Memory (the working memory model)

Question 1

Who and when and what created the idea of the WMM?

Answer 1

Alan Baddeley and Graham Hitch (1974) gives a more in detail response of the Multi-store model. Especially the STM. Describes it as much more active rather than how Atkinson and Shriffin described it as passive. Suggests multiple different components of the working memory model suggesting that it is in fact not unitary and that it stores different types of memories.

Question 2

How many components to the WMM?

Answer 2

4 unlike how it was described by the others as 1 single unitary store

Question 3

What is the Phonological loop?

Answer 3

Deals with all information that is auditory. Remembers the order of the way verbal information is presented and subvocal rehearsal is used for example words written on a page. Limited capacity, Beardley found two subcomponents known as the phonological store and an articulatory process.

Question 4

Articulatory process -

Answer 4

Used for words that are heard or seen, these words are repeated like an inner voice, this is a form of maintenance rehearsal after the information has been held for more than two seconds and is known as the second sub component storing info for an ongoing task.

Question 5

The phonological store (primary acoustic store) -

Answer 5

Which holds the words you hear like an inner ear.

Question 6

What is the visuo- spatial sketchpad?

Answer 6

A store which deals with visual and spatial information. Logie suggested that it can be described into two subcomponents.

Question 7

Visual cache -

Answer 7

Visual information about its form or colour as examples

Question 8

Inner scribe -

Answer 8

Spatial information in terms of it’s arrangement in a setting/visual field.

Question 9

Episodic buffer -

Answer 9

Is a multi- modal store that regards information of one or more of the five senses. Allows the making of episodic memories. Baddeley added this as the model needed a general store this allows information that regards both the VSS and PL plus other senses of info, an extra storage system in common with all memory units.

Question 10

Central executive -

Answer 10

Not a memory store, pays attention to particular tasks and directs information into each store and has a no capacity. Limited attention capacity

Question 11

Strength, supported by case studies (KF) -

Answer 11

Supported by KF’s case study. Suggested that his STM was disrupted and damaged and it was found that his effect on auditory stimuli was much greater than his visual stimuli, this demonstrates that his damage of the STM was only restricted to his phonological loop and not his visuo-spatial sketchpad as he could recall visual stimuli but not auditory stimuli and therefore this suggests that there are multiple STM stores and it is not unitary. Supports the theory of it being not unitary

Question 12

Central executive limitation -

Answer 12

Central executive lacks falsifiability (can be proven false). We can’t use it to test hypothesis. A second reason is the CE is not seen as one single store. It is seen that we have multiple different cognitive processes for example: selecting info, allocating attention, planning behaviour. Supported by imaging studies suggesting regions of the brain are acting differently for different areas during the CE direct attention.