WMM Evaluation Flashcards
Strength 1
A strength of the WMM is that it has convincing research to support it
From Logie’s dual task study (1986).
Who found that participants performance on takd was good when the tasks used different systems. For example, learning a lost of words using the phonological loop followed by a distraction task of learning images using the visuo-spatial sketch pad. However, if two tasks required the use of the same system performance on one one or both tasks would be poor.
This suggests STM is made up of different stores, which can perform different tasks at the same time; something which the multi-store model cannot explain.
Strength 2
A strength of the WMM is that it has convincing research to support it
From Shallice and Warrington’s (1974) case study of KF.
Who found that, after his accident, his memory of auditory information was far worse than his memory of visual information.
This suggests that there are two separate stores for visual information (the visuo-spatial sketch pad) and auditory information (the phonological loop), and that they are independent of each other as one can be damaged without affecting the other. However, evidence from brain-damaged patients can be unreliable as it relates to unique, individual cases.
Strength 3
A strength of the WMM is that there is convincing research to support the existence of the central executive,
From Braver et al (1997).
They carried out brain scans on patients whilst giving them tasks involving the central executive. They found a lot of activity in the prefrontal cortex, and saw that this activity increased as the task became more difficult.
This suggests that as the demands on the central executive increase, it has to work harder to do its job. This research provides evidence that the central executive has a physical area in the brain.
Limitation 1
One limitation of the WMM is that there is a lack of clarity over the central executive.
Cognitive psychologists have said that the central executive is unsatisfactory and that it doesn’t explain anything.
Baddeley (2003) agreed this was the least understood component of the model and needs to be more clearly defined, than simply as an attention system.
This means that the WMM has not been fully explained.
