What is working memory and how can we study it?The multi-component model of working memory: Explorations in experimental cognitive psychology
Section snippets
The multi-component model of working memory
There are a number of ways in which the temporary storage of information can be realized within a cognitive system. One can for instance envision a distributed system with a set of independent processors that communicate with each other. Baddeley and Hitch (1974) instead argued for the concept of a common system that is “limited in capacity and operates across a range of tasks involving different processing codes and different input modalities” (Baddeley, 1986, p. 35). To support their claim,
The phonological loop
The phonological loop comprises two components, a phonological store, which holds memory traces in acoustic or phonological form that fade in a few seconds, and an articulatory rehearsal process analogous to subvocal speech (Baddeley, 1983). The function of the articulatory rehearsal process is to retrieve and re-articulate the contents held in this phonological store and in this way to refresh the memory trace. Further, while speech input enters the phonological store automatically,
The visuospatial sketchpad
While the phonological loop is specialized to hold verbal information, the visuospatial sketchpad is assumed to be capable of maintaining and manipulating visual and spatial information, a process that is crucial for performing a range of cognitive tasks. While initially, most working memory research focused on verbal material and therefore the phonological loop, recently a number of studies have provided a wealth of interesting results relating to the functional structure and properties of
The central executive
The central executive has been the most important but least understood and least empirically studied component of the multi-component working memory model (Baddeley 1986, Baddeley 1996). Initially, it was conceived in rather vague terms as a limited capacity pool of general processing resources. As such, it functioned as a homunculus and served as a convenient ragbag for unanswered questions related to the control of working memory and its two slave subsystems. While such a homunculus cannot
The episodic buffer
The episodic buffer is the latest addition to the multi-component model of working memory (Baddeley, 2000). It represents a separate storage system of limited capacity using a multi-modal code. It is episodic by virtue of holding information that is integrated from a range of systems including other working memory components and long-term memory into coherent complex structures: scenes or episodes. It is a buffer in that it serves as an intermediary between subsystems with different codes,
Cognitive neuroscience: the connection between brain and cognitive function
When describing a TV remote control, an electrician would be concerned with the exact circuitry employed that enables the emission of either the radio or infrared signal, a chemist would be interested in the compounds that enable the lightness and rigidity of the casing, while the user only wants to know which button to press for the desired effect. Every description of the remote control is valid and needed in its relevant context. Each contributes to the understanding of the remote control
General conclusions
We suggest that working memory has proved to be an important part of the cognitive system, providing the ability to maintain and manipulate information in the process of guiding and executing complex cognitive tasks. It can be fractionated into a number of independent subsystems, processes and mechanisms. It can usefully be described as a multicomponent system guided by an executive component consisting of a number of processes that provide attentional control over other components of working
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