The Working Memory Model

• What are the components of the working memory model?

  -Central executive

  -Phonological loop

  -Visuo-spatial sketchpad

  -Episodic buffer
• What is the coding of the central executive?

  multimodal
• What is the capacity of the central executive?

  limited
• What is the coding of the phonological loop?

  verbal
• What is the capacity of the phonological loop?

  2 seconds of spoken information
• What is the coding of the visuo-spatial sketchpad?

  visual and spatial
• What is the capacity of the visuo-spatial sketchpad?

  3-4 objects
• What is the coding of the episodic buffer?

  multimodal
• What is the capacity of the episodic buffer?

  about 4 chunks
• What is the central executive in the working memory model?

  -Most important component

  -Limited, unitary store - drives the whole system

  -Decides which information to pay attention to

  -Allocates information to the correct slave systems
• What leads to increased demands on the central executive?

  dual tasks
• With practice, dual tasks become automated so the central executive doesn't need to pay attention to them
• What happens in the phonological loop?

  -Deals with the spoken and written material

  -Active when someone performs a verbal task

  -It consists of two parts : phonological store (inner ear), articulatory control process (inner voice)
• What is the phonological store?

  -Linked to speech perception

  -Holds the amount of words that can be spoken in 2 seconds
• What is the articulatory control process?

  -Linked to speech production

  -Rehearses verbal information from the phonological store
• What is the episodic buffer?

  -Provides temporary storage of information in multimodal code

  -It integrates information from the other two systems into a single episodic representation

  -Maintains time sequencing - remembers events in order like a short term episodic memory

  (added to the model in 2000)
• What is a multimodal code?

  verbal and visual and other senses
• Who was the working memory model created by?

  Baddeley and Hitch - they suggested that STM was an active process consisting of multiple components
• The working memory model replaced the idea of a unitary STM store
• What is the visuo-spatial sketchpad?

  -Active when someone performs a visual task

  -Referred to as the inner eye

  -It consists of 2 parts: visual cache and inner scribe
• What is the visual cache?

  stores visual information e.g. shape and colour
• What is the inner scribe?

  records spatial and movement information
• What are the strengths of the WMM?

  -There is research to support it: KF's varying ability suggests short term memory has different processes for verbal and visual information, which the WMM accounts for

  -Studies of dual task performance within the non-clinical population have also supported the WMM - Baddeley instructed participants to track a moving spot of light whilst completing another visual task, and then track the light whilst completing a verbal task. Participants had more difficulty tracking with the visual task than tracking with the verbal task
• What is WMM?

  The working memory model
• What are the weaknesses of the WMM?

  -Little is known about how the central executive works - psychologists argue it is not unitary, as seen from brain studies and Baddeley himself said it was the least understood component suggesting that the WMM is incomplete and not fully explained

  -Case study investigations are limited e.g. the study of KF is limited in its generalisability as the sample consisted of one person who had brain damage - case studies supporting the WMM have this limitation, the model itself may not apply to the wider population