Working memory model was
suggested by Baddeley and Hitch
(1974) to replace the idea of a
unitary STM store. Suggests a
system involving active processing
and storage.
Central Executive
Has a supervisory role, acting as a
filter. It determines which
information is attended to.
Allocates tasks for the other
systems.
Has a limited capacity and only
deals with one piece of
information at a time.
Phonological Loop
Deals with auditory information
and preserves the order in which
information arrives.
Subdivided into two stores
Phonological store
Stores the words you hear
Articulatory Process
Allows for maintenance rehearsal
Visuo-Spatial Sketchpad
Temporary memory system
responsible for holding visual and
spatial information
Visual cache
Stores visual data about form and colour
Inner scribe
Records the arrangement of
objects in the visual field.
Episodic Buffer
Acts as a backup store for information, integrating the visual,
spatial and verbal information and maintaining time sequencing.
Links the working memory to long term
memory and wide cognitive processes.
Evaluation
Strengths:
Dual task performance. Studies prove the separate existence of the visuo
spatial sketchpad. While carrying out a visual and verbal task at the same
time their performance was similar to if they carried it out separately
Clinical evidence from KF study. KF suffered brain
damage from a motorcycle accident which damaged his
STM. His impairment was mainly for verbal information
while his visual store was largely unaffected.
Weaknesses:
Little known of the nature of the Central Executive.
Needs to be more clearly specified than just being
'attention'. It is an unsatisfactory component which
challenges the integrity of WMM.
Evidence to suggest the visuo-spatial scratchpad
is not unitary but divided into two.