Coding

• What are the strengths of coding?

  1. Evidence for existence of separate memory stores
• What are the limitations of coding?

  1. Use of artificial stimuli
• Strength (coding) = evidence for existence of separate memory stores

  • Baddeley’s (1966) research established that STM codes based on sound (acoustics) and LTM codes via meaning (semantics), demonstrating a clear difference between the two memory stores
  • These findings have largely stood the test of time and have been an important step in our understanding of the memory system, which ultimately led to the development of the multi-store model of memory as proposed by Atkinson and Shiffrin (1968)
• Limitation (coding) = use of artificial stimuli

  • There are issues with the stimuli used in Baddeley’s (1966) experiment, as they are not meaningful material to participants
  • E.g. word lists have no personal meaning to participants
  • Therefore, findings may not tell us much about coding in different kinds of memory tasks, especially in everyday life
  • When processing more meaningful information, people may use semantic coding even for STM tasks, demonstrating its limited application