Working Memory Model Flashcards
Who came up with WMM
Baddeley
What does WMM show
Designed to shoe how STM is organised and how it functions
WMM focus on when your mind is
Active: when you’re using STM to temporarily store or manipulate information
5 components of WMM
- central executive
- episodic buffer
- visual spacing sketchpad
- articilatory process
- phonological store
Baddeley conducted a study on
Dual task performance
Def central executive
Monitors incoming data and gets the Slave systems to work by allocating them roles
Def episodic buffed
Added in 2000 and is a temporary store which integrates all types of information linking to long term memory and processes like perception
Def Visio-special sketchpad
A slave system which stores visual and stadia information when required eg if you have to visualise the number of windows on your house
Def articulately process
Allows maintainance rehearsal and can hold up to 2 seconds worth of things you say
Def phonological store
Stores the words you hear
Aim of Baddeley
To see if there is a separate slave system that processes visual input
Method Baddeley
To carry out a visual and verbal task at the same time
Conclusions Baddeley s
Theur performance on each was similar to when they carried out both tasks separately but when both tasks were visual or both tasks verbal, performance on both declined
Support Baddeley
Supporting working memory model because it supports the idea that there are 2 separate skate systems and they can both do different jobs at the same time
4 evaluation points
Strength - supportive evidence from Baddeley
Strength - supportive evidence from patient KF
Weakness - lack of clarity
Weakness - supportive evidence has low ecological validity
Elaboration of strength - supportive evidence from Baddeley
Consistency between results making them reliable
Elaboration of strength - supportive evidence from patient KF
- shallice and Warrington provide support in form of case study from patient KF
- his verbal short term memory was damaged as a result of brain damage however his visual STM was still in tact
- gives support for the idea of 2 separate slave systems and suggests that only his phonological loop was damaged
- increases support for accuracy of WMM
Elaboration weakness - lack of clarity
- lack of clarity over central executive
- it’s argued this part is poorly explained because doesn’t explain how the tasks are allocated to the slave systems
- the idea of the central executive is one of the key parts of the model yet its functioned isn’t fully explained causing lack of accuracy
Elaboration weakness - supportive evidence has low ecological validity
- results from lab experiments researching WMM will often have low ecological value eg doesn’t relate to real life tasks
- eg repeating ‘ the the the’ isn’t representative of our everyday activists
- this can be seen in Baddeley dual task performance study
Capacity if central executive
Very limited, doesn’t store information
Capacity episodic buffer
Limited: 4 chunks
Capacity visuo-social sketchpad
3/4 objects
Capacity and coding phonological loop
2 seconds, acoustic
