The Multi-Store Model of Memory
Follow information as it moves through the three stores of memory: the sensory register, the short-term store and the long-term store, and the processes that carry it between them.
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How do we remember? 🧠
Memory is how we take in, keep, and get back information. Psychologists explain it with the **multi-store model**, which says memory is made of three separate stores that information passes through: the **sensory register**, the **short-term store** and the **long-term store**. This module follows information as it moves from one store to the next.
Three memory processes 🔑
Whatever the store, memory uses three processes:
Short-term or long-term? ⚖️
The stores differ in how they code information, how much they hold, and how long they hold it. Compare the two main stores:
Match the process to its meaning 🔗
- Encoding
- Storage
- Retrieval
- Turning information into a form that can be stored
- Holding the information over time
- Getting the information back out when needed
Which store? 🔍
Which store has an unlimited capacity and can last a lifetime?
- The long-term store
- The short-term store
- The sensory register
- None of the stores
How information flows 🔀
Information from the world first enters the **sensory register** through the senses. If we pay **attention**, it passes into the **short-term store**. If we **rehearse** it, by repeating it, it transfers into the **long-term store**. When we need it again, we **retrieve** it from the long-term store back into the short-term store. Without rehearsal, information in the short-term store is soon forgotten.
Match the store to what it does 🗂️
- Sensory register
- Short-term store
- Long-term store
- Receives information from the senses and holds it very briefly
- Holds a limited amount, by sound, for a short time
- Holds an unlimited amount, by meaning, for up to a lifetime
True of the short-term store? ✅
Select the TWO statements that are TRUE of the short-term store.
- It has a limited capacity
- Information is kept in it by rehearsal
- It has an unlimited capacity
- It codes information mainly by meaning
Follow the information 🪜
An interactive activity.
Complete the model 🧩
Information first enters the _____ register through the senses. If we pay attention, it passes to the _____ store. If we _____ it, it transfers to the long-term store, which has an _____ capacity. Turning information into a form that can be stored is called _____.
Spot the true statements 🖍️
An interactive activity.
Everyday memory 🧭
An interactive activity.
Describe the model ✍️
An interactive activity.