The Basics of the Working Memory Model

Core Components of the Model

The model consists of three main components: the Central Executive, the Phonological Loop, and the Visuospatial Sketchpad.
Central Executive: This works as a control centre and directs attention to particular tasks. It does not store information and has a limited capacity.
Phonological Loop: This is involved with the temporary storage of auditory information. It has two parts - The phonological store, which holds words we hear, and the articulatory control process, which holds words we are about to say.
Visuospatial Sketchpad: This temporarily stores and manipulates visual and spatial information. It helps in tasks like remembering shapes and colours or the location of objects.

Episodic Buffer: Baddeley added this in 2000. It acts as a ‘backup’ store which communicates with both long term memory and the components of working memory.

Dual-task performance: The model can explain how we can do two tasks at once, as long as they use different processing systems.
Maintenance rehearsal: The process of repeating information to hold it in short term memory for longer.

Some researchers suggest the model oversimplifies memory processes, as it doesn’t consider the influence of strategies or goals.
It also does not clearly explain how the different components of the model interact with each other.
The central executive is a vague concept and difficult to test experimentally.

Research, such as brain-scanning studies, support the existence of the phonological loop and visuospatial sketchpad.
Clinical evidence includes studies of patients with brain damage, which show differential impairments which can be explained by damage to different parts of the model.
Studies of word length effect support the phonological loop.