The working memory model

• Label this diagram of the working memory model

  A) central executive

  B) visuo-spatial sketchpad

  C) visual cache (passive)

  D) inner eye (active)

  E) phonological loop

  F) phonological store (passive)

  G) inner voice (active)

  H) episodic buffer

  I) long term memory

  
• What is the central executive and what does it do?

  • supervisory role
  • focuses and divides attention
  • makes decision
  • in charge of reasoning
  • allocates slave systems to different tasks
• What is the phonological loop and what does it do?

  • deals with auditory information
  • phonological store stores the words that we hear
  • inner voice allows maintenance rehearsal to keep information in working memory
• What is the visuo-spatial sketchpad and what does it do?

  • stores visual and spatial information
  • visual cache stores visual data
  • inner eye records the arrangement of objects in the visual field
• What is the episodic buffer and what does it do?

  • combines both visual and auditory information
  • converts them into time stamped episodes
  • links working memory to LTM
• Discuss research into patient KF.

  • motorcycle accident
  • damaged his STM, but LTM remained intact
  • suffered damage to the phonological loop
  • remembered information better if he read them (visual) rather than if they were read to him (acoustic)
• Evaluate the working memory model.

  + Patient KF: case study shows that the phonological loop and visual spatial sketchpad are separate stores, as he suffered selective damage

  + Baddeley's dual task experiment: performance is good when doing one language and one visual based task, but drops dramatically if both tasks are language/visual based, suggests that there are 2 different subsystems

  + RWA: listening to music while driving does not impact performance, but going on your phone while driving does

  -none of the systems can be observed directly, so low scientific status