Working memory

• What are the parts of the working memory model?

  Central executive

  Episodic buffer

  Phonological loop

  Visuospatial-sketch pad
• What is the central executive?

  Has a very limited storage capacity and directs attention from either the senses or LTM to the slave systems
• What does the phonological loop do?

  It deals with auditory tasks
• What is the phonological loop divided into?

  Phonological store (inner ear) - stores the words we hear

  Articulatory process (inner voice) - repeats the words on a loop which is a form of maintenance rehearsal
• what does the Visuo-spatial sketch pad do?

  used For spatial tasks in the present such as navigating yourself round
• What is the visuo-spatial sketch pad divided into?

  Visual cache - store for visual data

  Inner scribe - stores the arrangement of objects in the visual field
• What does the episodic buffer do?

  The storage element of the CE and can hold around 4 pieces of information
• What are some strengths of this model?

  Dual task performance

  Case study evidence from brain damaged patients
• Why is dual task performance a strength?

  A study found participants found completing 2 visual tasks at the same time challenging but could do a visual and auditory one
• Why does dual task performance provide evidence?

  Because it suggests that the PL and VSS are separate components in the LTM
• how did case study’s form brain damaged patients show evidence for this model?

  A motor bike accident caused a man to have issues processing verbal but not visual information - providing evidence for separate subsystems
• What are some weaknesses of this explanation?

  Case studies from brain damaged patients

  Central executive
• How are case studies of those with brain damage a weakness?

  Because trauma in the brain may create a confounding variable
• How is the central executive a weakness for this model?

  Because the CE is thought to be the most important part but least understood
• What is not fully understood about the CE?

  there may be more then one component and it’s thought that it’s role is more complex then simply diverting attention to the subsystems