Multi store model of memory Flashcards
what did Atkinson and Shiffrin state about the multi store model of memory?
Atkinson and Shiffrin stated that Information first enters the sensory store which has a large capacity and very short duration.
describe the sensory register
If information is paid attention to it enters the Sensory register
Material in sensory register doesn’t last very long when paid attention to it passes to the short term memory store but if not it will be forgotten
what is the duration, capacity and encoding of the sensory register
Duration: ¼ to ½ second
Capacity: all sensory experience (large capacity)
Encoding: sense specific
discuss maintenance rehearsal
repetition that keeps information in STM, but eventually, such repetition will create an LTM.
When maintenance rehearsal is performed information is kept in the short term memory and passed on to long term memory
what happens if maintenance rehearsal is not maintained
If maintenance rehearsal (repetition) does not occur, then information is forgotten and lost from short-term memory through the processes of displacement or decay.
evaluation: strength
good understanding of the structure and process of the STM
This is good because this allows researchers to expand on this model. This means researchers can do experiments to improve on this model and make it more valid, and they can prove what the stores actually do.
evaluation: strength
supporting evidence from studies of amnesiacs
For example the patient H.M. case study. HM is still alive but has marked problems in long-term memory after brain surgery.He has remembered little of personal (death of mother and father) or public events (Watergate, Vietnam War) that have occurred over the last 45 years. However, his short-term memory remains intact.
evaluation: weakness
rehearsal
the model suggests rehearsal helps to transfer information into LTM, but this is not essential. Why are we able to recall information which we did not rehearse (e.g., swimming) yet unable to recall information which we have rehearsed (e.g., reading your notes while revising)?Therefore, the role of rehearsal as a means of transferring from STM to LTM is much less important than Atkinson and Shiffrin claimed in their model.
evaluation: strength
research support
A strength of this study is that there is research support. Baddeley found that we tend to mix up words that sound similar when we are using out STM but we mix up words that have similar meanings when we use our LTM. This clearly shows that coding in the STM is acoustic and semantic for the LTM supporting the multi model of memory that these two memory stores are separate.
