Multi-Store Memory Model Flashcards
Who proposed the multi-store model of memory?
Atkinsion and Shiffrin (1968)
What is the mutli-store memory model?
They saw memory as a flow of information through a system divided into a series of interacting memory stores.
What three memory stores are there?
- Sensory Store
- Short-term memory store
- Long-term memory store
How is information transferred from the environment into the sensory store?
- Information enters the system from the environment through our senses.
- Everything we hear, see, touch, taste and smell enter sensory memory.
- The sensory memory is constantly bombared with information, far more than the later memory stores can handle, so it has a mechanism for selecting the relevant sensory information and discarding what is not important.
What is the coding, capacity and duration of the sensory memory?
Coding: Sensory memory is modality specific.
Capcity: The capcity of sensory memory is large. Everything that enters our senses going into it. Because the duration is so short this is diffcult to quanify.
Duration: The duration of sensory memory os from 0.5 second to 1-2 seconds. The function of sensory memory is to retain the information long enough to allow a decision as to whether it is worth processing futher.
How does information move from the sensory store into short-term memory?
Research shows that information that does not receive attention is lost; information that is the focus of attention is moved onto the next memory store.
What is the coding, capacity and duration of short-term memory?
STM is a limited memory store of temporary duration.
Coding is mainly acoustoic.
Duration- about 18 seconds without rehersal.
Capacity- 5-9 items, increased with chunking.
How is information moved from the short-term memory store into the long-term memory store?
Maintence rehersal- when you repeat something over to yourself can info in the STM if you reherse for long enough it will be transferred into LTM.
What is the coding, capacity and duration of long-term memory?
Permanment memory store
Coding is mainly semantic
Duration is potentially a lifetime
Capacity is potentially unlimited
Information can be retreived from LTM when inforrmation is moved to STM to recall it.
Strengths of the multi-store memory model?
- There is supporting evidence for the concepts of short-term and long-term memory. E.g. Baddeley (1966)- We tend to mix up words with similar sounds in STM and words with similar meanings in LTM. shows that there is a disticntion between short-term and long-term memory.
Weaknesses of the multi-store memory model?
- Reductionist- does not consider how emotional factors, individual differences, such as neurodiveregence. Only considers cognitive factors.
- Maintainence rehersal has been critiques for lack of explaniation for the wide variety of techinques used for moving information from short-term memory into long-term memory.
- Doesn’t explain for Flashblub memories- can recall memories (shocking or tramuatic) without maintencce rehersal. E.g. people can remember what they were doing during 9-11 and death of Princess Diana.
- Shallice and Warrington (1970) publlished an article about KF, an injured motorcycle accident. After this he was able to recall stored information his LTM. However he could only recall visual information from his STM, he could not recall acoustic information from his STM. This suggests that there is not just one short-term memory store. Studies suggest that there is a range of stores for STM and LTM. Had amensia following a motorcycle accident, his STM recall of digit was poor when he heard them but better when he read them.
The Case studies of HM demostrates that there most be more than one store for long-term memory because he could remember procedural memory but not episoidic memory after his hippocampus was removed.
