Multi Store Model

• The multi store model was proposed by Atkinson and Shiffin (1968)
• Firstly, information enters our sensory stores. This information is in the form of environmental stimuli which could be light, sound, temperature or pain
• The sensory memory has a negligible capacity and duration; much of this information goes unnoticed
• The sensory memory is like a filter, taking a large volume of input information and reducing it to a single important thread that the remaining processes can handle
• If we divert our attention to a particular stimulus then it’ll pass into the STM
• The short term memory is in a fragile state, information disappears if it isn’t rehearsed
• Research has supported that if rehearsal is prevented, information will decay in under 20 seconds. Contents is also lost if new information enters
• Information is displaced because the capacity of our short term memory is relatively small as we saw in the previous section
• Through elaborative rehearsal, information is transferred into the LTM where it can be retrieved back into the STM via retrieval
• Elaborative rehearsal can vary but often involves expanding on a subject and reinforcing it, this could be writing out notes or having a conversation with a peer- it’s often known as revising
• Comparatively little is known about the nature of the LTM store but as research in the previous section confirms research has suggested that information can be held in the store for between two minutes and 100 years
• The store may be unlimited in capacity and duration- as research studies have been difficult to interpret
• It’s believed that LTM decays as an individual gets older
• controlled lab studies on capacity, duration and coding support the existence of a separate short and long term store. studies using brain scanning techniques have also demonstrated that there's a difference between STM and LTM. Beardsley (1997) found that the prefrontal cortex is active during STM but not LTM tasks. this evidence provides strong support for the MSM
• the MSM and its supporting research shows that the LTM is divided into a number of qualitatively different stores. the same is true for LTM. research shows there are a number of qualitatively different kinds of LTM and each behaves differently. this suggests that the MSM may be overly simplistic
• one case involved a man referred to as HM. his brain damage was caused by an operation to remove the hippocampus from both sides of his brain to reduce the severe epilepsy he had suffered. HM's personality and intellect remained intact but he couldn't for new LTMs, although he could remember things from before the surgery. this provides support for the MSM's notion of separation stores, as HM was unable to transfer information from his STM to LTM, but was able to retrieve information from before his surgery