Psychology Short and Long-Term Memory

Podcast

Play an AI-generated podcast conversation about this lesson

Questions and Answers

Explain the difference between how short-term memory and long-term memory are coded.

Short-term memory is coded acoustically, meaning based on sound, whereas long-term memory is coded semantically, meaning based on meaning.

Describe the findings of Bahrick et al.'s study on the duration of long-term memory, including the tasks used.

Bahrick et al. found that long-term memory can last for many years, even decades, using both photo recognition and free recall tasks with participants' high school yearbooks. Participants showed high accuracy for both tasks when they graduated within 15 years, and accuracy decreased, but still remained above 50% for both tasks 48 years after graduation.

What does the study by Peterson and Peterson suggest about the duration of short-term memory? Explain the methodology used in the study.

The study suggests that short-term memory has a limited duration of roughly 18 to 30 seconds. Participants had to learn trigrams (3-letter combinations), and prevent rehearsal by counting backward from a three-digit number. After 3 seconds, 80% of participants could recall the trigram, but this decreased steadily until fewer than 10% could after 18 seconds.

Why does the multi-store model suggest that short-term memory has a limited capacity? Explain the concept of 'chunks' in your answer.

<p>The multi-store model proposes that short-term memory has a limited capacity of 7 ± 2 'chunks' of information. A 'chunk' is a meaningful unit of information that can be grouped together, like a phone number or a familiar phrase. Since these chunks are usually made of multiple individual pieces of information, it limits the amount of information that can be stored and actively processed in short-term memory.</p> Signup and view all the answers

Identify one strength and one weakness of the research on the duration of short-term and long-term memory, citing the researchers involved and a key reason for each.

<p>A strength of Bahrick et al.'s research is that they used meaningful memories, which are more likely to lead to lasting memories and have high external validity. A weakness of Peterson and Peterson's study is that their use of artificial stimuli, such as nonsense trigrams, makes the results hard to generalize to real-life situations, leading to low external validity.</p> Signup and view all the answers

Flashcards

Short-Term Memory Duration

Refers to the time information is retained in short-term memory, typically 18 to 30 seconds.

Long-Term Memory Duration

Refers to how long information can be stored in long-term memory, potentially for a lifetime.

Peterson and Peterson Study

Focused on short-term memory duration using trigrams and backward counting to prevent rehearsal.

Bahrick et al. Study

Examined long-term memory using photo recognition and free recall, showing lasting memory retention.

Signup and view all the flashcards

Multi-Store Model of Memory

Proposes that memory consists of three stores: sensory memory, short-term memory, and long-term memory, with distinct coding and duration.

Signup and view all the flashcards

Study Notes

Duration Short-Term Memory

Peterson and Peterson (1959) investigated short-term memory duration using nonsense trigrams.
Participants memorized a 3-letter trigram and counted backward from a 3-digit number to prevent rehearsal.
80% recalled the trigram after 3 seconds, decreasing to less than 10% after 18 seconds.
This indicates short-term memory duration is between 18 and 30 seconds.

Duration Long-Term Memory

Bahrick et al. (1975) studied long-term memory duration using high school yearbook photos.
Both photo recognition and free recall tasks were used.
Photo recognition showed 90% accuracy within 15 years of graduation and 70% accuracy within 48 years.
Free recall demonstrated 60% accuracy within 15 years and 30% accuracy within 48 years.
This suggests long-term memory can endure for a significant period, possibly a lifetime.

Evaluating Duration Research

Bahrick et al.'s study is a strength due to the use of meaningful memories, offering high external validity.
Peterson and Peterson's study is a weakness; it uses artificial stimuli, leading to lower external validity.

Other Research

Long-term memory capacity has no known limit.

Multi-Store Model

Short-term memory (STM) uses acoustic coding, while long-term memory (LTM) uses semantic coding.
The capacity of STM is approximately 7 ± 2 'chunks' of information.
STM duration is roughly 20-30 seconds.
LTM duration can extend for many years.

Studying That Suits You

Use AI to generate personalized quizzes and flashcards to suit your learning preferences.

Description

This quiz explores the duration of short-term and long-term memory, referencing key studies like Peterson and Peterson (1959) and Bahrick et al. (1975). You will learn about the methods used in these studies and their implications on our understanding of memory duration. Test your knowledge on how memory functions over time with this insightful quiz.