The multi-store model of memory

The multi-store model of memory

1. Atkinson and Shiffrin's multi-store model describes how information flows through the memory system. The model suggests that memory is made up of 3 stores linked by processing.

   • Supporting evidence - MSM supported by research studies that show STM and LTM are indeed qualitatively different. Baddeley found we tend to mix up words that sound similar when we use our STMs but mix up words with a similar meaning when using LTM. This shows that coding in STM is acoustic and LTM is semantic, supporting the MSM's view that these two memory stores are separate and independent.
   • More than one type of STM - MSM states that STM is a unitary store. However, evidence from people suffering from amnesia shows this cannot be true. Shallice and Warrington found a patient who struggled recalling digits when they were read out loud to him, but recall was much better when he was able to read the digits himself.
   • More than one type of rehearsal - according to MSM, what matters in rehearsal is the amount of it that you do (more you rehearse, the more likely you are to transfer it to LTM).However, Craik and Watkins found that the rehearsal type is more important and discovered 2 types. Maintenance rehearsal is the type described in MSM, but this doesn't transfer it to LTM. Elaborative rehearsal is needed for long term storage and occurs when you link the information to your existing knowledge or its meaning.

2. Sensory register (sensory memory in diagram)

   • A stimulus from the environment e.g. sound of someone's name, will pass into the sensory registers along with lots of other sights, sounds, smells etc.
     • This part of the memory has a store for each of our 5 senses, but there are 2 main ones.
       • Iconic memory - visual information is coded visually
       • Echoic memory - sound information is coded acoustically
   • Material only lasts very briefly - the duration is less than half a second
   • They have a high capacity
   • Very little of what goes into the sensory register passes further into the memory system. BUT it will if you pay attention to it.

3. Short term memory

   • STM is known as a limited capacity store, because it can only contain on average 7+-2 items, though research suggests it may be more like 5 rather than 9.
   • Information is coded acoustically
   • Duration of about 18-30 seconds unless it is rehearsed
     • Maintenance rehearsal occurs when we repeat material to ourselves over and over again. This helps keep information in our STM. If we rehearse the information long enough, it passes into the LTM.

4. Long term memory

   • This is the potentially permanent memory store for information that has been rehearsed for a long time.
   • Psychologists believe the capacity is unlimited and can last many years e.g. Bahrick et al. found many participants could recognise faces and names of school classmates from 50 years ago.
   • LTM tends to be coded semantically (in terms of meaning)
   • When we want to retrieve information stored in the LTM, it has to be transferred back into STM by a process called retrieval.

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