AQA A-Level Psychology paper 1 16
markers
Outline and evaluate the multi store model of memory. (AO1) - ANS Theoretical model
developed by Atkinson and Shiffrin.
Suggests information flows through three memory stores, sensory register, short term
memory, and long term memory. Each store is separate as they have different coding,
capacities and durations. Each store is unitary- cannot be subdivided.
The sensory register detect sensory stimuli, codes modality free and has a large
capacity.
If information is paid attention to, it is transferred to the short term memory which has a
capacity of five to nine items, codes acoustically and has a duration of up to 30
seconds.
Rehearsal involves repeating information that people are trying to remember over and
over again. This prevents information from decaying and allows it to enter the long term
memory.
Long term memory has a potentially unlimited capacity and duration and is coded
semantically. Information in the long term memory can be accessed by the short term
memory during retrieval.
Information can be lost from each store through decay or displacement.
Outline and evaluate the multi store model of memory. (AO3) - ANS + Supporting
evidence for the idea that each of the three stores are different. Baddeley investigated
coding in STM & LTM: 70 young servicemen were divided into four different groups and
underwent trials where they were briefly presented with the same 5 words. However, the
orders of the words changed each time. Their task was to write down the words in the
correct order. G1: words acoustically similar. G2: words acoustically dissimilar. G3:
words semantically similar. G4: words semantically dissimilar. To assess coding in STM
recall was assessed within 30 seconds. To assess LTM coding, recall was assessed
after a long duration. For STM: Difference in recall between acoustically similar words
and acoustically dissimilar words - codes acoustically. For LTM: Difference in recall
,between semantically similar words and semantically dissimilar words.- codes
semantically.
-Challenging evidence: stores aren't unitary. Research using dual task studies shows
that the short term memory can complete two different tasks (visual and acoustic) at the
same time which suggests it has subdivisions. Research also suggests that the LTM
could be subdivided into different parts: Episodic, semantic and procedural. This
challenges the multi store model of memory's, assumption that all stores are unitary.
+ Practical application. Some ideas from the multi store model of memory can be used
to help in education. For example, the idea of rehearsal to help a memory enter the long
term memory can be used by students and teachers. It means students should revise
by regularly rehearsing information. And teachers should regularly revisit topics to
continue rehearsal. This shows that this model can be useful in the real world.
Outline & Evaluate the Working memory model of memory. (AO1) - ANS It is a model
for short term memory only, developed by Baddeley and Hitch.
It divides the short term memory into 4 to 8 subdivisions: a controller & slave systems.
Each subdivision is specialised for a specific information and can only deal with one
task at time. We can complete tasks using different types of information at the same
time. This is the dual task technique.
The central executive is the supervisor of the short term store. It controls and directs
attention, plans and makes decisions, passes info to components and can takeover
from overloaded slave systems for brief periods: codes modality free & codes
acoustically
Phonological loop- stores speech-based sound for brief periods. Codes acoustically,
limited capacity. A) phonological Store (inner ear): briefly stores acoustically coded
items B) articulatory control process (inner voice): sub vocal repetition of stored items.
Visuospatial sketch Pad- Sets up and manipulates mental images from visual and
spatial information. Codes visually, limited capacity of four objects. A) Visual cache:
object form and colour info. B) inner scribe: object arrangement info.
Episodic buffer. Temporary storage system allowing incoming info to be combined with
long term memory info. Codes modality free, capacity limited to four chunks.
Outline & Evaluate the Working memory model of memory. (AO3) - ANS +Supporting
evidence: dual task studies
,If a participant can complete a verbal and visual task at the same time, it supports the
idea that the short term memory is subdivided. If they are unable to complete
simultaneously two similar tasks, it shows that the capacity of each component is
limited. For example, the study by Robbins et al. Showed that the phonological loop,
visuospatial sketch Pad and Central Executive can deal with different tasks at the same
time (&thus subdivided). However, they can't deal with two tasks for period of time due
to their limited capacity.
+supporting case study evidence - KF
suffered brain damage affecting STM. Struggle with tasks dealing with sounds but was
able to compete visual tasks. If one component is damaged yet the others aren't, it
shows that each component is separate.
- Limitations of case study evidence: The use of brain damaged patients makes it hard
to draw conclusions from these studies as the research is focused on abnormal brains.
May not be able to generalise findings to the wider population who have normal brains.
- Central executive is oversimplified. Patient EVR had a cerebral tumours removed. He
performed well on reasoning tasks, but poorly on everyday decision making - both of
which require the central executive. This suggests that the central executive is not
unitary. It is more complex than described by the working memory model.
Describe and evaluate types of long term memory. (AO1) - ANS Tulving proposed three
types of long term memory: episodic, semantic, and procedural.
