DIGIT SPAN EXPERIMENT

MEMORY
Memory refers to retaining and recalling information over a period of time, depending upon the
nature of cognitiv3 task you are required to perform. It is conceptualised as a process consisting of
three independent though interrelated stages. They are encoding, storage and retrieval. Encoding
is the first stage which refers to a process by which information is recorded and registered for the
first time so that it becomes useable by our memory system. Storage refers to a process through
which information is retained and held over a period of time for later use. Retrieval refers to
bringing the stored information to his/her awareness so that it can be used for performing various
cognitive task such as problem solving or discussion making.

According to stage model of memory there are 3 memory systems. They are sensory
memory, short term memory and long term memory. Each of which have different features
and functions differently depending upon the sensory input.

Sensory memory: Information first enters the sensory memory. It has a large capacity but of very
short duration i.e. less than a second. It is a memory system that registers information from each of
the senses with reasonable accuracy. It is also refered to as sensory register because information from
all senses are registered in exact replica of the stimulus.

Short term memory: Information that is attended enters the second memory store called STM which
holds small amount of information for a short period of time usually 15 - 30 seconds. Atkinson and
Shiffrin proposes that information is primarily encoded acoustically, unless rehearsed continuously it
may get lost from the STM.

Long term memory: Material that survives the capacity, duration and limitation of STM finally
enters the LTM which has a vast capacity and is also known as permanent storehouse of all
information.

INTRODUCTION:

A digit-span task is used to measure working memory’s number storage capacity. Participants see or
hear a sequence of numerical digits and are tasked to recall the sequence correctly, with increasingly
longer sequences being tested in each trial. The participant span is the longest number of sequential
digits that can accurately be remembered. The digit span test is a very short test that evaluates a
person’s cognitive status. It is frequently used in hospitals and physicians; offices in order for a
clinician to quickly evaluate whether a patient’s cognitive abilities are normal or impaired. The digit
span test initially was part of Wechsler’s Intelligence Scale, which was designed to measure a
person’s intelligence quotient (IQ). The digit span test consists of telling the person that

You are going to give him a short test. The person is then told to listen carefully because you will say
a series of numbers and ask him to repeat them back to you in the same order you say them. The first
series has three numbers, such as “3, 9 and 2”. Each number is said in a monotone voice, one second
apart. The person repeats those numbers back to you. The next step is to speak a series of four
numbers, such as, “4, 7, 3, and 1”. Again, the individual repeats those back to you. Continue in the
same manner by increasing the series of numbers to five and ask the person to repeat the numbers
back to you. Some test versions stop after a series of five numbers, while other versions continue
increasing the series of numbers by one each time until the answers are incorrect. Administering the
test forward and backward assesses short-term memory. When the backward version of the test is
given, it also measures working memory. (Heerema, 2022) Verbal working memory is involved in
many everyday tasks, such as remembering a friend’s telephone number while entering it into a
phone and understanding long and difficult sentences. Verbal working memory is also thought to be
one of the elements underlying intelligence (often referred to as IQ, meaning “intelligence quotient”;
thus, the digit span task is a common component of many IQ tests, including the widely
used Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale (WAIS). Performance on the digit span task is also closely
linked to language learning abilities; improving verbal memory capacities may therefore aid mastery
of a new language. First and foremost, digit span, along with reaction time, may be viewed as one of
the two original paradigms used by experimental psychologists to investigate cognition. (Libon,
2018) .Digit-span tasks can be given forwards or backwards, meaning that once the sequence is
presented, the participant is asked to either recall the sequence in normal or reverse order. Digit-span
tasks are the most commonly used test for memory span, partially because performance on a digit-
span task cannot be affected by factors such as semantics, frequency of appearance in daily life,
complexity, etc. (Panch, 2010) Verbal working memory is involved in many everyday tasks, such as
remembering a friend’s telephone number while entering it into a phone and understanding long and
difficult sentences. Verbal working memory is also thought to be one of the elements underlying
intelligence (often referred to as IQ; meaning “intelligence quotient”); thus, the digit span task is a
common component of many IQ tests, including the widely used Wechsler Adult Intelligence
Scale (WAIS). Performance on the digit span task is also closely linked to language learning
abilities; improving verbal memory capacities may therefore aid mastery of a new language. First
and foremost digit span, along with reaction time, may be viewed as one of the two original
paradigms used by experimental psychologists to investigate cognition. The origins of digit span as a
psychological construct date from the work Gottfried Leibniz (1646–1716).

LITERATURE REVIEW:

