the working memory model

Question 1

what is the central executive system?

Answer 1

-‘supervisory role’
-monitors incoming data
-focuses and divides our limited attention and allocates subsystems
-limited storing capacity
-does not store information

Question 2

what is a phonological loop?

Answer 2

-deals w auditory info(acoustic)
-preserves order of info
2 sub categories include:
-phonological store= stores what you hear
-articulatory process= allows maintence rehearsal (repeating words in a loop) to keep in memory, 2 seconds long

Question 3

what is a visuo-spatial sketchpad?

Answer 3

-stores visual and spatial info
-e.g if u needed to work out no. of windows in ur homr you would visualise it
-limited capacity e.g baddeley says 3-4 objects
-subdivided into:
-visual cache= stores visual data
-inner scribe= records arrangement of objects in visual field

Question 4

what is episodic buffer?

Answer 4

-temporary store of info
-integrates visual, spatial,verbal
-maintains time sequencing (records events happening)
-extra storage for the CE
-limited capacity of 4 chunks
-links working memory to long term memory

Question 5

what are the strengths of WMM?

Answer 5

(clinical evidence)
-KF patient has poor STM after brain injury
-for audiorty sound but could process visual normally
-immediate recall for letters was better when he read them
-but when read to him(acoustic) he struggled
-phonological loop fine but visuo spatial sketchpad was intact
-so seperate memory stores is evident

(dual task performance)
-support separate existence of visuo spatial sketchpad
-baddeleys et al’s Ps carried out visual and verbal at same time
-performance on each was similar to when they carried out tasks serparately
-but when both tasks put together performance declined
-bc both visual tasks compete for same subsystem but no competiton when performing task toegther
-so must be seperate subsystem for VSS that process visual
and verbal for phonological

Question 6

limitations of WMM?

Answer 6

(counterpoint clinical evidence)
-unclear if KF had other brain impairments that affected his performace
-e.g he had a motorcycle accident causing this
-the trauma may have also affected his performance
-challenges evidence that comes from clinical studies- may have affected diff systems

(nature of central executive)
-lack of clairty of nature of CE
-Baddeley also admitted CE is the most important but least understood
-CE needs to be more elaborated rather than just simply being ‘attention’
-some psycholgists believe that the CE may consist of diff subcomponents
-limited reserach on the CE