Chapter: Chapter 04: Working Memory
Multiple Choice
1. Originally called short-term memory, researchers now use the term
a) digit span.
b) working memory.
c) the episodic buffer.
d) implicit memory.
Ans: b
Feedback: See page 99
2. Working memory is:
a) brief memory for information that a person is currently processing.
b) involved in coordinating a person’s cognitive activities.
c) a term that is now used more often instead of a similar term--short-term memory.
d) All of the above are correct.
Ans: d
Feedback: See pages 99 - 100
3. One of the first papers to describe short-term memory was
a) “The magical number seven, plus or minus two.”
b) “Digit span in Homo sapiens.”
c) “Working memory capabilities of the British university student.”
d) “A study into memory ability in a single MVA patient.”
Ans: a
Feedback: See page 101
4. According to a famous article by Miller (1956), short-term memory (or working memory) has a
capacity limitation of about:
a) 2 or 3 bits of information.
b) 7 ± 2 chunks of information.
c) 10 ± 2 meaningful items.
d) 15–20 energy chunks.
Ans: b
Feedback: See page 101
5. The capacity of short-term memory, without chunking, is currently thought to be about _____ items.
a) 4
b) 7
c) 9
d) 11
Ans: a
Feedback: See page 101
6. The first short-term memory experiments used backward counting by threes, or a similar task, in order
to:
a) ensure that a person is not able to rehearse during the delay.
b) ensure that sufficient decay has occurred during the delay.
c) expand the capacity of the short-term memory system.
d) provide the person with an easy way to chunk the information.
Ans: a
Feedback: See page 102
7. If a person is prevented from rehearsing, new information will typically be almost completely lost
from the short-term store (working memory) after about:
a) 0.3–0.5 seconds.
b) 1.0–3.0 seconds.
c) 3.0–5.0 seconds.
d) 15.0–18.0 seconds.
Ans: d
Feedback: See page 103
8. If people are presented a series of items (such as words), their percent recalled typically shows a Ushaped function across serial positions. The recency effect seen in such data is usually attributed to
information that:
a) was transferred to long-term memory at the time of presentation.
b) remains in short-term (working) memory at the time of recall.
c) was extremely well remembered because it was associated with earlier information in the series.
d) All of the above are correct.
Ans: b
Feedback: See pages 103 - 104
9. In experiments on working memory, subjects are more likely to remember material presented at the
beginning of the list. This is known as the
a) primacy effect.
b) recency effect.
c) serial position effect.
d) experimental effect.
Ans: a
Feedback: See page 103 – 104
10. In experiments on working memory, subjects are more likely to remember material presented at the
end of the list. This is known as the
a) primacy effect.
b) recency effect.
c) serial position effect.
d) experimental effect.
Ans: b
Feedback: See page 103 – 104
11. An important source of forgetting on working-memory tasks is the similarity of previously learned
material. The finding that people may have trouble learning new material because of interfering effects
of previously learned material is called:
a) proactive interference.
b) retroactive interference.
c) anterograde amnesia.
d) retrograde amnesia.
Ans: a
Feedback: See page 105
12. The effects of proactive interference are decreased if
a) you know more information at the beginning.
b) you keep studying the same list.
c) you learn different items from the same category.
d) you shift to a different category of items to learn.
Ans: d
Feedback: See page 105
13. On a short-term (working) memory task, release from proactive interference (PI) on the final trial
occurred when:
a) previous trials required a person to remember words from a different semantic category.
b) the final trial required a person to remember words from the same semantic category as on previous
trials.
c) the capacity of short-term (working) memory on the final trial was greater than about seven items.
d) All of the above are correct.
Ans: a
Feedback: See page 105
14. According to a recent approach proposed (Baddeley, 2000, 2006), working memory:
a) involves procedural memory, even for information that may also be encoded semantically.
b) is not influenced by attention, by consciousness, or by long-term memory processes.
c) consists of a central executive, a visuospatial sketchpad, an episodic buffer, and a phonological loop.
d) maintains all information in a phonological loop, even if the information is visual or meaningful.
Ans: c
Feedback: See page 108
15. The functioning of the phonological loop:
a) may give rise to acoustic confusions in working-memory tasks, especially when rehearsal is involved.
b) is related to a person’s "inner voice," or his or her use of subvocalization to perform a task.
c) involves activation or information storage in the left hemisphere of the brain, including frontal,
temporal, and parietal lobes.
d) All of the above are correct.
Ans: d
Feedback: See pages 110 - 112
16. A driver who is listening to a football game on the radio and forming clear images of the action may
experience difficulty driving. This interference may be attributable to the limited capacity of a workingmemory component called the:
a) central executive.
b) visuospatial sketchpad.
c) episodic buffer.
d) phonological loop.
Ans: b
Feedback: See page 113
17. The part of the brain that it most strongly activated when a person performs visual and spatial tasks
is the:
a) left cerebral hemisphere, especially the frontal and occipital lobes, but including the cerebellum.
b) right cerebral hemisphere, especially the frontal and parietal lobes, but including the occipital lobe.
c) cerebellum.
d) lateral hypothalamus.
Ans: b
Feedback: See page 115
18. In Baddeley's (2000, 2006) working-memory model, the component that plays a major role in
attending to stimuli, planning one’s strategies, and coordinating one’s behavior is the:
a) phonological loop.
b) visuospatial sketchpad.
c) episodic buffer.
d) central executive.
Ans: d
Feedback: See page 115
19. The region of the brain that it most strongly activated when a person works on tasks that require the
central executive component of working memory is the:
a) frontal lobe.
b) temporal lobe.
c) parietal lobe.
d) occipital lobe.
Ans: a
Feedback: See page 117
20. The newest addition to Baddeley’s working memory model is the
a) visuospatial sketchpad.
b) phonological loop.
c) episodic buffer.
d) central executive.
Ans: c
Feedback: See page 117
21. The component of the working-memory system that combines information from the phonological
loop, the visuospatial sketchpad, and long-term memory, which is involved in interpreting earlier
experiences, solving new problems, and planning future activities, is called the:
a) perceptual buffer.
b) visuospatial sketchpad.
c) episodic buffer.
d) phonological loop.
Ans: c
Feedback: See page 117
22. Research reveals that people scores on working-memory tasks are correlated with:
a) overall intelligence and grades in school
b) verbal fluency and reasoning ability.
c) reading ability.
d) All of the above are correct.
Ans: d
Feedback: See pages 118 - 119
23. Compared to people who are not depressed, people suffering from major depression:
a) have difficulty with some working memory tasks.
b) show a surprising increase in ability to concentrate on tasks.
c). show an increased span on short-term memory tasks.
d) All of the above are correct.
Ans: a
Feedback: See pages 119 - 120