Working Memory and STM Flashcards
What is working memory?
mental workspace that allows us to temporarily retain and manipulate a restricted set of information
What is a unitary model?
model of memory that assumes working memory is an active part of the LTM
What is the capacity of STM? According to who?
7+/-2 chunks (Miller)
“magical number 7”
stores chunks of info
What is personal semantics?
3,1,1,0 are 4 chunks of info unless you’re born on the 31st of October
What is prosodic preferences?
it’s easier to remember 12-76-54 over 127654
What is phonological plausibility?
remember something better in a pronounceable sequence than unpronounceable
Cowen: STM capacity revised
range of 3-5 chunks in a variety of tasks
How has STM capacity been investigated?
using sequential comparison procedure
Why does STM have a capacity limit? (Cowen)
biological restrictions (neuronal firing speed make it impossible to access more than 4 chunks)
Computational benefit (smaller no. of chunks allows for faster and efficient processing)
Atkinson and Shiffrin: multi-store model
Sensory stores -> decay
Pay attention
STM -> displacement
Rehearsal
LTM -> interference
What is a strength of Multi Store Model?
highly influential
neurological evidence (Shallice and Warrington): patient KF had impairments in STM but normal LTM
What are weaknesses to Multi Store Model?
STM cannot be seen as a unitary system
model fails to account for complex aspects of cognition like decision making
forgetting from STM might be more due to interference than displacement
Baddeley and Hitch: Multicomponent model of working memory
Central executive
Phonological loop
visuospatial sketchpad
episodic buffer
What 2 inputs does the phonological loop deal with?
auditory (spoken words)
visual (written words)
What are the 2 components to the phonological loop?
phonological store “inner ear”
(retains spoken language)
Articulatory loop “inner voice”
What does the articulatory loop do?
converts written words into sounds
Logie (1995): suggested visual and spatial info depend on diff stores, what 2 stores?
visual cache (stores visual info)
inner scribe (stores spatial info)
What does the episodic buffer do?
interacts with LTM
essential for organising info into chunks
What is the central executive?
an attentional control system
- automatic control system (for complex but well learned situations)
- supervisory attention system (for novel situations)
What are the main jobs of the central executive?
selective attention
inhibition control
retaining attentional focus
dividing attention
Cowen: Embedded Processes Model (unitary-store model)
working memory is a functional NOT structural system
attention can be voluntary or involuntary depends on stimuli / task
involves 3 hierarchal elements
What are the 3 hierarchal elements in Cowen’s embedded processes model?
LTM
activated part of LTM
focus of attention (on a subset of activated LTM)
What is a strength of Cowen’s Embedded process model?
emphases differences between STM and LTM
What is a weakness of Cowen’s Embedded process theory?
needs to account for findings of dissociations in neurological patients
What does Amnesics mean?
difficulty in creating new memories
forget quickly after a few minutes
Why do Amnesics perform well on most STM tasks but poorly on most LTM tasks?
because hippocampus (including medial temporal lobes) which are damaged in amnesic patents are crucial for storing LTMs
What is the best way to process information?
Rehearsal
based on levels of processing theory
What are the 2 aspects to Rehearsal?
- maintenance (repeating info)
- elaboration (deep semantic processing)
What are the 3 tasks used to process info according to Craik and Tulving?
shallow graphemic task
intermediate task
deep semantic task
What is the shallow graphemic task?
where ppt decides if each word is in upper or lower case
What is the intermediate phonemic task?
decide is each word rhymes with target word
What is the deep semantic task?
decide if each word fits in sentence with blank
What is the distinctiveness effect?
some memory traces stand out due to being processed differently to others
(also known as Von Restorff effect)
What is the transfer appropriate processing theory?
where memory performance is improved when context of learning matches context of retrieval
Forgetting over time is logarithmic, what does this mean?
it’s exponential
gets worse
What is trace decay?
mémoires fading overtime unless actively rehearsed
What is proactive interference?
disruption of new memory due to previous learning
What is retroactive interference?
disruption of previously learned memories due to new memories
What is hypermnesia?
remember huge amounts of autobiographical details
view forgetting as a problem
Does working memory and STM have low or high heritability?
high heritability
What is the estimate percentage of individual differences in WM which are related to genetic differences?
43-48%
How can you increase working memory capacity?
through chunking
Training and Transfer has 3 aspects…
- criterion measure
- near transfer
- far transfer
What is criterion measure?
improvement in same activity as a result of skills developed during training
e.g training regularly on a treadmill improves performance on treadmill
What is near transfer?
improvements in activities that are closely linked to skills developed during training
e.g training on a treadmill improves running outside
What is far transfer?
improvements in activities that are different but related to the skills developed during training
e.g training on a treadmill improves cycling or rowing
What is the N-back task?
used as measure of working memory
ppts see a long series of items
indicate when an item presented was also presented earlier
Klingberg et al (2005): WM training in ADHD children
non medicated ADHD children 7-12 yrs
CogMed software used:
- visuospatial WM tasks
- verbal WM tasks
90 WM trials per day
WM trials stored on a PC
Klingberg et al (2005) findings
improvements shown more in long term follow up e.g after 3 months
evidence for near and far transfer
strongest effects = span board task
weakest effects = stroop