Episodic memory, hippocampus - memories of personal experiences involving specific
details, context and emotions. Declarative: require conscious effort to remember. eg- a
first date
Semantic memory, temporal/frontal lobes - Memories of knowledge about the world that
is shared with everyone (facts) rather than personal memories. Declarative: requires
conscious effort to remember. eg- the currency of a country
Procedural memory, cerebellum/motor cortex - Knowing how to do things / memory of
skills that become automatic. Implicit: Requires no conscious effort to recall. eg- how to
ride a bike
Describe and evaluate types of long term memory. (AO3) - ANS + supporting evidence
based on case studies of brain damage individuals that suggest that episodic memories
and semantic memories are different. Vicari et al: Case study of an 8 year old girl who
suffered brain damage following the removal of a tumour. Due to the location of the
, damage, she found it difficult to create new episodic memories, but was still able to
make some semantic memories. This suggests that episodic and semantic memories
are separate types of LTM and are associated with different parts of the brain.
-Problems with evidence: Evidence from brain damage. Small sample sizes, so hard to
generalise, and conditions are often unique, so we can't say typical brains function in
the same way.
- Long term memory may not be heavily subdivided. Some researchers disagree with
the idea that episodic and semantic memories are stored differently, as they don't
believe they are distinctive enough to be separate. Instead, they should be collectively
known as declarative memories. This is a limitation as it suggests there may only be two
types of long term memory, not 3.
+Practical application. A researcher found that older people with a mild cognitive
impairment could be trained to improve episodic memory. Being able to identify different
types of long term memory allows psychologists to have a positive impact on the lives of
people with memory issues. It may also help people get back to work, which would have
a positive effect on the economy.
Describe and evaluate interference as an explanation for forgetting. (AO1) - ANS
Interference is forgetting because one memory blocks another, causing one or both
memories to be distorted or forgotten.
It is an explanation for forgetting long term memories- interference between memories
makes them hard to locate. Therefore we experience forgetting.
There are two types of interference, proactive and retroactive.
Proactive interference is when older memories disrupt the recall of newer memories.
For example, a teacher has learnt so many names in the past that they have difficult
remembering the names of their current class.
Retroactive interference is when newer memories disrupt the recall of older memories.
For example, a teacher learned so many new names this year they have difficulty
remembering the names of their previous students.
Describe and evaluate interference as an explanation for forgetting. (AO3) - ANS +
supporting evidence for retroactive interference: McGeoch & McDonald.
All participants learn list A (10 words), have a 10 minute break and then learn list B
(different 10 words). Then they are asked to recall list A. Gr1: List A and B are similar
(12% accurate). Gr2: List B comprised of nonsense syllables (26% accurate). Gr3: list B
markers
Outline and evaluate the multi store model of memory. (AO1) - ANS Theoretical model
developed by Atkinson and Shiffrin.
Suggests information flows through three memory stores, sensory register, short term
memory, and long term memory. Each store is separate as they have different coding,
capacities and durations. Each store is unitary- cannot be subdivided.
The sensory register detect sensory stimuli, codes modality free and has a large
capacity.
If information is paid attention to, it is transferred to the short term memory which has a
capacity of five to nine items, codes acoustically and has a duration of up to 30
seconds.
Rehearsal involves repeating information that people are trying to remember over and
over again. This prevents information from decaying and allows it to enter the long term
memory.
Long term memory has a potentially unlimited capacity and duration and is coded
semantically. Information in the long term memory can be accessed by the short term
memory during retrieval.
Information can be lost from each store through decay or displacement.
Outline and evaluate the multi store model of memory. (AO3) - ANS + Supporting
evidence for the idea that each of the three stores are different. Baddeley investigated
coding in STM & LTM: 70 young servicemen were divided into four different groups and
underwent trials where they were briefly presented with the same 5 words. However, the
orders of the words changed each time. Their task was to write down the words in the
correct order. G1: words acoustically similar. G2: words acoustically dissimilar. G3:
words semantically similar. G4: words semantically dissimilar. To assess coding in STM
recall was assessed within 30 seconds. To assess LTM coding, recall was assessed
after a long duration. For STM: Difference in recall between acoustically similar words
and acoustically dissimilar words - codes acoustically. For LTM: Difference in recall
,between semantically similar words and semantically dissimilar words.- codes
semantically.
-Challenging evidence: stores aren't unitary. Research using dual task studies shows
that the short term memory can complete two different tasks (visual and acoustic) at the
same time which suggests it has subdivisions. Research also suggests that the LTM
could be subdivided into different parts: Episodic, semantic and procedural. This
challenges the multi store model of memory's, assumption that all stores are unitary.
+ Practical application. Some ideas from the multi store model of memory can be used
to help in education. For example, the idea of rehearsal to help a memory enter the long
term memory can be used by students and teachers. It means students should revise
by regularly rehearsing information. And teachers should regularly revisit topics to
continue rehearsal. This shows that this model can be useful in the real world.
Outline & Evaluate the Working memory model of memory. (AO1) - ANS It is a model
for short term memory only, developed by Baddeley and Hitch.
It divides the short term memory into 4 to 8 subdivisions: a controller & slave systems.
