Memory models workbook

Unit 1

Table of Contents
Assumption of the cognitive approach..................................................................................................3

Models of memory The multi-store model, including the concepts of encoding,

capacity and duration. Strengths and limitations of the model
The working memory model, including its strengths and limitations
Memory in
everyday life Eyewitness testimony (EWT). Factors affecting the accuracy of
EWT, including misleading information, anxiety, age of witness
Improving accuracy of EWT, including the use of the cognitive
interview
Strategies for memory improvement

Stages of memory..................................................................................................................................4
The Multi-store Model of Memory........................................................................................................6

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Sensory memory....................................................................................................................................8
Short-term memory.............................................................................................................................10
Long-term memory..............................................................................................................................13
Evaluation of the Multistore Model of Memory..................................................................................15
The Working Memory Model..............................................................................................................19
Evaluation of the Working Memory Model.........................................................................................23
Compare the Multistore Model of Memory to the Working Memory Model.....................................24
Past exam papers................................................................................................................................26

The cognitive approach

The cognitive approach in psychology focuses on human thought and

all the processes of knowing such as paying attention, remembering
and problem solving. The cognitive view is that we think because we

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are designed to do so; we do not passively accept what happens to us in the
world around us, but we consider the meaning of it all and actively seek new
experiences. The cognitive approach is interested in how people take in
information, how they mentally represent it and how they store it.

Assumption of the cognitive approach

Cognitive psychologists explain our behaviour by looking at our perception,

language, attention and memory. They use computers to explain how we think
and behave.

Behaviour is explained in terms of information processing.

Compare humans to computers (how are they the same? How are they
different?)

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Stages of memory

Input Encoding Storage Retrieval Output

What does this mean?

Write a definition for the following terms:

Input

Encoding

Storage

Retrieval

Output

Comparing humans to computers

Five stages of memory of a Five stages of memory of a human

computer

Input

Encoding

Storage

Retrieval

Output

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 The Multi-store Model of Memory
Atkinson and Shiffrin(1968)

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Capacity: Capacity: Capacity:

Duration: Duration: Duration:

Coding: Coding: Coding:

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Define the following terms:

Attention:

Duration:

Encoding:

Capacity:

Maintenance rehearsal:

Elaborative rehearsal:

Sensory memory
What is haptic memory?

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What is echoic memory?

What is iconic memory?

Sensory memory is the ability to retain impressions of sensory information after the
original stimulus has ceased. It refers to items detected by the sensory receptors.
Atkinson and Shiffrin (1968) proposed that there are three separate sensory stores to
accommodate different kinds of input:-

Iconic store is where visual images are kept for a short period. It is important for our
experiences as it helps us integrate our visual experience.
Echoic store is where auditory senses are kept for a short period. Estimate of the
duration of echoic memory range from 250 milliseconds up to a few seconds.
Haptic store in sensory memory retains physical senses of touch and internal muscle
tensions.
Research

Sperling (1960) studied the sensory memory for vision (the

iconic store) by using a tachistoscope- a device that can flash
pictoral stimuli onto a blank screen for very brief instances.
Using this device, Sperling was able to ask subjects to
remember as many letters as they could from a grid of 12
symbols that he was going to display for 50ms, and found that
while they could only recall around 4 of the symbols before
the grid faded from their sensory memory, they typically
reported seeing a lot more than they had time to report.

Capacity

Sperling changed his procedure slightly and devised the Partial report technique. He
trained Pps to distinguish between three tones:- a high, medium or low tone. He then
exposed the grid for the same amount of time (50ms) , when the grid disappeared one
of the tones followed which corresponded to a row of four letters in the grid. The top
row was indicated with the high tone the middle row with the middle tone and the
bottom row with the low tone. In the partial report condition, recall was on average just
over 3 out of 4 symbols from any row. (Pps were not aware of the tone they were about
to receive) This suggests that the iconic store can retain approximately 76% of all data
received.

Duration

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If there was a delay between the presentation of the grid and the sounding of the tone,
Sperling found that more and more information was lost (only 50% was available after
0.3 sec delay and only 33% after 1 sec delay.

Evaluation

Sperling (1960) was a laboratory experiment

Explain 2 strengths of this research method (link to Sperling)

Explain two limitations of this research method (link to Sperling)

Complete the encoding, duration and capacity box for sensory memory on the MSM diagram.

Short-term memory

Encoding

Briefly describe Conrad’s experiment (1964)

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What does it tell show about the encoding in the STM?

Capacity

Read Follens p.6 what did Miller propose in his article “the magic number 7 plus or
minus two”?

Do our results support this? Explain.

Cowan (2004) reviewed a number of studies, what were his conclusions?

