What is an echoic memory?
Echoic memory or auditory sensory memory is part of the short -term memory and refers to the way the brain can take an exact copy of what can be heard and hold it for a very short time, for about two to four seconds. The term is credited with Ulric Neisser and is even better known for performing basic research of this form of memorization. From Neisser's work, another study on this type of memory continues to reveal new information about its functions.
When a person hears a sound, such as a few music notes or a short sentence, echoic memory is involved and the brain keeps the perfect replica of this sound for a short time. People can even postpone the attention of the meaning of sound when they hear it, and instead they could interpret a copy of the brain. For example, sometimes one does not pay full attention to the conversation of another. He could ask the speaker to repeat something, and then realizes that he knows what was said before the speaker could say again. This is echoing in action, producing a copy of the sound so that one can catch uplistening or be able to briefly think about the meaning of sound.
Sandy short -term memory is often compared with visual or iconic memory. This is the ability of the brain to maintain accurate copies of the picture. Compared to this, the auditory sensory memory is much longer. The iconic memory lasts less than a second, while the echo can reproduce a short sound for up to four seconds.
George Sperling conducted an early study on iconic memory in the 1960s. This became a plan for evaluating echoic memory. In 1967, Ulric Neisser designed similar tests and strategies of reporting that they used sperling to get descriptive information about auditory sensory memory.
Neisser found that people could remember exactly two seconds of auditory information. In addition, a spectacle copy could exist up to four seconds. Later scientists had access to specialized brain scan equipment and suggestionIf experiments to visualize the brain areas associated with echoic memory. The greatest activity during tests of this type was in the prefrontal cortex, where most of the other auditory signals are processed.
Further research of short -term auditory memory has shown that people seem to increase their echoic memory except for higher times. Hearing sensory memory of a toddler is therefore not as long as a teenager. Some of this ability to produce and keep copies of sounds tend to deteriorate with advanced aging.
Scientists are also focused on the consequences of impaired echoic memory. The inability to keep a copy of sounds for a short time was associated with speech disorders. Individuals who lack this function may also suffer from a number of communication deficits.