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Learning Theory and Concepts

Working Memory Model

Behaviorist and Cognitive Processing Theories

The working memory model is a theory of short-term memory proposed by psychologists Alan Baddeley and Graham Hitch in a 1974 paper, replacing the earlier idea of a single, unified short-term store with a multicomponent system responsible for temporarily holding and manipulating information during active cognitive tasks such as reasoning, comprehension and learning. The original model comprised a central executive that directs attention and coordinates two subsidiary systems, a phonological loop that holds verbal and acoustic information, and a visuospatial sketchpad that holds visual and spatial information; Baddeley added a fourth component, the episodic buffer, in 2000 to account for how these separate streams are integrated into a single coherent experience. The model underlies much of modern education research on cognitive load, since a lesson that overloads any one component, presenting too much text and too many images to process simultaneously, for instance, can impair learning even when the total amount of material is not excessive.

Facts
Core Claim
Proposed by Alan Baddeley and Graham Hitch (1974): a multicomponent system of a central executive coordinating a phonological loop and a visuospatial sketchpad, with an episodic buffer added by Baddeley in 2000. 2
Origin Year
1974 2
Classification
Education Level
All Levels 1
FAQs

Why did Baddeley and Hitch split working memory into separate subsystems?

Dual-task experiments showed that tasks in different perceptual domains interfere far less than tasks in the same domain.

Their argument for two domain-specific subsystems came from experimental findings with dual-task paradigms. Performing two simultaneous tasks that use separate perceptual domains, such as a visual task and a verbal task, is nearly as efficient as performing them individually. When the two tasks use the same perceptual domain, performance is less efficient than when performing the tasks individually.
Connections

Developed By

Source Baddeley's model of working memory (Wikipedia)
Graham Hitch, Thinkers
Source Baddeley's model of working memory (Wikipedia)

In Approach

Source Baddeley's model of working memory (Wikipedia)
Sources
1. Working Memory Model (Wikipedia)
a model of human memory proposed by Alan Baddeley and Graham Hitch in 1974View the Source
2. Wikipedia
Wikimedia Foundation
Baddeley's model of working memory (Wikipedia)
  • Baddeley's model of working memory, opening section
    Baddeley's model of working memory is a model of human memory proposed by Alan Baddeley and Graham Hitch in 1974, in an attempt to present a more accurate model of primary memory.
  • In Approach: Cognitivism, Lead paragraph
    Baddeley's model of working memory is a model of human memory proposed by Alan Baddeley and Graham Hitch in 1974, in an attempt to present a more accurate model of primary memory (often referred to as short-term memory).
  • Developed By: Alan Baddeley, Lead
    Baddeley's model of working memory is a model of human memory proposed by Alan Baddeley and Graham Hitch in 1974, in an attempt to present a more accurate model of primary memory (often referred to as short-term memory).
  • Developed By: Graham Hitch, Lead
    Baddeley's model of working memory is a model of human memory proposed by Alan Baddeley and Graham Hitch in 1974, in an attempt to present a more accurate model of primary memory (often referred to as short-term memory).
  • In Group: Information Processing and Cognitive Architecture Theories, Lead
    Baddeley's model of working memory is a model of human memory proposed by Alan Baddeley and Graham Hitch in 1974, in an attempt to present a more accurate model of primary memory (often referred to as short-term memory).
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