Week 5 - Short Term and Working Memory Flashcards

This set of vocabulary flashcards covers the fundamental concepts of short-term and working memory, including historical models, experimental methods, and neuroscientific findings as discussed in the lecture.

Memory

The process involved in retaining, retrieving, and using information about stimuli, images, events, ideas, and skills after the initial information is no longer present.

Sensory Memory

The initial stage of memory that holds all incoming information for fractions of a second, such as the persistence of vision seen in movies or the trail of a sparkler.

Short-term Memory (STM)

A memory system that holds everything we know or think about at each moment in time, typically retaining approximately $7$ items for about $15 - 20$ seconds.

Long-term Memory (LTM)

The memory system responsible for storing large amounts of information for extended periods, ranging from minutes to a lifetime.

Episodic Memories

Long-term memories specifically related to past personal experiences.

Procedural Memory

A type of long-term memory for skills that require muscle memory, such as the ability to ride a bicycle.

Semantic Memories

Long-term memories comprising facts, such as an address or the names of different objects.

Modal Model of Memory

A flow diagram for memory introduced by Broadbent (based on the Filter model of attention) and expanded by Atkinson and Shiffrin, proposing three types of memory: sensory, short-term, and long-term.

Control Processes

Dynamic strategies proposed by Atkinson and Shiffrin that are associated with structural features of memory and can be controlled by the person, such as rehearsal or selective attention.

Rehearsal

A control process involving the repetition of a stimulus over and over to keep it in short-term memory.

Encoding

The process of moving information from short-term memory into long-term memory.

Retrieval

The process of remembering information stored in long-term memory and bringing it back to short-term memory for use.

Persistence of Vision

The continued perception of a visual stimulus even after it is no longer present, which fills in dark intervals between film frames.

Partial Report Method

A procedure devised by George Sperling (1960) where participants were signaled by a tone to report only a specific row of flashed letters, proving that sensory memory registers most information briefly.

Iconic Memory

Brief sensory memory for visual stimuli, also known as the visual icon.

Echoic Memory

The persistence of sound in sensory memory, which lasts for a few seconds after the initial stimulus.

Digit Span

A measure of STM capacity referring to the number of digits a person can remember, typically averaging between $5 - 9$.

The Magical Number $7 \times 2$

A concept introduced by George Miller suggesting the average capacity of STM is $7 \times 2$ (or $7 \text{ plus or minus } 2$) items.

Change Detection

A method used by researchers like Luck and Vogel to measure STM capacity, where participants identify changes between two flashed scenes; results suggest a limit of about $4$ items.

Chunking

The process of combining small units, like words, into larger meaningful units or collections of elements strongly associated with one another.

Working Memory

A concept introduced by Baddeley and Hitch (1974) describing a limited capacity system for the temporary storage and manipulation of information during complex cognition.

Phonological Loop

A component of working memory that holds verbal and auditory information, consisting of the phonological store and the articulatory rehearsal process.

Visuospatial Sketch Pad

A component of working memory responsible for holding visual and spatial information.

Central Executive

The attention controller of working memory that coordinates the phonological loop and visuospatial sketch pad and pulls information from long-term memory.

Phonological Similarity Effect

The confusion of letters or words that sound similar (e.g., mistaking F for S) when processed in the phonological store.

Word Length Effect

The observation that memory for lists of words is better for short words than for long words.

Mental Rotation

The process of solving problems by creating a visual image in the mind and rotating it, as demonstrated by Shepard and Metzler using reaction times.

Perseveration

Repeatedly performing the same action or thought even if it is not achieving the desired outcome, often seen in patients with frontal lobe damage.

Episodic Buffer

A component added to Baddeley's model that stores information and is connected to LTM, helping explain how working memory holds more information through chunking.

Activity-silent Working Memory

A model proposed by Mark Stokes (2015) where information is stored in brief changes to the connectivity of neurons (synaptic state) rather than continuous firing.

Reading Span Test

A test developed by Daneman and Carpenter (1980) to measure individual differences in working memory capacity by having participants read sentences and recall the last words.

Event Related Potential (ERP)

A brain response recorded with scalp electrodes that indicates how much space is used in working memory during a task; a larger response indicates more space used.