Psychology Paper 1 - Memory

Question 1

What does the multi store model of memory involve?

Answer 1

1- sensory memory
2- attention
3- STM
4- rehersal/retrival
5- LTM

Question 2

What is encoding?

Answer 2

Way information is changed to be stored in the memory

Question 3

What are the four types of encoding?

Answer 3

1- Encoded -changed
2- Visual - picture
3- Acoustic - sound
4- Semantic - meaning

Question 4

What is capacity?

Answer 4

How much information can be stored

Question 5

What is duration?

Answer 5

Period of time the information can last in the memory stores

Question 6

Sensory register - Duration,Capacity,Encoding

Answer 6

Duration: ¼ to ½ second
Capacity: all sensory experience (v. larger capacity)
Encoding: sense specific

Question 7

STM - Duration,Capacity,Encoding

Answer 7

Duration: 0-18 seconds
Capacity: 7 +/- 2 items
Encoding: mainly acoustic

Question 8

LTM - Duration,Capacity,Encoding

Answer 8

Duration: Unlimited
Capacity: Unlimited
Encoding: Mainly semantic (but can be visual and acoustic)

Question 9

AO3 - Multistore model of memory

Answer 9

Strength- allowed other researchers to add to the model - make it more valid
Strength- amenisia studies - HM - problems affecting his long term memory after brain surgery , STM still intact, HM remembers key events that happened over 40 yrs
Weakness- HM- showed that the model is over simplified as HM showed that memory is very complex

Question 10

Multi store model memory - key study - Baddley & Hitch

Answer 10

Showed that short-term memory is more than just one simple unitary store and comprises different components (e.g., central executive, Visuospatial, etc.).

Question 11

Multi store model memory - key study - Glanzer and Cunitz

Answer 11

Participants presented with a list of words
More likely to remember the first few and last few words and forget the middle - the serial position effect
Primary (LTM) and recency (STM) effect

Question 12

Procedural Memory

Answer 12

Part of the implicit LTM responsible for how to do things e.g memory of motor skills. Does not involve the conscious though and is not declarative

Question 13

Semantic Memory

Answer 13

Part of the LTM responsible for storing info about the world. e.g meaning of words, general knowledge etc.. It involves conscious though and is declarative

Question 14

Episodic Memory

Answer 14

Part of the LTM responsible for storing info about events that we have experienced in our lives. It involves conscious though and is declarative

Question 15

AO3 - types of LTM

Answer 15

Strength- Evidence for the distinction between declarative and procedural memory.
Amnesia patients - struggle to retain semantic and episodic info
Semantic and episodic memories remain intact before the condition but unable to retain any new ones after condition - seems to be impaired
Procedural memory remains largly unaffected

Question 16

Working model of memory - AO1

Answer 16

1. Central executive
2. Phonological loop/ Episodic buffer/ Visuos spatial sketch pad
3. LT memory systems

Question 17

What is the Central executive?

Answer 17

Supervisory function and acts as a filter
Process information in all sensory forms, direct information to other slave systems, and collects responses.
Limited capacity and deals with only one piece of information at a time

Question 18

What is the Phonological loop?

Answer 18

Temporary storage system for holding auditory information in a speech-based form
Phonological store (inner ear), which stores words you hear
Articulatory process (inner voice), which allows maintenance rehearsal
Plays a key role in the development of reading

Question 19

What is the Episodic buffer?

Answer 19

Acts as a “backup” (temporary) store for information that communicates with both long-term memory and the slave system components of working memory
Important function - recall material from LTM and integrate it into STM when working memory requires it

Question 20

What is the Visuos spatial sketch pad?

Answer 20

Temporary memory system for holding visual and spatial information
Visual cache - stores visual data about form and colour
Inner scribe - records the arrangement of objects in the visual field and rehearses and transfers information in the visual cache to the central executive

Question 21

Working model of memory - AO3

Answer 21

Strength - Dual task studies - easier for p’s to do tasks when they were not using the same slave systems e.g visuos spatial sketch pad & phonological loop - visual and verbal tasks completed with minimum errors
Weakness - little is know about what the central executive actually does
Weakness- doe not show the link between working memory and LTM

Question 22

Explanations for forgetting - interference AO1

Answer 22

Proactive interference (pro=forward) is where old learning prevents the recall of more recent information - where old memories disrupt new memories.
Retroactive interference (retro=backward) is where new learning prevents the recall of previously learned information - where new memories disrupt old memories.
Proactive and retroactive Interference is thought to be more likely to occur where the memories are similar, e.g confusing old and new phone numbers. Chandler (1989) stated that students who study similar subjects at the same time often experience interference. French and Spanish are similar types of material which makes interference more likely.

