memory - models for explaining memory

Question 1

memory

Answer 1

-process of storing, retrieving and organising information. utilises three processes of encoding, storage and retrieval

Question 2

encoding

Answer 2

process of storing sensory information into a form in which it can be stored

Question 3

storage

Answer 3

retention of the encoded information over time

Question 4

types of encoding

Answer 4

-visual: involves creating a mental image of the information you’re trying to process
-auditory: encoding information verbally, e.g. repeating the information you’re trying to process
-semantic: adding meaning or context to the information you’re trying to process e.g. categorising

Question 5

sensory register

Answer 5

-information that enters via sensory organs
-if paid attention to, enters the short term memory
-occurs in iconic and echoic forms
-capacity: theoretically unlimited (very large, captures all sensory experiences)
-encoding: any senses, but most research has been on visual and auditory
-duration: 0.25 to 0.5 seconds

Question 6

iconic memory

Answer 6

-visual component of sensory memory
-allows you to hold an ‘icon’ – an unprocessed image – in your mind for a brief period of time
-capacity: theoretically unlimited
-duration: 0.2 – 0.4 seconds

Question 7

echoic memory

Answer 7

-verbal component of sensory memory
-capacity: theoretically unlimited
-duration: 3 – 4 seconds

Question 8

short term memory

Answer 8

-most active part of memory which stores a limited amount of information for a limited amount of time
-encoding is predominately acoustic, some visual
-information is transferred to long term memory via rehearsal

Question 9

types of rehearsal

Answer 9

-maintenance: passive process which is effective at keeping simple information in STM, e.g. continuously repeating a phone number
-elaborative: active process which is effective on transferring complex information into LTM, e.g. creating mnemonics, stories, mind maps etc

Question 10

long term memory

Answer 10

-store of memory which can hold a large amount of information for a long period of time, occurs when iformation is retrieved, relatively permanent
-capacity: theoretically unlimited
-duration: theoretically forever
-encoding: predominately semantic, as in general meaning is remembered but not specific details
-either procedural or declarative

Question 11

procedural

Answer 11

-implicit, doesn’t require conscious effect to recall
-responsible for motor skills / knowing how to do things e.g. riding a bike
-less susceptible to being forgotten

Question 12

declarative

Answer 12

-explicit, requires conscious effort to recall and has two types
-episodic: the ability to remember personally experienced events associated with a particular time and place
-semantic: general factual knowledge and concepts, and storing information about the world

Question 13

strengths of multistore model of memory (atkinson–shiffrin 1968)

Answer 13

-provided a basis for further research on memory and consequently other influential models, such as the working memory model
-there is a lot of evidence such as the existence of the serial position effect to support the distinction between STM and LTM (in terms of encoding, duration and capacity)

Question 14

limitations of multistore model of memory (atkinson–shiffrin 1968)

Answer 14

-oversimplified as evidence suggests that there are multiple short and long-term memory stores;
-procedural and declarative LTM are not included in the 1968 model
-baddeley & hitch’s Working Memory Model elaborates on the types of STM
-original model only takes into account maintenance rehearsal

Question 15

baddeley & hitch (1974)

Answer 15

-built upon the multi-store model proposed by Atkinson & Shiffrin
-claimed the A&S model was too simplistic when it came to short term memory
-stated short term memory was ‘working’ memory and consisted of several different processes
-working memory is the system that provides temporary storage and manipulation of the information necessary for such complex cognitive tasks as language comprehension, learning, and reasoning

Question 16

working memory model

Answer 16

-makes the two following predictions
-if two tasks make use of the same component (of working memory), they cannot be performed successfully together
-if two tasks make use of different components, it should be possible to perform them as well as together as separately

Question 17

central executive

Answer 17

-most important component of the model - the control centre of working memory
-controls attentional processes by enabling the working memory system to selectively attend to some stimuli and ignore others
-coordinates the slave systems – the visuo-spatial sketchpad and phonological loop

Question 18

visuo-spatial sketchpad

Answer 18

-visual part of working memory that briefly holds and manipulates information about the appearance of objects (visual) and their location in space (spatial)
-allows us to process and manipulate visual information from sensory and long term memory
-plays an important role in navigation

Question 19

phonological loop

Answer 19

-verbal part of working memory, holds and manipulates auditory information over short intervals of time (what allows us to store phone numbers for a short period of time). contains two parts
-phonological store (inner ear): involved in speech perception and stores verbal info for 1-2 seconds
-articulatory control (inner voice): involved in speech production, and rehearses info from phonological store

Question 20

episodic buffer - baddeley (2000)

Answer 20

-theories and models of psychological concepts continue to evolve
-episodic buffer was added to address limitations of the original model
-episodic buffer is a temporary multimodal store that combines information from the phonological loop and visuospatial sketchpad with information about time and order to create a unified memory can be deposited into long-term memory
-it is “episodic” in the sense that it holds integrated episodes or scenes
-a “buffer” in the sense of providing a limited capacity interface between the slave systems

Question 21

contributions of working memory model

Answer 21

identifies that short term memory is an active process with multiple components

Question 22

limitations of working memory model

Answer 22

-little direct evidence for how the central executive works and what it does
-only focuses on short term memory

Question 23

chunking

Answer 23

-can increase short term memory capacity
-grouping separate items of information to form a larger single information unit (chunk) so our short-term memory can hold more than the usual seven single items of information at any given moment