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working memory

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SMITMC06_0131825089.QXD 3/28/06 6:57 AM Page 239

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CHAPTER

Working
Memory

6

Le arn i ng O b j ec t i ves
1. Using Working Memory
1.1. A Computer Metaphor
1.2. Implications of the Nature of Working
Memory
2. From Primary Memory to Working Memory:
A Brief History
2.1. William James: Primary Memory,
Secondary Memory, and
Consciousness
2.2. Early Studies: The Characteristics of
Short-Term Memory
2.2.1. Brevity of Duration
2.2.2. Ready Accessibility
2.3. The Atkinson-Shiffrin Model: The
Relationship of Short-Term and LongTerm Memory
2.4. The Baddeley-Hitch Model: Working
Memory
3. Understanding the Working Memory Model

3.1. The Phonological Loop: When It Works and When It Doesn’t
3.2. The Visuospatial Scratchpad
3.3. The …show more content…

These short-term mental storage and manipulation operations are collectively called working memory. Think of working memory as involving a mental blackboard—that is, as a workspace that provides a temporary holding store so that relevant information is highly accessible and available for inspection and computation. When cognitive tasks are accomplished, the information can be easily erased, and the process can begin again with other information.

1.1. A Computer Metaphor
The computer, so useful a metaphor in cognitive psychology, offers an intuitively appealing model for thinking about the nature and structure of working memory.

SMITMC06_0131825089.QXD 3/28/06 6:57 AM Page 241

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1. Using Working Memory

Simplifying the workings of a computer, there are two means by which information is stored, the hard disk and random-access memory (RAM). The hard disk is the means by which information is stored permanently in a stable and reliable form; all software programs, data files, and the operating system of the computer are stored on the hard disk. To use this stored information you must retrieve it from the hard disk and load it into RAM. Now for the analogy: the information stored in the hard disk is like long-term memory, RAM corresponds to working memory. The notion of working memory as a temporary workspace

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