Question

After information is attended to in the sensory register, it moves into _____, which has the capacity to hold _____ bits of information for about _____.

a) Short-term memory; 7±2; a few seconds to a minute
b) Long-term memory; unlimited; a few seconds
c) Sensory memory; unlimited; several hours
d) Working memory; 5-7; a lifetime

Answer 1

After information in the sensory register is attended to, it moves into short-term memory, which can hold about 7±2 bits of information for a brief period ranging from a few seconds to a minute.

Step-by-step explanation:

After information is attended to in the sensory register, it moves into short-term memory; which has the capacity to hold 7±2 bits of information for about a few seconds to a minute. Short-term memory (STM) serves as a temporary storage system, processing incoming sensory memory. It acts like the information you have on your computer screen: readily accessible but limited in how long it stays there.

In Atkinson and Shiffrin's model, after environmental stimuli enter our sensory memory, those stimuli that we notice and actively pay attention to move into short-term memory. If rehearsed, this information can then transition into long-term memory for permanent storage. However, without rehearsal or attention, the information in short-term memory can fade quickly due to memory trace decay and interference, usually within 15 to 30 seconds.

Contemporary research, however, suggests working memory capacity to be 4±1 (Cowan, 2010). Nevertheless, George Miller's seminal work from 1956 proposed the 'magic number' for STM's capacity to be 7±2, which is still widely cited and acknowledged.