Short-Term Memory

• Memory refers to the structures and processes involved in storing and retrieving information
• Short-term memory is a permanent memory store.

  False
• Short-term memory is also referred to as working memory.
• What are the two limitations of short-term memory?

  Capacity and duration
• The capacity of memory refers to the amount of information that can be held at any time.
• Duration refers to the length of time information can be held in memory.
• Match the type of coding with its description:

  Semantic ↔️ Storing information by meaning

  Acoustic ↔️ Storing information by sound

  Visual ↔️ Storing information by appearance
• What was the mean digit span found by Jacobs in 1887?

  9.3
• Jacobs discovered that the mean span for letters was 7.3 items.
• Numbers are easier to remember than letters according to Jacobs' research.
• What is the estimated memory capacity in terms of items according to Jacobs' findings?

  7-9 items
• Miller's (1956) research is known as the magical number 7, plus or minus 2.
• Miller's research suggests we can hold 7 ± 2 items in our short-term memory.
• Miller discovered that chunking information can increase the capacity of the STM.
• What limitation did Miller's 1956 theory have regarding chunk size?

  Unspecified chunk size
• Miller's research did not consider factors affecting STM capacity such as age.
• Peterson and Peterson (1959) investigated the duration of short-term memory.
• What task did Peterson and Peterson ask students to perform to prevent rehearsal?

  Count backwards in threes
• Peterson and Peterson found that at 3 seconds, 80% of the trigrams were recalled correctly, whereas at 18 seconds, only 10% were recalled correctly.
• The duration of short-term memory is approximately 18 seconds according to Peterson and Peterson.
• What was a weakness of Peterson and Peterson's study in terms of their sample?

  Only psychology students
• Peterson and Peterson's study is criticized for low ecological validity.
• Peterson and Peterson's study was highly controlled and took place in lab conditions.
• Peterson and Peterson: Weakness:

  • 24 Psychology students.
  • The memory of the student is often better than others.
  • They had previously studied strategies for memory improvement.
  • As a result, we are unable to generalise.
• Peterson and Peterson: Weakness:

  • Low ecological validity.
  • The experiment was conducted in a controlled, artificial environment, which does not reflect the natural context in which memory tasks occur, such as recalling faces or words in social interactions.
  • Lacks mundane realism.
  • Memory tasks in real life often involve familiar, meaningful material, such as names or events, which the study didn’t replicate.
• Peterson and Peterson: Strength:

  • Controlled environment: The experiment was conducted in a highly controlled lab setting, which allowed for precise manipulation of variables and ensured that extraneous factors did not influence the results.
  • Replication: The simplicity of the experimental design allowed it to be replicated by other researchers, which helps strengthen the reliability of the findings and their role in establishing theories of memory.
  • The study helped to develop the multi-store model of memory (MSM), which has been influential in the field of cognitive psychology.