Memory Flashcards
(29 cards)
What is coding
Coding is the format in which information is stored in various memory stores.
What is short term memory
Short term memory has limited capacity ( 5-9 items) Memories are brief and are quickly forgotten , Coding is acoustic , duration is between 18- 30 seconds .
What is long term memory
Capacity is unlimited , coding is semantic and duration in memory stores can be held for a lifetime , Memories can last for a long time and it is a permanent memory store.
Research on coding - Baddley
Baddley (1966) gave different lists of words to four groups of participants to remember
Group 1 ; Acoustically similar - words that sound the same e.g ( cat , cab , can)
Group 2 : Acoustically dissimilar - words that sound different e.g ( pit , few , cow)
Group 3: Semantically similar - words that have similar meanings e.g ( great , large , big )
Group 4: Semantically dissimilar - words that have different meanings e.g ( good , huge , hot )
Research on coding - Baddley ( findings )
Participants recalling the word list immediately after hearing it tended to do worse on acoustically similar words. ( STM RECALL)
Participants recalling the word list after a time interval of 20 minutes tended to do worse in semantically similar words. ( LTM RECALL)
What is capacity
Capacity is the amount of information that can be held in a memory store .
Capacity - digit span ( method)
- Participants are given 4 digits and asked to recall these in the correct order out loud.
- If they are correct , researcher reads out 5 digits and so on until the participant can not recall the order correctly.
3 . This determines the individuals digit span.
Capacity - digit span ( findings )
Mean span for digits was 0.3 items .
Mean span for letters was 7.3 .
Capacity - chunking ( miller) Method
Observed everyday practice ( e.g 7 notes , 7days, 7 deadly sins )
. Suggests that the capacity of STM is 7+/- 2
Capacity - chunking ( miller) Findings
Miller also noted that people can recall 5 letters and 5 words .
They do this by chunking - grouping sets of digits or letters into units or chunks.
What is duration
Duration is the length of time information can be held in a memory store.
Duration of STM ( method ) Peterson and Peterson Triagrams study
. 24 student participants ( 8 trials )
. On each trial students were given a consonant syllable e.g ( YCG )
. They were also given a 3 digit number to count backwards from ( to prevent mental rehearsal )
. On each trial they were told to stop after a different amount of time
Duration of STM ( results)
After 3 seconds average recall was about 80%
After 18 seconds average recall was about 3%
Duration of LTM ( method ) Bahrick (1975)
.It was a longitudinal study that contained 392 participants from Ohio aged ( 17 to 74)
. High school yearbooks were obtained from participants
How was recall tested
Photo recognition test : photo recognition consisting of 50 photos , some from the participants high school yearbook.
Free recall test : participants recalled all the names of their graduating class .
Results of duration of LTM
Photo recognition : after 15 years of graduation results were about 90% accurate , after 48 years the recall was about 70% accurate .
Results for free recall
After 15 years this was about 60% accurate.
After 48 years recall dropped to 30%.
Evaluation : separate memory stores
One strength is that there is research to support the clear difference between short and long term memory. For example, Baddley (1966) highlighted that information is coded acoustically in STM and semantically in LTM. This highlights the distinct stores and how information is coded in STM and LTM. This is a strength because Baddley research was the basis in our understanding of STM and LTM. This lead to the understanding of the MSM.
Evaluation : overestimated stm capacity
One limitation is that research investigating the capacity of STM may have been overestimated. For example, Cowan (2001) reviewed other research and concluded that the capacity of STM is only about 4 ( plus or minus 1 ) chunks. This suggests that the lower end of millers estimate ( five items ) is more appropriate than seven items . Thus further research should be conducted in order to clarify the capacity of the STM .
Evaluation : artificial stimuli
One limitation is that research investigating coding has been criticised for using artificial stimuli, lacking the mundane realism. For example , Baddley ( 1966) research included word lists that had no personal meaning to participants. This suggests that Baddleys findings may not tell us much about coding in different kinds of memory tasks, especially everyday life. When processing more meaningful information people may use semantic coding even for STM tasks. This is a limitation because the findings from this study can have limited real world application.
What is multi store model
Multi store model describes how information flows through the memory system , suggesting that memory is made up of three stores.
What is the sensory register
In the sensory register , all stimuli from the environment ( e.g auditory ) pass into the sensory register.
This part of memory contains several registers , one for each of our 5 senses.
Coding is specific
. Iconic memory - coding for visual information
. Echoic memory - coding for acoustic information ( sound)
Duration of material in SR is brief - less than half a second
SR has a high capacity.
Duration of sensory register
Sperling ( 1960) investigated the iconic sensory register.
Method
. Participants saw a grid of digits and letters for 50 milliseconds.
There are 2 conditions
. Write down all 12 items on the table.
. Would hear a tone immediately after the exposure and would just down the row indicated ( top , middle , bottom)
Results of duration of sensory register
Reporting the whole thing - Recall was poor ( 42%)
Reporting one row - recall was much better ( 75% )
