Scribd
Upload
111 views2 pages

Robbins 1996

The study by Robbins et al. (1996) aimed to explore the thought processes of chess players using the working memory model, focusing on how processing interfering information affects memory recall. Results indicated that visuospatial interference significantly reduced accurate recall of chess positions compared to phonological interference, supporting the existence of separate systems for processing different types of information in working memory. The study raises questions about generalizability and the applicability of its methods to everyday working memory tasks.

Uploaded by

ineslopo0
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
111 views2 pages

Robbins 1996

The study by Robbins et al. (1996) aimed to explore the thought processes of chess players using the working memory model, focusing on how processing interfering information affects memory recall. Results indicated that visuospatial interference significantly reduced accurate recall of chess positions compared to phonological interference, supporting the existence of separate systems for processing different types of information in working memory. The study raises questions about generalizability and the applicability of its methods to everyday working memory tasks.

Uploaded by

ineslopo0
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
You are on page 1/ 2

Key Study: Playing Chess and Working Memory (Robbins et al.

1996)
Aim:

● The psychologists wanted to “…apply the working-memory model to the issue of the nature of
thought processes occurring in chess players.” In other words, they wanted understanding the
thinking of chess players better by using the working memory model.

Methods:

● Participants were 20 male chess players from Cambridge, UK, ranging in ability from casual
chess players to grand champions.
● The researchers wanted to see if memory recall would be affected by processing interfering
information. For example, would having to process extra visuo-spatial information interfere with
working memory capacity?
● The participants were asked to view an arrangement of pieces on one chess board for ten seconds.
This board was on their left as they sat down facing forward. After this ten seconds they then had
to try to recreate the arrangement they had just seen on a different chess board on their right. This
involved them having to recreate the arrangement using their working memory.
● The independent variable in this experiment was the type of distracting information they had to
process while they were completing this task. In one condition, the participants’ phonological
loop was interfered with as they had to repeat the word “the” every second to the rhythm of a
metronome. They were required to repeat the word during the ten seconds watching the board and
learning the arrangement (using their phonological loop), as well as the time it took them to
recreate the arrangement on the new board.
● In another condition, their visuospatial sketchpad was interfered with as they had to type into a
simple keyboard (4×4 numbers) that was out of sight under a table. They were required to type
with one hand in a particular order, while they were arranging the pieces with another hand. This
would have required them using their visuospatial sketchpad.

A simple 4×4 keyboard like the one used in the experiment.

Results:

● The results showed that there was a far greater reduction in scores of accurate recall of chess
positions when the participants’ visuospatial processing was interfered with during the keyboard
task. Their average score for memory of the chess pieces was around 4/25 in this condition,
compared to around 16/25 for the phonological interference.

Conclusions:
These results provide evidence for the existence of separate slave systems that process different
information during working memory tasks. The memory of the chess pieces and the ability to arrange
them in the correct order again requires visuospatial memory. If there was one system of working
memory, there would be the same influence of scores on the memory of the chessboard regardless of the
modality of interference – whether it was audial or visual. The fact that visuospatial interference had a far
greater detrimental effect on visuospatial memory of the chessboard suggests that there are different
systems for processing different information.

This study is one of many that has employed the dual task paradigm to investigate the existence of
different components within short-term memory, namely the phonological loop and the visuospatial
sketchpad. Differing effects on cognition based on modality provides some evidence for Baddeley and
Hitch’s claim that our sensory store is comprised of different components that process different types of
information.

Critical Thinking Considerations

● Generalisability: The participants in the study were all from Cambridge Uni in the UK. They all
had an interest in chess. They were also men. How could one or more of these factors influence
generalisability? Can you think why the results might not apply to women, for example? Or why
might we get different results in another country? Or from non-chess players?
● Are these methods an accurate reflection of how most people use their working memory for daily
tasks? The aim of the study wasn’t to demonstrate this, so this isn’t a limitation of the study per
se, but it is a limitation in using this study to demonstrate how working memory works on a daily
basis.

You might also like

pFad - Phonifier reborn

Pfad - The Proxy pFad of © 2024 Garber Painting. All rights reserved.

Note: This service is not intended for secure transactions such as banking, social media, email, or purchasing. Use at your own risk. We assume no liability whatsoever for broken pages.


Alternative Proxies:

Alternative Proxy

pFad Proxy

pFad v3 Proxy

pFad v4 Proxy