Each subdivision is specialised for a specific information and can only deal with one
task at time. We can complete tasks using different types of information at the same
time. This is the dual task technique.
The central executive is the supervisor of the short term store. It controls and directs
attention, plans and makes decisions, passes info to components and can takeover
from overloaded slave systems for brief periods: codes modality free & codes
acoustically
Phonological loop- stores speech-based sound for brief periods. Codes acoustically,
limited capacity. A) phonological Store (inner ear): briefly stores acoustically coded
items B) articulatory control process (inner voice): sub vocal repetition of stored items.
Visuospatial sketch Pad- Sets up and manipulates mental images from visual and
spatial information. Codes visually, limited capacity of four objects. A) Visual cache:
object form and colour info. B) inner scribe: object arrangement info.
Episodic buffer. Temporary storage system allowing incoming info to be combined with
long term memory info. Codes modality free, capacity limited to four chunks.
Outline & Evaluate the Working memory model of memory. (AO3) - ANS +Supporting
evidence: dual task studies
,If a participant can complete a verbal and visual task at the same time, it supports the
idea that the short term memory is subdivided. If they are unable to complete
simultaneously two similar tasks, it shows that the capacity of each component is
limited. For example, the study by Robbins et al. Showed that the phonological loop,
visuospatial sketch Pad and Central Executive can deal with different tasks at the same
time (&thus subdivided). However, they can't deal with two tasks for period of time due
to their limited capacity.
+supporting case study evidence - KF
suffered brain damage affecting STM. Struggle with tasks dealing with sounds but was
able to compete visual tasks. If one component is damaged yet the others aren't, it
shows that each component is separate.
- Limitations of case study evidence: The use of brain damaged patients makes it hard
to draw conclusions from these studies as the research is focused on abnormal brains.
May not be able to generalise findings to the wider population who have normal brains.
- Central executive is oversimplified. Patient EVR had a cerebral tumours removed. He
performed well on reasoning tasks, but poorly on everyday decision making - both of
which require the central executive. This suggests that the central executive is not
unitary. It is more complex than described by the working memory model.
Describe and evaluate types of long term memory. (AO1) - ANS Tulving proposed three
types of long term memory: episodic, semantic, and procedural.
Episodic memory, hippocampus - memories of personal experiences involving specific
details, context and emotions. Declarative: require conscious effort to remember. eg- a
first date
Semantic memory, temporal/frontal lobes - Memories of knowledge about the world that
is shared with everyone (facts) rather than personal memories. Declarative: requires
conscious effort to remember. eg- the currency of a country
Procedural memory, cerebellum/motor cortex - Knowing how to do things / memory of
skills that become automatic. Implicit: Requires no conscious effort to recall. eg- how to
ride a bike
Describe and evaluate types of long term memory. (AO3) - ANS + supporting evidence
based on case studies of brain damage individuals that suggest that episodic memories
and semantic memories are different. Vicari et al: Case study of an 8 year old girl who
suffered brain damage following the removal of a tumour. Due to the location of the
, damage, she found it difficult to create new episodic memories, but was still able to
make some semantic memories. This suggests that episodic and semantic memories
are separate types of LTM and are associated with different parts of the brain.
-Problems with evidence: Evidence from brain damage. Small sample sizes, so hard to
generalise, and conditions are often unique, so we can't say typical brains function in
the same way.
- Long term memory may not be heavily subdivided. Some researchers disagree with
the idea that episodic and semantic memories are stored differently, as they don't
believe they are distinctive enough to be separate. Instead, they should be collectively
known as declarative memories. This is a limitation as it suggests there may only be two
types of long term memory, not 3.
+Practical application. A researcher found that older people with a mild cognitive
impairment could be trained to improve episodic memory. Being able to identify different
types of long term memory allows psychologists to have a positive impact on the lives of
people with memory issues. It may also help people get back to work, which would have
a positive effect on the economy.
Describe and evaluate interference as an explanation for forgetting. (AO1) - ANS
Interference is forgetting because one memory blocks another, causing one or both
memories to be distorted or forgotten.
It is an explanation for forgetting long term memories- interference between memories
makes them hard to locate. Therefore we experience forgetting.
There are two types of interference, proactive and retroactive.
Proactive interference is when older memories disrupt the recall of newer memories.
For example, a teacher has learnt so many names in the past that they have difficult
remembering the names of their current class.
Retroactive interference is when newer memories disrupt the recall of older memories.
For example, a teacher learned so many new names this year they have difficulty
remembering the names of their previous students.
Describe and evaluate interference as an explanation for forgetting. (AO3) - ANS +
supporting evidence for retroactive interference: McGeoch & McDonald.
All participants learn list A (10 words), have a 10 minute break and then learn list B
(different 10 words). Then they are asked to recall list A. Gr1: List A and B are similar
(12% accurate). Gr2: List B comprised of nonsense syllables (26% accurate). Gr3: list B
