what did tulving propose?
there are different types of long term memories
what types of ltm did tulving propose?
- Procedural memory
- Declarative memory (Semantic memory and episodic memory)
what is procedural memory?
the memory of how to do things
* tying shoelaces
* writing
* riding a bike.
unconscious
what is declarative memory?
the memory of meaningful events
what is episodic memory?
- our ability to recall personal experiences eg. first day of college
type of declarative memory
describe key features of the episodic memory
- ‘autobiographical’ - because you personally experience the events.
- time stamped - you remember when they happened, so you’re storing when they happened in relation to other episodes.
- include several elements – people, places and objects
- allow us to ‘time travel’ – we can think back to past events and relive them (due to their subjective nature)
describe semantic memory
stores our factual knowledge of the world
* holds information such as the capital of France is Paris
type of declarative memory
describe key features of semantic memory
- important for the use of language and allows us to mentally represent things that aren’t present
- less vulnerable to distortion and forgetting than episodic memory
- not time-stamped, it is not very personal and is generally about facts we all share
ao1 summary of tulving
- Tulving proposed that LTM is not one unified store, instead it is made up of multiple systems: Procedural, Declarative, and within declarative both episodic and semantic.
- Procedural memory is the skills we can do unconsciously such as riding a bike.
- Episodic memories are your personal experiences, they are timestaped, autobiographical and include several components such as people, places and objects. An example of an episodic memory would be your first day at college.
- Finally, your semantic memory contains factual knowledge such as Pariis the capital of France. The semantic memory also contains words for objects such as chair, table and book.
what is a strength of tulving’s theory? (supporting evidence)
P: Supporting evidence from the case study of HM
E: HM had difficulty remembering events from the recent past (episodic) such as stroking a dog that morning. However, he did not need the concept of a dog explained to him, showing that his semantic memory had not been affected by the removal of his hippocampus as he knew what things were.
T: Therefore it is a valid explanation of memory because HM shows there are separate types of LTM
what is a weakness of tulving’s theory? (contradictory evidence)
P: A weakness of LTM is it only describes different types, doesn’t explain how they work
E: HM was able to improve accuracy on a mirror tracing task, even though he forgot he had practiced it. This means that his procedural memory wasn’t damaged
T: This theory describes separate stores, but doesn’t explain HOW they work independently of each other, this limits the validity because it’s not a full explanation
what is a strength of tulving’s theory? (application)
P: A strength of Tulving’s explanation of LTM is that it has real life application.
E: Pps who had mild memory impairment who took training to improve their episodic memories performed better on a test of episodic memory compared to a control group showing it is possible to improve separate types of LTM (Belleville et al. 2006).
T: This means training can help individuals improve their memory which allows them to lead more normal lives as they grow old.
what is a weakness of tulving’s theory? (generalisability of research)
P = A weakness of Tulving’s theory is it is supported by research evidence which lacks generalisability.
E = Patient HM case study - epilepsy caused seizures so hippocampus was removed so supporting evidence comes from a single participant who had a surgically altered brain.
T = This means there is limited generalisability of this evidence to the wider target population because there could be something about HM’s memory compared to other people who haven’t had brain surgery / it is difficult to support a theory from research evidence using one participant.
conclusion of tulving evaluation
There is strong evidence to support Tulving’s theory of an non-unified LTM, however more research is needed to ensure that conclusions go beyond description to actually explain LTM. This would make the theory more useful for society as a whole.
