Information is then moved from STM to LTM. This is done through rehearsal, where the same incident occurs repeatedly so that is remembered more easily. Atkinson and Shriffin said that the more frequent the information is rehearsed the more accurate it recalled, therefore showing a direct link between retrieval in STM and the strength in LTM.
This shows that memory works with three stores; sensory memory, STM and LTM.
There have been many studies which have concluded that there are three different memory stores, showing the model is significant. Several studies found that certain parts of the brain were needed for short term (prefrontal cortex) and long term (hippocampus). E.g. Milner (1966) discovered that if the hippocampus was removed then the individual could not form any new long term memories, however they had no problem performing STM. Other psychologists (Glanzer and Cunitz) have found that when the primary and recency effects are studied it has been found that because items have been passed to LTM the primary effect has occurred. Also when items are bumped out of the STM to make room for new ones the recency effect has occurred.
However, research has been found that suggests that MSM is too simplistic. For example it fails to take account of factors such as the strategies people employ to remember things. It also places emphasis on the quantity of information that can be processed rather than its nature. Some things are purely easier to remember than others, perhaps because they are more interesting, distinctive, funnier etc. The multi-store model does not account for this. It does not explain Baddeley and Hitch’s flashbulb memories, which are long lasting with detail and without any rehearsal. This has also been found with STM, there is no concrete evidence that supports the number of different types of STM.
When we compare the multi-store model to the levels of processing model we can immediately see that there is a slight contrast between the ideas of both. Craik and Lockhart (1972) proposed the
alternate model to give an explanation to durable memories. This was basically saying that memories are created by the processing of thoughts that is done rather than rehearsal. Processing is when diverse experiences are encoded in the memory. Some information is processed more intensely than certain others, depending on how outstanding the experience is.
Similarly when the multi-store model is compared to the working model there are different ideas on how memory is stored. This model emphasises the fact that MSM is too simplistic. Baddeley and Hitch (1973) proposed a substitute model, that STM was not only one store but a number of different stores;
- One for visual processing
- One for processing sound
When looking at the model and taking into account its criticisms, it can be seen by the comparison to the levels of processing model and the working model that it does not take all areas into account and it is too simplistic. However, the model does propose a good explanation to how memories are stored so therefore cannot be ‘wrong’. My evaluation is that the ideas are sound and there is are other scholars that back them up, but at the same time it does miss out other possible explanations.
