Information Processing

EDU223 Educational Psychology

MemorySensory, Short Term, Long Term,Working

Functions: What do you use memory for? Making decisions based on experience;

Where’s the cereal? Remembering appointments & faces. Orienting yourself in space & time; Remembering people; Remembering how to do things (skills); Preferences; Personal Identity …

The Importance of Memory

Where would you be without memory? The Case of Clive Wearing

What is Memory?

Everything in life is memory, save for the thin edge of the present (Gazzaniga, 2000)

Definition: Memory is the processes involved in retaining, retrieving, and using information about stimuli, images, events, ideas, and skills after the original information is no longer present. => Mental ‘time travel’ …

Information Processing & Memory

The Modal Model

Atkinson & Shiffrin’s (1968)

An Example…………….

Sensory Memory

Definition: Sensory memory is the retention, for brief periods of time (…), of the effects of sensory

stimulation. Example: The Sparkler’s Trail

=> persistence of vision (film)

Sensory Memory- Moving Images

Visual Memory

Questions: How much information is stored in the visual icon? For how long? Sperling (1960):

.5 sec. presentation; => 4–5 letters remembered

X M L T

A F N B

C D Z P

Sperling (1960)

Two Factors: (a) whole vs.

partial report =>10 letters remembered.

(b) immediate vs. delayed report => rapid decay.

Results of Sperling

=> high capacity, rapid decay.

Sensory Memories

Not just visual, but also auditory (‘echoic’ memory, 1–5 sec.).

Functions of Sensory Memory: Collection or information to be processed; Holding information while processing; Filling in blanks of intermittent stimulation.

The Modal Model

Short Term vs Long Term

Question: What is the evidence for two separate entities

or mechanisms? Demonstration: Serial position curve

Stimuli (Murdoch, 1962; Neth & Myers, 2005) Try to remember the following items…

Stimuli (Murdoch, 1962; Neth & Myers, 2005) Barricade Children Diet Racket Gourd Antenna Folio Meter Game Journey

Mohair Phoenix Crossbow Doorbell Muffler Sandwich Mouse Colt Menu Airplane

Serial Position Curve

What does the SPC mean?

Glanzer and Cunitz (1966): Hypothesis 1: Recency due to STM.

Test: intermediate task (30 seconds counting backwards) prior to recall => delete STM.

Result: Reduced recency effect. Hypothesis 2: Primacy due to more rehearsal.

Test: slower pace => more rehearsal possible. Result: Increased primacy effect.

SPC Summary

Differences in Coding

Types of coding or ‘representational formats’:

Visual & Phonological Coding in STM

Zhang & Simon (1985):

Semantic Coding in STM

Wickens et al. (1976):

Result: Proactive Interference

Coding in Long-Term Memory

Demonstration (Sachs, 1967):

The Galileo Story

There is an interesting story about the telescope. In Holland, a mannamed Lippershey was an eyeglass maker. One day his children wereplaying with some lenses. They discovered that things seemed very close if two lenses were about a foot apart. Lippershey began experiments and his "spyglass" attracted much attention. He sent a letter about it to Galileo, the great Italian scientist. [0] Galileo at once realized the importance of the discovery, and set out to build an instrument of his own. He used an old organ pipe with one lens curved out and the other curved in. On the first clear night he pointed the glass towards the sky. He was amazed to find the empty dark spaces filled with brightly gleaming stars! [80] Night after night Galileo climbed to a high tower, sweeping the sky with his telescope. One night he saw Jupiter, and to his great surprise discovered with it three bright stars, two to the east and one to the west. On the next night, however, all were to the west. A few nights later there were four little stars [160].

The Galileo Story (cont’d) Which sentence did you read?

1. He sent a letter about it to Galileo, the great Italian scientist.

2. Galileo, the great Italian scientist, sent him a letter about it.

3. A letter about it was sent to Galileo, the great Italian scientist.

4. He sent Galileo, the great Italian scientist, a letter about it.

Changes: 1. Identical. 2. Semantic: A difference in meaning. 3. Voice: Changed from active to passive 4. Formal: syntactic change, but same meaning

The Galileo Story: Results

LTM vs. STM: Neuropsychology Evidence

=> new LTM

STM vs. LTM: Double Dissociation

H.M.: removal of hippocampus to stop epileptic seizures => STM without LTM.

K.F. (Shallice & Warrington, 1970): LTM without STM.

The Properties of STM

Function: Holding small amounts of information for brief periods of time is crucial for normal functioning.

Questions: Capacity: How much information? Duration: For how long?

The (Magical) Capacity of STM

George Miller (1956): ‘magical 7±2’ items Definition: A chunk is a collection of elements

that are strongly associated with each other and weakly associated with other chunks.

Chunking: Small units (letters, words) are combined into larger meaningful units(words, sentences). => Magic!

Capacity of STM: Examples

Ericsson et al. (1980): Student S.F. Initial digit span of 7 digits; 230h of training: digit span of 79 digits. Semantic chunking: 3492 remembered as

‘3min 49.2s, almost world record for 1mile’… Chase & Simon (1973):

Chess experts vs. novices

Chase & Simon (1973): Results

Baddeley (2000): Working Memory is a limited capacity system

for temporary storage and manipulation of information for complex tasks (e.g., comprehension, learning, reasoning).

limited capacity multiple parts Function: store and manipulate information

STM as Working Memory

Baddeley (2000)’s Working Memory

Examples: Specialization of WM

Examples: Integration in WM

The Phonological Loop

Three phenomena suggest a specialized sub-system: 1. Phonological

Similarity Effect ‘mac, can, cap, map’

harder than ‘pen, pay, cow, rig’

Conrad (1964): Misidentifications phonologically similar]

2. Word-length effect

The Visuospatial Sketch Pad

Re-Interpretation of Brooks (1968):

Re-Interpretation of Brooks (1968):

OverloadOverload

Say Yes

Point to Yes

HarderEasier

Harder

WM: PL vs. VsSP – Conclusions

Effects support idea of two specialized subcomponents: PL and VsSP.

WM can handle different (phonological & visualspatial) types of information, but easily overloads when similar types are presented simultaneously.

But: Many open questions remain (e.g., details of central executive; compensatory use of LTM by patients with WM damage).

WM and the Brain