MEMORY

1. MEMORY

2. Take a minute to list all the things that our memory is useful for. • Now think about all the things that we wouldn’t be able to do if we did not have our memory. -tying shoelaces -remembering faces -no friends -no self-concept -no personal identity

3. Human memory is not a single organ. • Technically we do not actually have a memory- we have different memory systems. • Memory consists of a collection of complex interconnected systems, each of which serves a different purpose and operates in a very different way.

4. Despite these differences, all memory systems have some functions in common-they each receive, process and store information for future use. • When we receive sensory information the brain must select what information will be: • attended to, processed and stored in the various memory systems • eliminated and therefore not stored in memory. • If this process did not occur our memory systems would be overloaded with unimportant information. • Eg. The case study of ‘S’.

5. In terms of people who are said to have “lost” their memory- this is generally a reference to a situation where one or more memory systems have malfunctioned. • To have no memory at all you would probably be unconscious or dead.

6. MEMORY AS AN INFORMATION PROCESSING SYSTEM Because memory is so closely related to learning it can be defined as the storage and retrieval of information acquired through learning. Most psychologists view memory as an active information-processing system that receives, organises, stores and recovers information similar to the way a computer operates.

7. Like a computer, memory does not passively receive and store new information. • Instead, it actively alters and organises incoming information so that it can be stored in a way that is relatively easily retrieved. • Memory and a computer are also comparable in the way that they each deal with information in a sequence involving three key processes: encoding, or conversion of information into a useable form; its storage or retention after being encoded; and its recovery or retrieval when needed.

9. ENCODING • Information that is received and stored in memory must be converted from its raw sensory state to a form that the brain can process and use. • New information must also be placed, or represented, in some form- sound, visual image, touch or meaning- in the memory system. • The entire process of converting information into a useable form or code that can be stored in memory is called encoding. • Similar to transduction in visual perception.

10. STORAGE • Next, information must be retained by the information-processing system. • Storage is the retention of information over time. • Personal computers usually store information on a hard drive, whereas human memory stores information in the brain.

11. RETRIEVAL • Finally, the information is retrieved, or located and taken out of storage when it is needed. • Retrieval is the process of locating and recovering the stored information from memory so that we are consciously aware of it.

12. The retrieval of some information is very easy and quick, such as your name or birth date. • Other information is harder to retrieve such as something you learnt in year 7 science. • In these instances we often rely on cues to retrieve information that has been stored in memory.

13. Copy out this diagram

14. Models for explaining human memory • Many models have been presented in trying to explain how memory works as a structure or construct that we rely on so much. • Some models have been more influential than others and continue to be studied and revisited by researchers to improve our understanding of memory.

15. Three models that we will study are: • Atkinson and Shiffrin’s (1968) multi-store model which describes memory as having three components called the sensory register, the short term store and the long term store • Baddeley and Hitch’s (1974) model of working memory, which changes views on the roles and functioning of short term memory • Craik and Lockhart’s (1972) levels of processing framework which emphasises the importance of the ‘depth’ at which we process information.

16. The Atkinson-Shiffrin multi store model • American Psychologists Richard Atkinson and Richard Shiffrin developed the first influential model of memory in 1968 called the multi-store model. • The Atkinson-Shiffrin multi-store model represents memory as consisting of three distinguishable components called the sensory register, the short-term store, and the long-term store. Each component, or store, represents a place where information is stored and processed.

17. Although these three memory systems are viewed as separate sub-systems of memory, they each operate simultaneously and interact in many ways. • Within each stage of memory, information processing involves encoding, storage and retrieval of information.

18. According to this model, when information is received from the environment, it passes from the sensory register to the short-term store and then to the long-term store. • Each stage of memory differs in terms of its function (the role it plays), its capacity (the amount of information it can hold at any given moment) and its duration (the length of time it can hold information).

20. The sensory store is the entry point for new information into the memory system. • It stores vast quantities of information for a very brief period of time (milliseconds) • Anything that is not attended to in sensory memory is then lost. • If the information is attended to it is then passed on to the short-term store.

21. The short term store is described as a ‘temporary working memory’ in which we manipulate information that is held to perform everyday functions. • It holds the information that we are consciously aware of at any given time. • It receives information from the sensory register as well as retrieving previously stored information from your long term store. • It has a limited capacity and can only hold around 7 items of information at a time, and only for around 30 seconds unless a conscious effort is made to keep it there longer. • This is achieved through rehearsal.

22. The long term store holds information relatively permanently in a highly organised way and has an essentially unlimited capacity. • It does not usually decay and can be stored for a lifetime. • We can however find it difficult to retrieve information if we use ineffective search strategies or by failing to use the correct memory trace. • This can also be caused by interference.

23. An important feature of the model is its description of memory in terms of it structural features and its control processes. • Structural features are the permanent, built-in, fixed features of memory that do not vary from one situation to another. • Eg. The three different stores, the function of each store, the capacity and duration of each store.

24. Control processes are selected and used by each individual and may vary across different situations. • They are under the ‘conscious’ control of the individual and which process is used depends on the particular person. • Eg. Whether the individual attends to the information, whether they rehearse the information and the search strategies that they use.

