2.1.1 Sensory Memory

What is sensory memory?

• When information comes in from the senses it needs to be stored for a very small amount of time until the body's processing systems can decide what to do with it
• Just think about the many pieces of information that your senses provide you with every second of the day: looking at this revision note, the noises going on around you, the smells and even the feel of the chair which you may be sitting on 
• Your brain has to process all of this even though the bulk of it (around 99%) will be discarded as it is simply not needed
• The processing of this information is carried out in Sensory Memory (SM)
• The duration of SM is around 1/2 a second, up to several seconds at the very most
• The capacity of SM is between 12 to 16 items
• The SM encodes using all 5 modalities (senses)

What are the five types of sensory memory?

• Iconic memory: retaining information that comes from sight or light stimulus
  • Example:  You remember how the theatre or cinema looked as the light went down
• Echoic memory: retaining information that comes from sound or auditory stimulus
  • Example: You can recall a song you just heard in your head
• Haptic memory:  retaining information that comes from touch
  • Example:  You can recall how it feels when rain hits your skin
• Olfactory memory: retaining information that comes from smell
  • Example: The smell of fresh bread may make you feel happy as it reminds you of something pleasant
• Gustatory memory:  retaining information that comes from taste
  • Example:  The taste of something may remind you of your childhood, like fish fingers and chips