Memory - MSM (Attkinson & Shiffrin)

OUTLINE

The MSM ( Multistore Model) of memory- as created by Attkinson and Shiffrin.

Sensory memory is the store where immediate information is briefly held unless it is paid attention.

Short-term memory is the memory store that has a limited capacity and duration, and where information becomes conscious.It holds 7 (+/-) 2 chunks of information and lasts 30 seconds.

Long-term memory is the memory store that has unlimited capacity and duration. This is where information is permanently stored.

CRITICISMS

1 - The model is too rigid

• It ignores individual differences, and assumes that everyone's memory has the same structure.
• Some people may have a greater capacity, or be able to store certain types of information better.

2 - The model over-simplifies the STM and LTM

• The STM is more active, and can deal with different types of inputs.
• The LTM has different types of stores, such as procedural or declarative memory.

3 - The model overemphasizes the role of rehearsal

• Not all information in the LTM has to be rehearsed, for example a tragic event.
• There is a lot of information in the LTM due to it having meaning. 

Memory - Terry (2005)

PROCEDURE

Participants in groups of 15 were shown TV adverts in a repeated measures design. At the end of these adverts, they were asked to recall the products advertised. 

One group was shown immediately, whereas the other was asked after a 3 minute interference task.

The first group showed the serial position curve.

A representation of the serial position curve

Participants in this condition showed both the primacy and recency effect. The high recall at the start of the list is the primacy effect, this shows that the information was retained as they had time to rehearse it, thus transferring it from the STM to the LTM. The high recall at the end of the list is the recency effect, this shows that the information was still in their STM so they could recall it. The dip in the middle is due to the information decaying as it wasnt rehearsed enough, or being displaced by another advert.

As the second condition had an interference task, information would have been displaced from the STM, so they did not show the recency effect. However, they still displayed the primacy effect as they had time to rehearse the adverts at the beginning. 

This study proves the process of rehearsal can aid your memory, and also shows the presence of the STM and LTM. This proves the MSM.

CRITICISMS

1 - It lacked ecological validity

• It was a laboratory style study, so although they could control variables, it cannot apply to the real world.
• Additionally, TV adverts are not viewed in these conditions in real life, as people often ignore them. This is as the experiment was performed in artificial settings.

2 - It only tested memory for TV adverts

• This is not representative of all the things we have to remember
• TV adverts are only a narrow measure of what is being investigated.

3 - It brings about the problem of demand characteristics

• The results may be altered by the participants.
• The participants may have been able to gather clues from the artifical environment and act in a certain way to either help prove or disprove the experiment's desired result.

Memory - Applications

MEMORY AIDS

Memory aids have been developed and are often used in education. These are cues, mind maps, and imagery.

Cues

• Help retrieve information from the LTM and overcome accessibility problems.
• Cues can trigger memories through the senses eg - a smell
• Formal use - Police provides verbal/visual cues to reconstruct crimes. They use cues to help trigger witnesses' memories.
• Informal use -  Such as 'retracing steps' to remember  where you left something
• In education - Could give hints, such as the first letter of the word or visual cues.

Mind Mapping

• Reflects how the brain is organised
• Created by Buzan in the 1960's

Imagery

• We remember things better when it is attached to an image. This is as we dual encode this information so we can recall it easily. This means that it is remembered acoustically and visually.

Memory - Key Concepts

STM ( short-term memory) has a duration of 18- 30 seconds and has a capacity of 7 chunks (give or take 2). This is Miller's magic number.

LTM (long-term memory) has an unlimited duration and an unlimited capacity.

Information goes through the stages of encoding, storage, and retrieval.

Input

• Taking in information through our senses, such as sounds coming into our ears in the form of sound waves

Encoding

• How we change information that has been input so we can make sense of it.
• Once information has been encoded, it can be stored

Storage

• Keeping information so we can use it again if necessary
• We store information in different ways (informational/procedural)
• How it is stored will affect how it is retrieved

Retrieval

• The process of recovering information from storage

Output

• Information that has been retrieved is 'output'
• This may result in taking action or choosing a response.

If information is not used, it may decay. If informated is 'pushed out' it is displaced.

This can lead to accessibility problems (problems associated with retrieving information in storage, such as the tip of the tongue phenomenon) or availability problems (problems associated with information no loner being stored)

Criminal Behaviour - Biological Theory

OUTLINE

Criminal personality and behaviour is inherited, and people are genetically programmed through DNA. This is seen in criminal families - if a parent is a criminal there is a higher chance that the child will also be one. This inheritance may cause abnormal brain development, which in turn causes brain dysfunction - the idea that a brain is not operating as normal brains do. This includes

1 - Prefrontal cortex

• Underactive in some criminals
• This is where the association between fear and anti-social behaviour is formed

2 - Limbic system

• Increased activity
• Controls sexual and aggressive behaviour
• The amygdala is located here and controls emotions, and this does not function in many psychopaths

3 - Corpus callosum

• 'Bridge' that allows the rational and irrational sides of the brain to communicate
• Less active in murderers, causing weak communication between the brains hemispheres

4 - Temporal lobe

• Brainwave activity is more likely to be slower in aggressive 
• psychopaths
• Involved in numerous functions - eg language, learning, emotions and memory

In the 19th century, psychologists began arguing that criminals have common physical characteristics. Genes could also result in common facial features such as

• asymmetrical faces
• low and sloping foreheads
• glinting/glassy eyes
• high cheekbones
• large,protuding, handleshaped ears
• crooked,flat, or upturned noses
• fleshy lips
• strong jaws
• prominent chins
• lots of hair

CRITICISMS 

1 - Critics argue that there cannot be one singular gene that accounts for all criminal behaviour

• Crimes vary in factors such as violence, intelligence, or property
• Genes don't vary across cultures, yet crimes do

2 - Brain dysfunction is not present in all criminals

• It cannot reliably predict if someone is going to be a criminal
• Brain dysfunction may also be caused by environmental factors such as problems during pregnancy/birth, illness or injury

3 - Criminal facial features have limited evidence

• People may be prejudiced against certain features
• Some features may be due to environmental factors

4 - It ignores the influence of the social environment

• 'Criminal families' can be explained by how children learn behaviour from other people, such as their parents. 

Memory - Levels of Processing

Levels of processing was created by Craik & Lockheart (1975)

There are two levels of processing, shallow processing and deep processing.

Shallow processing is only coding information on its physical characteristics such as if a word is written in capital letters.

Deep processing is coding information for its meaning, also known as semantically processing the information.

Hello !

This blog and its posts are now out of date for the OCR GCSE Psychology spec - but still acts as a great start off for A-Level.

Though criticisms may need to be expanded to ensure you get higher grades, the following are still applicable for AQA A-Level Psychology

Whole topics are covered in Cognitive Development, named 'Cognition and Development' at A-Level, Attachment, and Memory

Humanistic psychology is seen in 'The Self' topic

SLT theory is seen in SST as an application, Phobias from 'Psychopathology' is almost completely covered in 'Phobias', Dispositional and Situational theories for obedience/social influence, and the Psychodynamic Psychosexual Theory of Development 

There are also useful key studies for Aggression , Social Influence, Milgram (SI again)

Good luck, and if any of you did different topics and know if anything else if helpful tip us off !