The multistore memory model

Question 1

Who was it introduced by?

Answer 1

Atkinson + Shriffin (1968)

Question 2

MSMM

Answer 2

-Memories are formed sequentially + information passes from one component to the other in a linear formation.
-Each component has its own type of coding, capacity and duration.

Question 3

Sensory store

Answer 3

A stimuli from the environment e.g. sights, sounds, smells etc will pass into the sensory memory: iconic memory- visual elements, echoic memory- auditory elements + other sensory stores.
-Duration= less than half a second
-Capacity=high
-Decay can take place- the memory fading away if not paid attention to

Question 4

Short term memory

Answer 4

-The bits of info we think are important and pay ATTENTION to get passed onto our STM
-Information can be retained in our stm through maintenance rehearsal, largely acoustic
-Duration= 18-30 secs
-Coded= acoustically
-Capacity= 7+/-2
-Decay displacement- new memories displace old memories in our stm

Question 5

Long term memory

Answer 5

-Prolonged rehearsal of the information in our stm transfers it over into our LTM.
-Retrieval will take place if we want to use information from our LTM, it’ll get transferred back into our stm to be used.
-Decay retrieval failure/interference.

Question 6

AO3 EVAL STRENGTH

Answer 6

Support from studies showing that stm + ltm are different.
E.G. Baddeley (1966)- found we tend to mix up words that sound similar when using our stm- acoustic confusion. BUT we mix up words with similar meanings when using our LTM- semantic confusion.
STM codes information acoustically, whereas LTM codes information semantically.
Shows that the LTM + STM are different.

Question 7

AO3 EVAL LIMITATION

Answer 7

HOWEVER, in everyday life we form memories related to all sorts of useful things- peoples faces, names, facts, places etc. BUT many of the studies that support MSM used none of these materials, instead they used digits, letters + sometimes words.
They used what are known as consonant syllables which have no meaning.
Means that the MSM is wrong in claiming that there is just one STM store processing different types of information e.g. visual, auditory etc.