
-Asked to recall different combinations of 3 letters after increasingly longer periods.
-During the intervals, they were prevented from rehearsing by counting backwards from 100.

Question 19

Research into the duration of the LTM?

Answer 19

-Bahrick et al (1975)
-Using 400 participants aged 17-74, the yearbook of each persons graduating year was obtained.
-They were asked to both recall the names of their year group, and do a photo recognition task for 50 photos.
-Participants tested within 15 years of graduation, the photo recognition was 90% accurate, and 60% in the recall.
-Within 48 years, photo recognition was 75% and the recall was 30%.

Question 20

Evaluating research into the MSM?

Answer 20

-Highly standardised and controlled so eliminating extraneous variables. Bahrick et al had mundane realism.
-Tasks lack mundane realism and ecological validity.

Question 21

What is the serial position effect?

Answer 21

our tendency to recall best the last and first items in a list.
Glanzer and Cuntiz 1966

Question 22

How does Clive Wearing support the model?

Answer 22

He couldn’t transfer information from STM to LTM which shows they are distinct/separate stores.
-He couldn’t form new long term memories but the ones from before the viral infection were still intact (could still play the piano).

Question 23

How does HM support the MSM?

Answer 23

-His hippocampus was removed in brain surgery to treat epilepsy.
-His memory was assessed in 1955, he thought it was 1953 and he was 4 years younger.
-He could not form new long term memories, suggesting that there are separate stores.

Question 24

Does KF support the MSM?

Answer 24

-In immediate recall tests, he remembered words better when they were presented visually rather than audit-orally, suggesting different types of STM.

-Damaged his STM in a motorcycle accident but his LTM was intact, suggesting two stores.

Question 25

Who developed the working memory model?

Answer 25

Baddeley and Hitch (1974)

Question 26

Why was the working memory model created?

Answer 26

The MSM’s view on short term memory was too simplistic. Complex cognitive functions need mental space to store and manipulate information.

Question 27

Central executive?

Answer 27

The part of working memory that is responsible for monitoring and directing attention and other mental resources. It deals with cognitive reasoning and mental arithmetic.
-Limited capacity of 4 items.
-Does not store information so does not code information.

Question 28

Phonological loop?

Answer 28

the part of working memory that holds and processes verbal and auditory information.
-Capacity of what can be said in 2 seconds.
-Acoustic coding.
-Phonological store= where words are stored.
-Articulatory process= converts written information into spoken, which allows for maintenance rehearsal.

Question 29

Visuospatial sketchpad?

Answer 29

A component of working memory where we create mental images to remember visual information. Also displays information from the long term memory.
-Visual cache= passive store of colour and form.
-Innerscribe= active store of spatial awareness and objects relationships with eachother.
-Spatially coded and 3-4 item capacity.

Question 30

Episodic buffer?

Answer 30

A component of working memory where information in working memory interacts with information in long term memory (eg. relating information you are processing to a previous memory).
-Limited capacity and multiple codes.
-Records events as they happen as temporary store of time sequencing.

Question 31

Strengths of the WMM: dual task technique?

Answer 31

-Baddely and Hitch.
-One group did a central executive reasoning task and repeated a word, using the phonological loop.
-The other group did the same CE task, but said random numbers which uses CE and the PL.
-Group B took longer but could still do the tasks at the same time.
-Doing different short term memory tasks so suggest different stores within them.
-Lacks mundane realism.

Question 32

Strengths of the WMM: Bunge et al 2000?

Answer 32

-MRI scans while performing a single task or a dual task.
-Showed an increased brain activity meaning increased demand for attention in the dual task.
-If there was just one short term memory store, there would be a limited capacity and the tasks would have to be completed one after another.

Question 33

Strengths of the WMM: KF?

Answer 33

-Brain Damage after motorcycle accident.
-Auditory processing was worse than visual processing. His immediate digit recall was worse when they were read out to him, than when he could read them.
-Phonological loop was damaged and sketchpad was not.
-Supports separate short term memory stores which cannot be explained by the MSM.

Question 34

Weaknesses of the WMM?

Answer 34

lack of clarity over the CE- cognitive psychologists suggest that the CE is unsatisfactory & doesn’t really explain anything. Some psychologists believe it may consist of separate components.
The experiments lack mundane realism and were in standardised lab condition, decreasing external validity.
The link between the LTM and WMM has not been fully explained.

Question 35

Who suggested that the MSM’s view on LTM was too simplistic?

Answer 35

Tulving 1985.

Question 36

What are explicit memories?

Answer 36

memories that are consciously available such as facts and personal experiences

Question 37

What are implicit memories?

Answer 37

memories that we don’t have to consciously recall.

Question 38

What is episodic memory?

Answer 38

information about events we have personally experienced. They are complex memories. You remember what happened, where and what point in time in relation to other episode memories.

Question 39

Examples of episodic memory?

Answer 39

-what was the color of the walls in your bedroom when you were a child?
-what did you eat for breakfast this morning?

Question 40

What is semantic memory?

Answer 40

Information about the world which you consciously recall. They are not time stamped and are less personal than episodic. It is more of a shared knowledge of facts.

Question 41

Examples of semantic memory?

Answer 41

what orange tastes like, capitals of countries, your address.

Question 42

What did Tulving say about semantic memories?

Answer 42

They are always being added too, and are less vulnerable to distortion and forgetting than episodic memories.

Question 43

What is procedural memory?

Answer 43

type of implicit memory that stores information about how to do things. You have no conscious effort to do these thing so they are hard to explain to someone else.

Question 44

Examples of procedural memory?

Answer 44

Perceptual and motor skills, riding a bike, driving a car, habit learning, classical conditioning

Question 45

How do case studies support long term memory?

Answer 45

Studies of HM and Clive Wearing.
-Could not recall episodic memories, but their semantic ones were relatively intact.
-Clive Wearing was a concert pianist and the procedural memory for playing the piano was still there.
-There must be different stores as not all were damaged.

Question 46

How does brain scan evidence support long term memory?

Answer 46

Tulving got participants to do a PET scan while completing different activities involving the different stores.
-The left prefrontal cortex was involved in semantic memories.
-The right prefrontal cortex was involved in episodic memories.
-The cerebellum was involved in procedural memories.

Question 47

How does real life application support long term memory?

Answer 47

-Now can help people with memory loss.
-Belleville in 2006 improved episodic memory through intervention.
-Shows that distinguishing types of long term memory has helped developed treatments.

Question 48

Why are case studies a weakness for the long term memory?

Answer 48

-Small sample size means lack of generalisation, low external validity.
-Lack of control over accidents/brain damage, so could lack internal validity.