Unit 3 - Cognitive Approach To Behaviour
Unraveling The Multi-Store Memory Model Insights & Intricacies
Table of content
Memory, the superhero of our cognitive processes, has a key role to play: to encode, store, and retrieve information. Just imagine, it's like your personal assistant working round-the-clock, keeping track of every single bit of info. But how does it do this? Enter the multi-store memory model. This is the brainchild of Atkinson and Shiffrin (1968) who saw our memory as being split into three key areas:
- Sensory memory
- Short-term memory store
- Long-term memory store
Sensory memory
Think of your sensory memory like an automatic snapshot machine for your senses, capturing all visual, auditory, olfactory data, and more. However, it's a bit of a drama queen - it's not interested in processing any of this info, just gathering it. Mostly, scientists have been checking out iconic memory (visual) and echoic memory (audio).
You know that time when you glanced at a passing car and recognized the license plate, only to forget it a second later? That's your iconic memory in action. It stores everything your eyes see, but only for a very short duration - usually a second, tops. And what about echoic memory? It's like your personal audio recorder that records everything you hear. However, just like iconic memory, it is short-lived and fades away within 2-5 seconds.
For an item to make it from sensory memory to short-term memory, it needs to win the attention lottery. Basically, if something isn't interesting enough, it's gonna get left behind, just like you ditch a boring movie halfway through!
Short-term memory
Once your senses decide something is cool enough to pay attention to, that info takes a ride to your short-term memory (STM). STM doesn't care if the data is visual or audio - it's the great equalizer! The capacity of STM is like a small but perfectly formed sushi platter, it can hold about 7±2 chunks of info.
Remember that childhood phone number you used to dial up your best friend for a quick game of Fortnite? That's STM working its magic. However, if you don't use the info in around 30 seconds, it's like those Snapchat messages - Poof! It's gone.
To make the memory stay longer and transfer it to the long-term memory store, STM uses a little trick called rehearsal. If you keep repeating a piece of info or keep coming back to a mental image, it's like putting a leash on your memory – it sticks around!
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Unit 3 - Cognitive Approach To Behaviour
Unraveling The Multi-Store Memory Model Insights & Intricacies
Table of content
Memory, the superhero of our cognitive processes, has a key role to play: to encode, store, and retrieve information. Just imagine, it's like your personal assistant working round-the-clock, keeping track of every single bit of info. But how does it do this? Enter the multi-store memory model. This is the brainchild of Atkinson and Shiffrin (1968) who saw our memory as being split into three key areas:
- Sensory memory
- Short-term memory store
- Long-term memory store
Sensory memory
Think of your sensory memory like an automatic snapshot machine for your senses, capturing all visual, auditory, olfactory data, and more. However, it's a bit of a drama queen - it's not interested in processing any of this info, just gathering it. Mostly, scientists have been checking out iconic memory (visual) and echoic memory (audio).
You know that time when you glanced at a passing car and recognized the license plate, only to forget it a second later? That's your iconic memory in action. It stores everything your eyes see, but only for a very short duration - usually a second, tops. And what about echoic memory? It's like your personal audio recorder that records everything you hear. However, just like iconic memory, it is short-lived and fades away within 2-5 seconds.
For an item to make it from sensory memory to short-term memory, it needs to win the attention lottery. Basically, if something isn't interesting enough, it's gonna get left behind, just like you ditch a boring movie halfway through!
Short-term memory
Once your senses decide something is cool enough to pay attention to, that info takes a ride to your short-term memory (STM). STM doesn't care if the data is visual or audio - it's the great equalizer! The capacity of STM is like a small but perfectly formed sushi platter, it can hold about 7±2 chunks of info.
Remember that childhood phone number you used to dial up your best friend for a quick game of Fortnite? That's STM working its magic. However, if you don't use the info in around 30 seconds, it's like those Snapchat messages - Poof! It's gone.
To make the memory stay longer and transfer it to the long-term memory store, STM uses a little trick called rehearsal. If you keep repeating a piece of info or keep coming back to a mental image, it's like putting a leash on your memory – it sticks around!
Unlock the Full Content!
Dive deeper and gain exclusive access to premium files of Psychology HL. Subscribe now and get closer to that 45 🌟