Separate Digits tests: A brief history, a literature review, and a re-examination of the factor structure
of the test of memory and learning (TOMAL). In 1995 Michael C. Ramsay & Cecil R.
Reynolds conducted a study. The subject of whether to scale Digits Forward and Backward
independently is addressed in a study on a brief history of Digit Span, a survey of 27 articles, chosen
from 76. The studies using Digits Forward are reviewed first, then those involving Digits Backward,
and finally those including both subtests. In addition, related solutions are supplied for comparison.
Finally, the loadings of the four TOMAL subtests Digits Forward and Backward are examined in the
context of two, three, and four factor solutions. Numerous inferences are drawn from the analysis.
Despite their similarities, Digits Forward and Backward load differently in the three and four factor
solutions. Additionally, Digits Backward exhibits a spatial element and may even have a
transformative element that is not present in Digits Forward. Moreover, the differences between the
two measures have important neurologic and diagnostic implications. Blankenship, A. B. (1938).
Memory span: a review of the literature, the ability of a person to immediately reproduce, following
a single presentation, a succession of discrete stimuli in their original order is a functional definition
of memory span. Since attention, associability, imagery, and memory are all processes that are
involved in memory span, a structural definition is more challenging. The specificity of memory
span or errors in the methodology used to investigate a general ability may cause variations in
memory span with material and sense organ. Extrinsic factors (such as the characteristics of the
material used, the rhythm and rate of presentation, the method of scoring the responses, fatigue, time
of day, attitude, distraction, practice, subjective grouping of the units, temporarily pathological
conditions, and drug effects) and intrinsic factors (such as one’s own characteristics) can affect
memory span (age, sex, race, permanent pathological condition). Extrinsic factors can be controlled
carefully enough for memory span tests to show high reliability. The relation between memory span
and intelligence has led to its use as a clinical. Reliable Digit Span (RDS) is a heavily researched
symptom validity test with a recent literature review yielding more than 20 studies ranging in dates
from 1994 to 2011. Unfortunately, limitations within some of the research minimize clinical
generalizability. This systematic review and cross-validation study was conducted to address these
limitations, thus increasing the measure’s clinical utility. Sensitivity and specificity rates were
calculated for the ≤6 and ≤7 cut-offs when data were globally combined and divided by clinical
groups. The cross validation of specific diagnostic groups was consistent with the data reported in
the literature. Overall, caution should be used when utilizing the ≤7 cut-off in all clinical groups and
when utilizing the ≤6 cut-off in the following groups: cerebrovascular accident, severe memory
disorders, mental retardation, borderline intellectual functioning, and English as a second language.
Additional limitations and cautions are provided of the multiple SVTs that clinicians might choose
from, one of the oldest and most heavily researched is Reliable Digit Span (Boone, 2007).
Greiffenstein, Baker, and Gola (1994) originally derived RDS from the Digit Span subtest of the
Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale–Revised. They calculated the measure by “summing the longest
string of digits repeated without error over two trials under both forward and backward conditions
(Christopher, 147-159) .A recent review of the literature yielded more than 20 studies on RDS, with
one study being a meta-analytic review of the measure. The meta-analysis indicates that there are
strong effect sizes across Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale (WAIS) test versions (e.g., WAIS-R vs.
WAIS-III). Additionally, the met analysis indicates that RDS effectively discriminates between
individuals providing credible effort and individuals providing suspect effort (average weighted
effect size of 1.34). This information is crucial, as it indicates that the measure is valid and effective
despite updated WAIS test versions. The meta-analysis provides useful information and it has many
strengths; however, it is not without limitations. The first limitation of the meta-analysis is that it
does not report sensitivity and specificity rates for multiple cut-off scores; instead, it shows
sensitivity and specificity rates for a cut-off score of 7.1. Second, the meta-analysis does not report
sensitivity and specificity rates for different clinical groups; rather, it reports global sensitivity and
specificity rates based on nine published studies (Jasinski, 2011)

AIM:

To study the forward and backward memory for digit span.

METHODS:
a) Participant details

Name: nf

Age: 17

Gender: female

Education qualification: 12th grade

b) Materials required

A document in which digit span is used, paper and pen

c) Procedure

The participant is seated in a distract free environment and given instruction about the experiment.
Then we call the forward digits and ask them to repeat these digits and there is also a recall option
for them but only for 3 times. Then we call the backward digits and then again ask them to repeat
these digits. And then write the results and save them.

SCORING:

The digit span test is scored by giving one point for each number sequence that is recalled correctly,
both forward and backward. The number of trials are passed ranges from 0-3. The test is
administered in two parts, with the participant repeating a series of numbers in increasing order
forward, and then in reverse order. The participant’s total score is the sum of their scores for both the
forward and backward sequences.

PRECAUTIONS:

 Neologism and phonemic errors are not counted as loss of set errors.
 If the participant asks “did I say?” and the word is a perseveration, it is scored as a
perseveration, not a self-correction.

RESULT:

Sequence of Recall Span Memory

Forward memory span 7

Backward memory span 5

Table 1 shows the digit span of the participant in forward memory span as 7 and backward memory
span as 5.
DISCUSSION:
The aim of the experiment is to assess the forward and backward digit span of the subject. The
participant is a 17 year old senior secondary student. Digit span experiment is a simple test that
assesses the ability of a person's short term memory and working memory. It is assessed
by administering a series of number starting with 3 digits and the digit increases by 1. Each
digit is provided with 2 trials.
The participant has a higher digit span in forward memory span than in backward memory
span. A high digit span can be an indicator of a number of benefits including better
language learning abilities, as improving verbal memory can help with learning new
languages or expanding vocabulary. Digit span test measure short term memory or working
memory which is the ability to remember the information for a short time. The forward test is
a good test measure of simple attention. There are strategies that can help improve digit
span such as chunking. Getting enough sleep also help improve digit span performance.
REFERENCE:
Bankem,J.A. (1985). Clinical utility of considering Digits Forward and Digits Backward as
separate components of the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale – Revised. Journal of
clinical psychology 41: 686-691. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/BF02214760
Griffin, P.T., and Hefferman, A.(1983). Digit Span Forward And Backward Sequence And
Unequal Components Of The WAIS Digit Span. Perceptual And Motor Skills 56:335-
338.
Jasinski. (2011). use of the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale Digit Span Subtest For
Malingering Detection: a meta analytic review. Journal of clinical and experimental
neuropsychology, 300-314.