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WorksheetsIB Psychology Working Memory: Robbins et al
Total questions: 10
Worksheet time: 5mins
How many participants?
80
45
15
20
Demographics of participants?
Male chess players from Cambridge
Male chess players from Oxford
Caucasian chess players from UK
Caucasian chess players from London
What was the IV?
The configuration of the chess pieces on the board
The number of chess pieces needed to be memorized
The type of interference used while memorizing the chess pieces
The number of configurations needed to be memorized
What was the DV?
The time it takes to re-create the chess board configuration shown
Number of chess configurations memorised in 10 minutes
Number of chess pieces memorised in a minute
Score of re-creating the configuration of 16 chess pieces shown on the chess board
What were the two conditions?
No interference + Verbal interference
Verbal interference + Visuospatial interference
No interference + Visuospatial interference
Long-term interference + short-term interference
How much time was given for participants to memorise the chess board?
10-20s
30s
1 min
5 min
What are the results of the experiment?
Higher % of correct re-creation of chess board in the visuospatial condition
Higher % of correct re-creation of chess board in the phonological condition
Both conditions have the same % correct for re-creation of chess board
Both conditions have 50% correct for re-creation of chess board
Why did participants in the verbal interference condition score higher than those in the visuo-spatial interference condition?
Speaking things out loud always helps you memorize better, as the phonological loop is activated.
The verbal interference is using a different component of the working memory than recreating the chess board, so there is little interference
The verbal inference helps participants remember better because the phonological loop is used when recreating the chess board
The phonological loop always outperforms the visuo-spacial sketchpad
What can be concluded from this study?
Working memory is indeed separated into several components
Working memory only consists of one component, as mentioned in the Multi-Store Memory model
It is impossible to multitask using different components in the working memory
Individuals tend to memorize better when performing another task that requires the same component in their working memory
What is the visuospatial interference task?
Participants are shown optical illusions prior to memorising the chess board
Participants are required to tap musical rhythms on their laps whilst memorising + recreating the chess board
Participants are required to tap a sequence into a keypad whilst memorising + recreating the chess board
Participants are asked to memorise a simple map prior to memorising the chess board
