Students in a psychology experiment were exposed to three notes of music for a very short period of time and then asked to recall them. If the instructions to recall the notes came immediately, the students usually succeeded. If the instructions came more than 3 seconds after the notes were played, the students were much less successful. The MOST plausible explanation for this phenomenon is that, in the latter case, the echo __________.
A) never made it into sensory memory
B) faded after being stored in short-term memory
C) was already stored in long-term memory
D) faded before being stored in short-term memory

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The most plausible explanation is that the echo faded before being stored in short-term memory. Sensory information such as sounds are initially processed in the sensory memory, where they last for a very short period of time. If not attended to, the information fades before it can be transferred to short-term memory for further processing.

Students in a Psychology Experiment Were Exposed to Three Notes