According to Miller, chunking increases the capacity of the STM. What is chunking? Give
an example.

Duration
Peterson and Peterson (1959) wanted to find out the duration of the STM. They
believed that information was held in the STM for about 20 seconds, after this it
faded if it was not rehearsed.

Write an aim for their investigation:

Procedures:
Peterson and Peterson (1959) carried out a lab. experiment. Ps were presented with
sets of trigrams , which they were asked to recall in order after a delay of 3, 6, 9, 12,
15, 18 seconds. During the delay before recall Ps were asked a distraction task to

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prevent rehearsal, they were asked to count backward by 3 (this is called the Brown-
Peterson techniques).

What was the IV : ________________________________________________

What was the IV : ________________________________________________

Write an experimental hypothesis:

Is the experimental hypothesis directional or non-directional?

What experimental design was used by Peterson and Peterson? ______________________

Outline one advantage of this experimental design:

Outline one disadvantage of this experimental design:

Findings:

The percentage recall was:

After 3 seconds: 80%
After 6 seconds: 50%
After 18 seconds: less than 10%

What conclusion can you draw from these results?

This study was a laboratory experiment. Discuss two strengths of using a laboratory
experiment in the context of this study.

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This study was a laboratory experiment. Discuss two weaknesses of using a laboratory
experiment in the context of this study.

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Complete the encoding, duration and capacity box for short-term memory on the MSM diagram.

Long-term memory

Encoding

Briefly describe Baddeley (1966)

What does this experiment show about the encoding in LTM?

Duration in LTM

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 Bahrick et al. (1975)
AIMS:
• To investigate the duration of Very-Long-Term-Memory (VLTM).
• To see if memories can last several decades.
PROCEDURE:
• An opportunity sample of 392 American ex-High-School students aged between 17 and 74 was
used. The time since leaving High School was up to 48 years. The participants were tested in
four ways:
- Free recall of the names of as many of their ex-classmates as possible.
- A photo recognition test. The participants were asked to identify their former classmates from
a set of 50 photos.
- A name recognition test.
- A name and photo matching test.
• VLTM was assessed by comparing the participants’ responses with yearbooks of all the
students in that year.
FINDINGS:

Recall group Recognition group

60% accuracy after 7 years 90% accuracy after 14 years
20% accuracy after 47 years 80% accuracy after 25 years
75% accuracy after 34 years
60% accuracy after 47 years

What conclusion can you draw from these findings about the duration of LTM?

What was the research method used in this study?

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Discuss two strengths of using this research method in the context of this study.

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Discuss two weaknesses of using this research method in the context of this study.

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Capacity of LTM

We have not found a limit to the capacity of LTM so it is said to be of unlimited capacity.

Complete the encoding, duration and capacity box for long-term memory on the MSM diagram.

Evaluation of the Multistore Model of Memory

Glanzer and Cunitz (1966)

Briefly describe the experiment

Number of words

What were the results?

What is the primacy effect?

What is the recency effect?

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What happened when the Ps were asked to count backwards for 30 seconds before
recall (distraction task)?

Does this support the Multistore model of memory? Explain you answer

Most of the studies done on memory were laboratory experiments. Outline at least two
strengths and two weaknesses of laboratory experiments linking them to examples
taken from the studies we have seen.

Strengths:

Weaknesses:

Case studies

Read Collins p.13

Who was HM and why was he of great interest to cognitive psychologists?

Does HM support the MSM? Explain your answer.

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You have done some research on Clive Wearing. Does his case support the
MSM? Explain your answer.

Read Follens p.101

Does KF support the MSM? Explain your answer.

What research method was used to study HM, KF and Clive Wearing?

What are the strength and weaknesses of this method?

According to the MSM rehearsal is the only way that information can be transferred
from the STM to the LTM. Is that your experience? Do you rehearse your birthday party?

According to the MSM, the STM and the LTM are single stores. Look for evidence that it
might not be the case.

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Further points of evaluation

The MSM takes into account the quantity of information but not its nature for example it
does not explain why we might remember information which we find interesting better
than information which does not interest us.

It also fails to take into account the strategies people use to remember (i.e. Peter Piper
Cried When Charles Darwin Died)

It focuses on the structure of memory but not the processes for example visual stimuli
in the sensory memory must be changed to acoustic code to access the STM. How is
that done?

Evaluate the MSM (6 marks)

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The Working Memory Model

Central executive

Episodic
buffer

Phonological loop
Visuo-spatial sketchpad
The auditory store

The articulatory control process

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Central Executive
Function:

Evidence:

Episodic Buffer
Function:

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Phonological Loop
The auditory store

Function:

The articulatory control process

Function:

Evidence:

Visuo-spatial sketchpad
Function:

Evidence:

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Baddeley and Hith (1976) p.13 Follens

What is the dual task technique?

