Sensory memory is a short-term memory that records much information about sensory stimuli through the five senses. In this article, we will discuss the types of this type of memory, the characteristics and examples of each, and finally, we will review the famous Sperling test. Stay with us.
What is sensory memory?
Sensory memory means short-term storage of information obtained from different senses. Data is recorded in this type of memory for a short time so that it is possible to process the data after the end of the sensory stimuli. This memory allows you to retain brief impressions of details to better understand and interact with the world. Sometimes, this information may be transferred to short-term memory, but it usually fades quickly. Although this type of memory is short-term memory, it is highly effective.
Types of sensory memory
Sight, hearing, smell, taste, and touch are the five senses that help you process the world around you. Most researchers have investigated the three main aspects of these senses and have divided sensory memory into three categories.
1. Symbolic memory
This type of memory, also called visual memory, contains a concise image. Symbolic memory usually lasts about a quarter to a half of a second. Researchers have researched this type of memory and found that the eyes cannot transfer moving objects to visual memory. For visual memory to work well, you and the thing you are viewing must be stationary.
2. echo memory
This type of memory, also called auditory memory, includes a concise memory of an echo-like sound. The echo memory remains for 3 to 4 seconds. An example of this memory is listening to a voice going through a list and recalling it. Auditory and visual memory have exciting differences. According to research, in terms of auditory sensory memory, when a person hears a list of different items, he usually remembers the first and last words he heard more. Still, visual memory is not like that, and if a person sees a list of different items, it is likely that only the first He remembers things.
3. Touch memory
This memory contains the information obtained by touching the stimulus, lasting approximately 2 seconds.
How does sensory memory work?
In every moment, your senses constantly receive information about what you see, hear, smell, taste, and feel. While this may be important, there is no way to remember every detail you experience.
Sensory memory creates a “snapshot” of the world around you, allowing you to focus on relevant details. Although this type of memory fades very quickly, it will enable us to briefly retain an impression of a sensory stimulus and then transfer essential information to the next stage of memory, known as short-term memory.
Characteristics of sensory memory
Sensory memory is an automatic and unconscious process that:
- The information stored in it contains many details.
- It is limited in terms of duration and capacity. It takes a little time and is immediately replaced by new data.
- It is specific to a specific sensory mode; for example, echoic memory stores only auditory information, symbolic memory stores only visual information, and tactile memory stores only tactile information.
Examples of sensory memory
- Symbolic memory includes situations where you still have an image in your mind after the sensory stimulus is gone. Just like when you turn off the flashlight, you still have a brief idea of the light in your memory.
- An example of an echoic memory would be the short-term memory of a car horn or instrument sound, even after the sound has stopped.
- Other examples include the short-term memory of something you’ve touched.
In each instance, short-term memory allows you to recognize and process the sensory stimulus.
Sperling’s experiments on sensory memory
George Sperling is the psychologist who first tested the duration of sensory memory in the 1960s. In this experiment, participants stared at a screen, and rows of English letters were displayed for a few seconds and then faded. Immediately after the notes disappeared, participants repeated as many letters as they could remember. Although most participants could only remember 4 or 5 letters, many believed they had seen all the notes and not just remembered them.
Inspired by this experiment, Sperling repeated a different version of it. Three rows containing four letters were shown to the participants for a few seconds. However, immediately after the letters disappeared, sounds with high, medium, and low tones were played. Those who heard the loud voice repeated the letters in the top row, those who listened to the medium voice repeated the letters in the middle row, and those who listened to the low voice repeated the letters in the bottom row.
Sperling found that as the time interval between the fading of the letters and the playing of the sound increased, the accuracy of recalling the letters decreased. The visual memory gave way to the auditory memory after playing the sound, making it impossible to remember the notes stored in the visual memory.
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