Many psychologists believe that human memory has three components. Describe each of these components, including both its capacity and its duration. Explain how students must process information so that it arrives at the third and final component

Question

What will be an ideal response?

Answer 1

The sensory register holds virtually all the information we sense in a relatively unencoded form for a second or two (actually, less than a second for visual input and about two to three seconds for auditory input). Working memory is the component that actively processes information. It holds a small amount of information (hence has a limited capacity) for perhaps 5-20 seconds, although information can be kept there longer through the use of rehearsal. Long-term memory has a seemingly unlimited capacity and an indefinitely long duration (it may remain there quite a while, although not necessarily forever). People move new information from the sensory register to working memory by paying attention to it. They most effectively move new information from working memory to long-term memory by connecting it to the things already stored in long-term memory.