Matlin 8e ch 4 editedx

Cognition, 8e Chapter 4

Working Memory

Cognition, 8e by Margaret W. Matlin

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The Classic Research on Working Memory George Miller's "Magical Number Seven" (7 ± 2) • suggested that people can remember about seven items (give or take two) • chunk—memory unit consisting of strongly associated components • proposed that people engage in internal mental processes in order to convert stimuli into a manageable number of chunks Cognition, 8e by Margaret W. Matlin

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The Classic Research on Working Memory Other Early Research on the Capacity of Short-Term-Memory The Brown/Peterson & Peterson Technique

• Material held in memory for less than a minute is frequently forgotten. • present some items to be remembered; count backwards by threes (distractor task); attempt recall • rehearsal

Cognition, 8e by Margaret W. Matlin

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Cognition, 8e by Margaret W. Matlin

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The Classic Research on Working Memory Other Early Research on the Capacity of Short-Term-Memory The Recency Effect serial-position effect recency effect primacy effect

Cognition, 8e by Margaret W. Matlin

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Cognition, 8e by Margaret W. Matlin

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The Classic Research on Working Memory Other Early Research on the Capacity of Short-Term-Memory Semantic Similarity of the Items in Short-Term Memory semantics Wickens and colleagues (1976) • proactive interference (PI) • Brown/Peterson & Peterson task varying semantic similarity on Trial 4 • release from proactive interference Cognition, 8e by Margaret W. Matlin

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Cognition, 8e by Margaret W. Matlin

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The Working-Memory Approach Alan Baddeley & Graham Hitch (1974) What does short-term memory accomplish for our cognitive processes?

Cognition, 8e by Margaret W. Matlin

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The Working-Memory Approach working-memory approach—Our immediate memory is a multipart system that temporarily holds and manipulates information while we perform cognitive tasks. • central executive • visuospatial sketchpad • episodic buffer • phonological loop • long-term memory Cognition, 8e by Margaret W. Matlin

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The Working-Memory Approach The working-memory approach emphasizes the active manipulation of information in working memory.

Cognition, 8e by Margaret W. Matlin

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Cognition, 8e by Margaret W. Matlin

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The Working-Memory Approach Evidence for Components with Independent Capacities Working memory is not unitary Baddeley & Hitch (1974)

• random numbers and spatial reasoning task • People performed remarkably quickly and accurately on both of these two simultaneous tasks.

Cognition, 8e by Margaret W. Matlin

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The Working-Memory Approach In Depth: Phonological Loop phonological loop—processes a limited number of sounds for a short period of time subvocalization

Cognition, 8e by Margaret W. Matlin

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The Working-Memory Approach In Depth: Phonological Loop Research on Acoustic Confusions acoustic confusions Conrad & Hull (1964) • list of letters, presented visually • letters with similar-sounding names vs. letters with different-sounding names

lists of words Cognition, 8e by Margaret W. Matlin

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The Working-Memory Approach In Depth: Phonological Loop Other Uses for the Phonological Loop • • • • • • • •

counting forming long term memories self-instruction acquiring new vocabulary reading learning foreign language mathematical calculations problem-solving tasks

Cognition, 8e by Margaret W. Matlin

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The Working-Memory Approach In Depth: Phonological Loop Neuroscience Research on the Phonological Loop frontal lobe left temporal lobe Romero Lauro and colleagues (2010) • Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS) • left temporal lobe, left parietal lobe • rehearsal, storage • short vs. long sentences Cognition, 8e by Margaret W. Matlin

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The Working-Memory Approach Visuospatial Sketchpad visuospatial sketchpad—processes both visual and spatial information also known as: visuospatial working memory, short-term visual memory

Cognition, 8e by Margaret W. Matlin

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The Working-Memory Approach Visuospatial Sketchpad Allows you to: • store visual appearance and relative position • store visual information encoded from verbal stimuli limited capacity

Cognition, 8e by Margaret W. Matlin

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The Working-Memory Approach Visuospatial Sketchpad Research on the Visuospatial Sketchpad performing two visuospatial tasks simultaneously • no standardized set of visual stimuli • tendency to provide names for visual stimuli, thus using phonological loop instead • Brandimonte and colleagues (1992)—say "la la la" while looking at complex visual stimulus Cognition, 8e by Margaret W. Matlin

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The Working-Memory Approach Visuospatial Sketchpad Other Uses for the Visuospatial Sketchpad • engineering, art, architecture • retaining image of a scene • finding your way from one location to another • track a moving object • videogames, jigsaw puzzles, mazes

Cognition, 8e by Margaret W. Matlin

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The Working-Memory Approach Visuospatial Sketchpad Neuroscience Research on the Visuospatial Sketchpad right hemisphere occipital lobe frontal cortex frontal and parietal lobes

Cognition, 8e by Margaret W. Matlin

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The Working-Memory Approach Central Executive central executive • integrates information from the phonological loop, the visuospatial sketchpad, the episodic buffer, and longterm memory • plays a role in: focusing attention, selecting strategies, transforming information, and coordinating behavior • suppressing irrelevant information Cognition, 8e by Margaret W. Matlin

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The Working-Memory Approach Central Executive Characteristics of the Central Executive • plans and coordinates, but does not store information • executive supervisor • decides which issues deserve attention • selects a strategy • decides how to tackle a problem • limited ability to perform simultaneous tasks Cognition, 8e by Margaret W. Matlin

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The Working-Memory Approach Central Executive The Central Executive and Daydreaming Teasdale and colleagues (1995) • random-number generation task • report thoughts

Cognition, 8e by Margaret W. Matlin

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The Working-Memory Approach Central Executive Neuroscience Research on the Central Executive frontal region of the cortex

Cognition, 8e by Margaret W. Matlin

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The Working-Memory Approach Episodic Buffer

• temporary storehouse that can hold and combine information from the phonological loop, the visuospatial sketchpad, and long-term memory • integrates information from different modalities • manipulates information for interpretation

Cognition, 8e by Margaret W. Matlin

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The Working-Memory Approach Episodic Buffer (continued)

• make connections between concepts • limited capacity • temporary memory system

Cognition, 8e by Margaret W. Matlin

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The Working-Memory Approach Working Memory and Academic Performance 1. Scores on working-memory tasks are correlated with overall intelligence and grades in school. 2. Scores on tests of working memory— especially the phonological loop—are usually correlated with reading ability.

Cognition, 8e by Margaret W. Matlin

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The Working-Memory Approach Working Memory and Academic Performance 3. Scores on central-executive tasks are correlated with verbal fluency, reading comprehension, reasoning ability, and note-taking skills. 4. People with AttentionDeficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) often have more difficulty than others on central-executive tasks. Cognition, 8e by Margaret W. Matlin

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