Multi Store Model Flashcards
What is the Multi-Store Model of Memory (MSM)?
A linear model by Atkinson & Shiffrin (1968) showing how information flows through sensory memory, short-term memory (STM), and long-term memory (LTM).
What are the three components of the Multi-Store Model of Memory?
Sensory memory/register, short-term memory (STM), and long-term memory (LTM).
What is the sensory register?
The part of memory that picks up environmental stimuli through the five senses. Encoded as echoic (sound) and iconic (image) memory.
What is the duration of information in the sensory register?
A fraction of a second, up to about half a second.
What determines whether information moves from the sensory register to STM?
Whether or not attention is paid to the sensory input.
What is the duration and capacity of STM?
Duration is up to 30 seconds. Capacity is 7 ± 2 items.
What happens when new information enters the STM?
Old information is pushed out due to limited capacity (FIFO: first in, first out).
What is maintenance rehearsal?
A shallow form of rehearsal by repeating information verbally.
What is elaborate rehearsal?
A deep form of rehearsal involving repetition, re-framing, reinterpreting, and writing.
How is information encoded in STM?
Acoustically (through sound).
How can STM capacity be improved?
By chunking information, e.g., breaking phone numbers into groups.
What is known about the capacity and duration of LTM?
Both are believed to be potentially limitless.
Why is LTM difficult to research?
Its content and retrieval are hard to observe directly unlike STM.
How is information encoded in LTM?
Semantically (by meaning).
What causes forgetting in LTM?
Decay due to disuse or missing retrieval cues.
How does the case of HM support the MSM?
Shows the existence of separate STM and LTM; HM could not form new memories but retained old ones.
What did Glanzer & Cunitz (1966) find?
That preventing rehearsal erodes the recency effect, supporting the idea of separate memory stores.
What is one strength of the MSM?
It was the first model of memory and led to extensive further research.
What is one limitation of the MSM?
It’s a linear and static model, lacking explanation of how STM and LTM interact dynamically.
What are the three types of long-term memory?
Episodic (personal memories), Procedural (how-to knowledge), and Semantic (factual knowledge).
How can the case of HM be used in other topics?
It can be used in the Biological Approach to explain techniques to study the brain and localization of function.
