Case Studies and other supporting evidence Working Memory Case Studies and other supporting evidence

You have 1 minute to draw & label the WMM

Working Memory Model

Components of working memory Directs attention to particular tasks. It controls the other systems by determining how resources will be allocated. (Think a control tower at an airport.) Controls auditory information. Further subdivided into the phonological store (inner ear) and articulatory process (inner voice). Processes visual and spatial information (how things look and where they are). general store. Added later to the model to account for things that use both visual and acoustic information. Central Executive Phonological loop Executive: Phonological loop: : : Visuo-spatial pad Episodic buffer

Evidence to support the WM model: What do you mean? “You don’t?” What evidence is there to support the Working Memory model? Do you know one study to support the existence of? The Central executive 3. Visuo-spatial sketch pad Phonological loop 4. Episodic buffer Ensure you know the names of the experimenters, the procedure, the results and the conclusions of a study for at least 2 components.

Case Studies What is a case study? A case study is an in-depth detailed study of one individual, one small group or one event. Many different psychological techniques can be used (e.g., questionnaires, interviews, personality tests). The findings attempt to represent the individual’s thoughts, emotions, experiences and abilities. Case studies give us detailed information however we may not be able to generalise from them as they sometimes describe a unique experience or individual

The Case of Phineas Gage In the year 1848, a terrible accident occurred Find out more about him online – he is a really interesting case study

It has been recently suggested that this may not be true Doctors report: [The tamping iron] entered the cranium, passing through the anterior left lobe of the cerebrum, and made its exit in the medial line, lacerating the longitudinal sinus, fracturing the parietal and frontal bones extensively, breaking up considerable portions of the brain, and protruding the globe of the left eye from its socket, by nearly half its diameter. Phineas Gage lived for 12 years after the accident. He was able to speak normally, however, his personality changed massively after the accident. Whereas before he was well-liked, responsible, and hard-working, he became restless, indecisive and swore a lot and pee’d in public!! It has been recently suggested that this may not be true

What does Phineas Gage’s case tell us about the brain? His case showed that parts of the brain could be removed without having a fatal effect. That different areas of the brain are in control of different functions. That damage to the front of the brain may lead to personality changes. Wow! Localisation of function Psychologists love a good story – even if its not 100% true!

The Case of KF In the 1970s, KF was in a motorcycle accident, resulting in brain damage to his left occipiatal lobe (pictured right). STM was damaged (digit span of 2), but LTM was normal He remembers words better if presented visually as opposed to auditorally.

KF’s memory What does KF’s case study tell psychologists about memory? Which model does it support? Although his LTM is intact, his STM is not, which supports the Multi-Store Memory model. However, he remembers words better if presented visually rather than auditorally, which supports the Working Memory Model.

HM’s lobotomy In the 1940s, HM had a lobotomy performed on him to correct epileptic seizures. If you fancy learning something gruesome find out about frontal lobotomies……..yuck!! After the surgery, HM was no longer able to form new long-term memories. For many years, he believed that he was 27 years old, and the year was 1953. HM had kept his procedural memory (memory for skills) but not his episodic memory (memory of events). His body knew the way to his doctor’s office, even though he didn’t!!

What does HM’s case tell psychologists about memory? That there are different long-term memory stores (procedural and episodic). HM’s case also supports Peterson and Peterson’s study. His short term memory was about 20 seconds long.

Clive Wearing Remember we watched a video clip about Clive Wearing, a man like HM, who has no long-term memory. He, too, can form procedural memories but not episodic memories. He provides more evidence for the existence of different memory stores and different types of LTM You should have already made notes on case studies p270 B Mask Can you identify 2-3 strengths and weaknesses of using Case Studies?