AP PSYCHOLOGY

Detailed explanation-1: -Most adults can store between 5 and 9 items in their short-term memory. This idea was put forward by Miller (1956) and he called it the magic number 7. He though that short term memory could hold 7 (plus or minus 2 items) because it only had a certain number of “slots” in which items could be stored.

Detailed explanation-2: -Short-Term Memory: Up to 7 Items, But Highly Volatile. Many psychology experiments have shown that our short-term memory can hold only a limited number of separate items. The average is about 7 items, plus or minus 2, depending on the individual.

Detailed explanation-3: -Short-term memory has 3 main characteristics: Brief duration that can only last up to 20 seconds. Its capacity is limited to 7 ±2 chunks of independent information (Miller’s Law) and is vulnerable to interference and interruption.

Detailed explanation-4: -(Working memory) It holds only a few items (research shows a range of 7 +/-2 items) and only lasts for about 20 seconds.

Detailed explanation-5: -Short-term memory (STM) refers to systems which provide retention of limited amounts of material for a limited time period (seconds). Most investigated systems include Phonological, Spatial, and Visual STM, while STM storage exists also in other domains, as the somatosensory system.