working memory model by Baddeley and Hitch (pack 2)

Question 1

what is working memory

Answer 1

a system for holding things in mind while you are thinking about them and doing something with them

Question 2

what is the role of the working memory

Answer 2

to temporarily store and manipulate information being used

Question 3

what are 3 things working memory can be used for?

Answer 3

remembering phone numbers

remembering lists

mental maths

Question 4

working memory is fragile and what 3 things can go wrong due to:

Answer 4

distraction
overload
overwork

Question 5

what 3 things did Baddeley find was wrong with the MSM?

Answer 5

1. far too simplistic
2. emphasis on rehearsal being critical to learning was incorrect
3. STM is not a unitary store

Question 6

what did they suggest STM was?

Answer 6

complex and active working memory

Question 7

what are the three components of WMM?

Answer 7

1. Central executive
   2 phonological loop
2. visuospatial sketchpad

Question 8

what is the function of the central executive?

Answer 8

runs the memory system

it decides what to pay attention to and what to ignore

deals with cognitive tasks such as problem solving

relays everything to LTM

Question 9

what is the function of the phonological loop?

Answer 9

this slave system stores and processes spoken and written info

i) phonological store- speech perception, holds info for 1-2 seconds, words have to be converted into a spoken code

ii) articulatory rehearsal system- linked to speech production, used to rehearse and store verbal information, written material converted into a spoken code

Question 10

What is the function of the visuospatial sketchpad

Answer 10

stores and processes visual and spatial information
plays an important role in navigation and stopping us from bumping into things #

displays and manipulates visual and spatial info held in LTM

Question 11

3 strengths of the WMM?

Answer 11

1. Research supports the model- dual task experiments (Baddeley and Hitch) asked ppt to track location of moving light whist imagining capital F and to say whether the angles were in the bottom or the top, struggled to do both as they were using VSSP at same time
2. neurophysiological evidence- PET scans have shown different area of the brain are used when undertaking verbal and visual tasks
3. lab experiments, standardised proc. manipulate variables cause and effect. increase scientific credibility. Baddeley’s research investigates acoustic and semantic similarity

Question 12

3 weaknesses of WMM?

Answer 12

1. lab experiment, Baddeley and Hitch dual task are artificial, does not reflect memory in every day life and can be described as reductionist
2. criticised for being incomplete. Little to no evidence on how the central exec. works, episodic buffer added in 2000. Validity of original model may be reduced
3. alternative theory- MSM (STM is just a holding zone for information)