OB

Multi-store model studies

Glanzer and Cunitz (1966)

  • Aim: 2 Distinct Storage Mechanisms

  • Investigated Serial Position Effect

  • 46 Army Enlisted Men - split into different groups

  • Heard list of words -> Had to repeat them with 0, 10, 30 sec delay

  • 0 second - Immediate Free Recall; 30 seconds - Free Recall after Interference Task

  • More words at Beginning (primacy) and End (recency) of List recalled in 0 sec group

  • Interference Task removed recency but not primacy

  • Primacy and Recency are stored differently - Two Separate Memory Stores

Strength

Weakness

High Internal Validity

  • Lab Experiment -> Highly controlled -> Only IV affected DV

High Reliability

  • Lab Experiment -> Easy to replicate

  • Can check reliability easily

Low Ecological Validity

  • Artificial Setting

Low Mundane Realism

  • Weird Task, not relevant to daily tasks

Baddeley (1966)

  • Aim: See if coding in STM & LTM is acoustic or semantic

  • 75 participants - shown 1 of 4 lists

  • List A - acoustically similar

  • List B - acoustically dissimilar

  • List C - semantically similar

  • List D - semantically dissimilar

  • Testing STM - Write down sequence immediately in order

  • Testing LTM - 20 min Interval with Interference Task (prevents rehearsal)

  • STM - List A = worst

  • LTM - List C = worst

  • STM -> Codes Acoustically

  • LTM -> Codes Semantically

Strengths

Weaknesses

Highly Reliable

  • Lab Experiment -> Easy to replicate

Independent Groups Design 

  • Different people do conditions

  • No Order Effects -> People don't get bored or practice

Low Ecological Validity

  • Artificial Setting

Independent Groups Design

  • Participant Variability - some might be better than others

Sacks - Clive Wearing (2007)

  • Wearing contracted Herpesviral Encephalitis (Herpes.)

  • Damaged his hippocampus - Unable to store new memories -> STM to LTM

  • Anterograde Amnesia - Can't store memories after a trauma

  • 'Wakes up' every 30 seconds (once STM elapses)

  • Can't remember much from before the virus

  • Retrograde Amnesia - Can't recall memories that happened before a trauma

  • Can remember how to play piano, but doesn't remember ever playing it

  • Remembers having kids, doesn't remember their names

  • Remembers his love for his wife Deborah

Strengths

Weaknesses

Case Study

  • Lots of detail

Method Triangulation

  • He was interviewed, Observed, had MRI Scans etc

  • Increases credibility

Low Representational Generalisability

  • Doesn't represent majority of amnesic patients

Supports MSM

Highlighting Weakness of MSM

  • Duration of STM (30 Seconds)

  • Proves STM and LTM are separate

  • MSM is not a unitary store

  • Different LTM Stores (remembers Procedural but not episodic)

  • Forgot SOME LTM (remembers some Episodic, but not all Episodic)

  • MSM - Reductionist