the multi store model of memory

Question 1

who describe the MSM?

Answer 1

Richard Atkinson

Richard Shiffrin

Question 2

what is the sensory register

Answer 2

the place where information is held at each of the senses

Question 3

what is the capacity of sensory register ?

Answer 3

very large

Question 4

what is the duration of the sensory register

Answer 4

very brief.

Milliseconds

Question 5

explain attention

Answer 5

• if a person’s attention is focused on one of the sensory stores, then the data is transferred to STM.
• attention is the first step in remembering something.

Question 6

what is STM?

Answer 6

information is held here so it can be used for immediate tasks. E.g. working on a maths problem.

Question 7

what is the duration of STM?

Answer 7

limited. It will disappear relatively quickly if it isn’t rehearsed.

Question 8

what is maintenance rehearsal?

Answer 8

repeating things that you what to remember over and over again. This is largely done verbally.

Question 9

what is the capacity of STM

Answer 9

limited. Information will also disappear from STM if new information enters STM, displacing the original information.

Question 10

what is the capacity of LTM

Answer 10

unlimited

Question 11

what is the duration of LTM

Answer 11

unlimited

Question 12

explain retrieval

Answer 12

the process of getting information from LTM involves the information passing back though STM. It is then available for use.

Question 13

explain the supporting evidence for the MSM (strength)

Answer 13

• studies using brain scanning techniques show there is a difference between STM and LTM.
• e.g. Beardsley found that the prefrontal cortex is active during STM but not LTM tasks.
• Squire found that the hippocampus is active during LTM.
• supports idea that there is a difference between STM and LTM

Question 14

explain the case study which supports the MSM

Answer 14

• HM had brain damage caused by an operation to remove the hippocampus from both sides of his brain to reduce his epilepsy.
• HM’s personality and intellect remained intact but couldn’t form new LTMs
• Supports the idea that different areas of the brain are involved in STM and LTM

Question 15

explain the limitation that the MSM is too simple

Answer 15

• MSM suggests the STM and LTM are single unitary stores however the wmm shows that STM is actually divided into a number of different stores.
• Research shows that there are a number of different types of LTM and each behave differently.
• e.g. maintenance rehearsal can explain long term storage in semantic memory but not episodic memory

Question 16

explain the limitation that LTM involves more than maintenance rehearsal

Answer 16

• Craik and Lockhart suggested that enduring memories are created by the processing that you do, rather than through maintenance rehearsal.
• things that are processed more deeply and more memorable.
• e.g. in Graik and Tulving’s study, participants remembered more words in the task using deep processing rather than shallow processing