What did the experiment show?

What does Baddeley (1968) show?

What does Baddeley (1996) show?

How do these experiments support the existence of the central executive?

What do they say about the function of the central executive?

What is the word length effect?

What does it show about the phonological loop?

What does Shepard & Feng (1972) show about the visuo-spatial sketchpad?

Baddeley, Grant, Wight & Thompson (1973)

Participants were given a visual tracking task: track a moving line with a pointer at the
same they were given one of two tasks:

1. To describe the angle of the letter F (which system did this task involve?)
2. To perform a verbal task (which system did this task involve?)

They performed better in the second task. Why?

Evaluation of the Working Memory Model

Evidence supporting the WMM

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Name two studies or more which support the WMM. For each explain how it supports
the model.

The evidence obtained is mostly from laboratory experiments.

Give two strengths and two weaknesses of this research method linking them to the
studies you have mentioned above.

How does KF, Shallice & Warrington (1970) support the WMM?

However KF is a case study; evaluate case studies as a research method linking your
criticisms to Shallice & Warrington (1970).

Read p.14-15 Follens. What is presented as a weakness of the central executive?

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What is a fMRI?

How do fMRI scans support the WMM?

Compare the Multistore Model of Memory to the Working

Memory Model
Comparing two models is explaining how they are the same and how they are different .
For this you need to use comparison words: whereas, as opposed to, similarly,

Can you think of any other words?

Each point has to present one side and compare it to the other side

The MSM shows how the information is processed from the sensory memory to the long-
term memory on the other hand the WMM focuses only on the short-term memory.

Find six points of comparison between the MSM and the WMM.

1.

2.

3.

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4.

5.

6.

Past exam papers

Multistore Model of memory

Jan 2009
Total for this question: 12 marks
1 The following are all concepts relating to memory:
A Duration
B Capacity

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 C Encoding
D Retrieval.
1 (a) In the table below, write which one of the concepts listed above (A, B, C or
D)
matches each definition.
Definition Concept
The length of time the memory store
holds information
Transforming incoming information into
a form that can be stored in memory

(2 marks)
1 (b) Outline the main features of the multi-store model of memory.
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(6 marks)

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1 (c) The multi-store model of memory has been criticised in many ways. The
following
example illustrates a possible criticism.
Some students read through their revision notes lots of times before an
examination, but still find it difficult to remember the information. However, the
same students can remember the information in a celebrity magazine, even
though they read it only once.
Explain why this can be used as a criticism of the multi-store model of memory.
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(4 marks)

January 2011
Total for this question: 4 marks
4 Jamie wanted to contact his doctor. He looked up the number in his telephone
directory. Before he dialled the number, he had a short conversation with his friend.
Jamie was about to phone his doctor, but he had forgotten the number.
Use your knowledge of the multi-store model to explain why Jamie would not remember
the doctor’s number.
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(4 marks)

January 2010
Total for this question: 10 marks
2 A case study was carried out on Peter whose brain was damaged in a
motorcycle accident.
Psychologists tested how many numbers he could hold in his short-term
memory. They did this by reading him lists of numbers and asking him to recall
the numbers immediately in the right order. He could recall a maximum of two
items. The psychologists found that his long-term memory was normal.
2 (a) How was Peter’s short-term memory after the accident different from most
adults’ short-term memory?
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(2 marks)
2 (b) Does this case study support the multi-store model of memory? Explain
your answer.
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2 (c) Identify one ethical issue associated with this case study of Peter. Suggest
how psychologists could deal with this ethical issue.

Ethical issue
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How psychologists could deal with this ethical issue
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Working Memory Model

January 2010

Total for this question: 6 marks

1 (a) Tick two of the boxes below to indicate which of the following are features
of the
working memory model.
A Serial position curve
B Incidental learning store
C Central executive
D Phonological loop
(2 marks)
1 (b) Explain one strength and one weakness of the working memory model.
Strength ...............................................................................................................
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Weakness .............................................................................................................
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(4 marks)

January 2011

Total for this question: 12 marks

5 Outline and evaluate the working memory model.

June 2009

Total for this question: 6 marks

2 A brain scan shows that one area of the brain is more active when a person is
doing a verbal task. However, when this person is doing a visual task, a different
area of the brain is more active.
2 (a) Explain how this could relate to the working memory model. Refer to
different parts of the working memory model in your answer.
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(Extra space)
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2 (b) Give an example of an appropriate verbal task and an appropriate visual
task which could be used during the brain scan.
Verbal task
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Visual task
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