Multi Store Model of Memory

memory

the process by which information is encoded, stored, and retrieved.

declarative memory

the memory of facts and events that can be consciously recalled. Divided into episodic and semantic memory.

episodic memory

Declarative memory: memory for one's personal past experiences or specific events.

semantic memory

Declarative memory: general knowledge of facts and people

Procedural Memory

Procedural memory is a long-term memory category involving recollections of which a person has no direct conscious awareness. Procedural memory is a part of the implicit long-term memory responsible for knowing how to do things such as swim or ride a bicycle.

Multi-Store Memory Model (MSM)

Memory model consisting of three stores: a sensory register, short-term memory (STM), and long-term memory (LTM). Information passes from store to store in a linear way

Who proposed the Multi-store model of memory?

Atkinson and Shiffrin (1968)

How does information travel in MSM?

In a linear fashion

What does capacity mean?

The amount of information that can be held. Usually measured in number of items.

What does duration mean?

How long the information is stored for.

What does encoding mean?

The way/form in which the information is stored

sensory memory

A type of storage that holds sensory information for a few seconds or less.

short-term memory

activated memory that holds a few items briefly before the information is stored or forgotten

long-term memory

the relatively permanent and limitless storage of the memory system. Includes knowledge, skills, and experiences.

How does information pass from the sensory register to the short-term memory?

Through attention

How does information pass from the short-term to the long-term memory?

Through rehearsal

How does the sensory register encode information?

Through the senses

What is the capacity of the sensory register?

Unlimited

What is the duration of the sensory register?

Less than half a second

How is information forgotten from the sensory register?

Trace decay

What is the capacity of the short-term memory?

7 items +/- 2 (Miller's Magic Number 7)

What is the duration of the short-term memory?

Up to 30 seconds without rehearsal

How is information lost in the short-term memory?

displacement and decay

What is the capacity of the long-term memory?

Potentially unlimited

What is the duration of the long-term memory?

unlimited

How is information forgotten in the long-term memory?

decay, retrieval failure, and interference

Peterson and Peterson (1959) aim :

To investigate the duration of information stored in short-term memory without the use of rehearsal.

Peterson and Peterson (1959) method:

Participants had to recall meaningless trigrams. They had to count backwards from a random 3 digit number to prevent rehearsal. They did this from 0, 6, 12, and 18 seconds.

Peterson and Peterson (1959) results:

As the time delay increased, memory for the trigrams decreased. At the 18 seconds, there was almost zero recollection of the trigrams.

Peterson and Peterson (1959) conclusion:

Short-term memory has a limited duration when rehearsal is prevented. The results of the study also show that short-term memory is different from long-term memory in terms of duration, thus supporting the multi-store model of memory.

How can the capacity and duration be improved in the STM?

Chunking information

Miller' Magic Number Seven

Miller (1966) found that by chunking data we are able to remember more information.

Multi-Store Memory Model (MSM) limitations

-The model is too simplistic to explain the whole memory system. It does not account for emotion or the process of forgetting.

-There are items that we may rehearse a lot and it is not transferred to LTM.

Multi-Store Memory Model Strengths

-It presents a good account of the basic mechanisms in memory processes (encoding, storage, and retrieval).

-Supported by many experiments as well as case studies of amnesia patients.

Encoding

Forming a sensory input into a memory trace.

Retrieval

Accessing stored memories so they can be used.

Three main ways in which information can be encoded:

Visual (picture)

Acoustic (sound)

Semantic (meaning)

The principal coding system in short-term memory is...

acoustic coding.

The principal encoding system in long-term memory is

semantic encoding.

Duration

How long can a memory last.

Capacity

How much information can be stored at any time.

Chunking

Reducing long strings of information that can be difficult to remember to shorter, more manageable chunks.

Serial position curve

Tendency of a person to recall the first and last items in a series best, and the middle items worst.

Primacy effect

Recalling the first words of a list well, which indicates that they have entered the sort term memory and had to time to be rehearsed and passed to the LTM.

Recency effect

Recalling items from the end of the list first, since the items were the last to enter the STM and were not displaced by further items.

Reductionism

Reducing complex systems to simpler components that are more manageable to study.

Holism

Holism refers to an approach or perspective that emphasizes the importance of studying and understanding the whole person or system.