25. Given the time that has passed since the evolution of the multi-store model, psychologists have built on and reconsidered many components of Atkinson and Shiffrin’s work. • This lead to the study of the three memory systems in more detail and their name changes to sensory memory, short-term memory and long-term memory.

26. SENSORY MEMORY • Sensory memory is the entry point of memory-the initial stage of the memory system in which all of the stimuli that bombard our senses are retained in their original sensory form (not encoded) for a very brief time. • It is assumed to be unlimited in capacity.

27. An important function of sensory memory is that it stores sensory impressions long enough for them to slightly overlap one another. (Waving a pen in front of your face). • This means that we see the world as continuous and not as a series of disconnected visual images or sounds. • Sensory information remains in sensory memory just long enough for it to be attended to and selected to be transferred to short-term memory (STM).

28. We are not consciously aware of the majority of information that enters our sensory memory. • However when we direct our attention to it in order to store it in STM we become consciously aware of it. • Incoming sensory information is stored in separate sub-systems called sensory registers and it is believed that there is a separate sensory register for each of the senses.

29. ICONIC MEMORY • Iconic Memory is the name given to visual sensory memory, or the memory of visual sensory information. • Visual images in their original sensory form are usually retained in iconic memory for one-third of a second. • Sperling’s experiment.

32. George Sperling’s experiment • Used a tachistoscope to briefly present 12 letters to participants. • The participants were asked to verbally report as many letters as they could recall. • Most could recall only 4 or 5 but reported seeing all of the letters for a brief second. • He then extended his research into using a tone to measure how long the image was stored.

33. PHOTOGRAPHIC MEMORY • Some people are able to remember highly detailed scenes as if the actual event were occurring before them. • These people are said to have eidetic memory. These memories are said to be an exact replica of a visual image that persists over time without distortion. • These can last sometimes for days or weeks.

34. View this image for 30 seconds and then answer the following questions.

35. How many bows are on the girls apron? • Is the hemline of the girl’s dress above or below her knees? • How many flowers are in bloom on the taller plant? • How many whiskers are there on the cat in the tree? • How many stripes are on the cat’s tail? • What is the girl wearing in her hair?

36. ECHOIC MEMORY • Echoic Memory is the name given to auditory sensory information, or the memory of auditory sensory information. • It is called echoic memory because the sounds linger in it like an echo. • Echoic memory stores information for longer than iconic memory.

37. The main difference between iconic and echoic memory is the duration of time that they are able to hold on to information.

38. The availability of this information for 3-4 seconds is generally long enough to select what has been heard for further processing and interpretation before the sound disappears completely. • Auditory information must also be held for long enough for all parts of speech within a list of words to be identified.

40. SHORT-TERM MEMORY • Short-term memory (STM) is a memory system with a limited storage capacity in which information is stored for a relatively short period of time (unless renewed in some way). • STM stores information temporarily but for a longer time than sensory memory. • In short term memory the information is no longer an exact replica of the original sensory stimulus, but an encoding of one.

41. DURATION OF STM • Generally items in STM can be retained fairly well for the first few seconds. • After 12 seconds, recall begins to decline and by about 18 seconds almost all of the information disappears entirely if it has not been renewed in some way. • Information can be renewed in STM and retained for longer through use or by constantly repeating it.

42. CAPACITY OF STM • Compared to sensory memory and long-term memory, STM is very limited in storage capacity. • If you have an average storage capacity you should be able to recall around seven numbers in a row. If you were given eleven numbers this would not be quite as easy. • The limited capacity of seven bits of information in short-term memory was first described by George Miller in 1956.

44. Short term memory test • http://faculty.washington.edu/chudler/stm0.html

45. Millers research indicated that STM has a capacity of holding between five and nine units of information at any one time. • 7 + 2 • Rarely are we able to hold any more than 7 + 2 pieces of information in STM regardless of what type of information it is. • Information stored in STM is lost primarily through decay (not being used) and displacement (being pushed out) by new information.

46. STM AS WORKING MEMORY • Many psychologists prefer to use the term working memory rather than STM. • Working memory is the active part of memory where information you are consciously aware of is actively ‘worked’ on.

47. Working memory works on information from sensory memory and LTM. • Information from sensory memory is processed in working memory and information is extracted from LTM to be used and manipulated in working memory. • Imagining • Problem-solving • Analysing • Reasoning • Comprehending • Planning all involve working memory.

48. Your working memory enables you to read by holding words from the beginning of a sentence while you continue to process the rest of the sentence. • If you were to work out a maths problem in your head you would be using working memory.

49. Chunking Information • We can get around the limited capacity of short-term memory. • One way is to learn the information well enough to transfer it to long term memory, which has an unlimited storage capacity. • Another way is to put more information into each of the 7 + 2 units that can be stored in STM.

50. D N V R C E W V D C S V • NSW VCR VCE DVD • People are usually able to recall more of the second set of letters even though it is made up of exactly the same letters. • This is a demonstration of chunking.