Question 23

Explanations for forgetting - interference AO3

Answer 23

Strength - Postman - lab experiment
two groups - experimental given two lists of words to remember and control group only given one list
Control group was more accurate in recall suggesting the second list interfered with the recall - retroactive interference
Weakness - most research evidence carried out in a lab - lacks ecological validity - may not be possible to generalise findings

Question 24

Explanations for forgetting - retrieval failure AO1

Answer 24

Information is available in long-term memory but cannot be recalled because of the absence of appropriate cues

Question 25

Explanations for forgetting - retrieval failure AO1 types of cues

Answer 25

Context – external cues in the environment, e.g., smell, place, etc. Evidence indicates that retrieval is more likely when the context at encoding matches the context at retrieval.
State – bodily cues inside of us, e.g., physical, emotional, mood, drunk, etc. The basic idea behind state-dependent retrieval is that memory will be best when a person’s physical or psychological state is similar to encoding and retrieval.
Organisation – Recall is improved if the organisation gives a structure that provides triggers, e.g., categories.

Question 26

Explanations for forgetting - retrieval failure AO3

Answer 26

Strength - People tend to remember material better when there is a match between their mood at learning and at retrieval. The effects are stronger when the participants are in a positive mood than when they are in a negative mood. They are also greater when people try to remember events having personal relevance.
Strength - Goodwin investigated the effect of alcohol on state-dependent (internal) retrieval. They found that when people encoded information when drunk, they were more likely to recall it in the same state.e.g when they hid money and alcohol when drunk, they were unlikely to find them when sober. However, when they were drunk again, they often discovered the hiding place. Other studies found similar state-dependent effects when participants were given drugs such as marijuana.

Question 27

Eyewitness Testimony - Misleading Information - AO1

Answer 27

Loftus & Palmer
Lab experiment - 5 conditions - independent measures
45 American students - opportunity sampling
Participants were shown slides of a car accident involving a number of cars and asked to describe what had happened as if they were eyewitnesses. They were then asked specific questions, including the question, “About how fast were the cars going when they (hit/smashed/collided/bumped/contacted ) each other?”
Findings-
Estimated speed was affected by the verb used. The verb implied information about the speed, which systematically affected the participants’ memory of the accident.
Smashed was quicker than the cars that hit

Question 28

Eyewitness Testimony - Misleading Information - AO3

Answer 28

Lacks mundane realism - lacks ecological validity
Not a representative sample only students lack generalisability
Easy to replicate - high reliability

Question 29

Eyewitness Testimony - Misleading Information - AO1 - Anxiety

Answer 29

Yerkes-Dodson effect states that when anxiety is at low and high levels, EWT is less accurate than if anxiety is at a medium level. Recall improves as anxiety increases up to an optimal point and then declines.
Yuille and Cutshall (1986)
21 witnesses in a shooting incident Canada
13 witnesses agreed to be interviewed 4-5 months later (15-32 age)
Rate how stressed they were on a 7 point scale
witnesses where highly accurate in their recall - showed anxiety did not affect recall - contradicts lab findings
high anxiety = more accurate recall - 88%
less anxious = less accurate recall - 75%

Question 30

Eyewitness Testimony - Misleading Information - AO3 - Anxiety

Answer 30

High ecological validity compared to lab experiments
Weakness - extraneous variables those who were closer to the shooting had high accuracy rather than the more anxious you are

Question 31

The Cognitive Interview - AO1

Answer 31

The cognitive interview involves a number of techniques:
Context Reinstatement- reinforce what the environment was like eg. weather, time, individuals emotional state etc
Recall from a Changed Perspective- mentally recreate a perspective of what another witness may have seen.
Recall in Reverse Order- describe what happened in a different chronological order.
Report Everything- encourage witness to report every detail even if they think it may be unimportant
The Enhanced Cognitive Interview-
-Encourage the witness to relax and speak slowly.
-Offer comments to help clarify witness statements.
-Adapt questions to suit the understanding of individual witnesses.

Question 32

The Cognitive Interview - AO3

Answer 32

Limitation - time consuming - to train officers and to conduct interview
Limitation - some elements of the cognitive interview are more valuable than others eg. report everything
Strength - more effective interview compared to standard and hypnosis
Cognitive = 41.2
Standard = 38.0
Hypnosis = 29.4
accurate recalled facts