On This Page:ToggleExamplesSperling’s ExperimentsIconic Memory and Change BlindnessNeurology Related to Iconic MemoryFAQs
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Iconic memory is the visual sensory memory register which stores visual images after the extinction of a physical stimulus. While iconic memory contains a huge capacity, it declines rapidly.
Information stored in iconic memory generally disappears within half a second (depending on the brightness).
Iconic memory is asensory memorycomponent involving a fast-decaying visual information store (Sperling, 1960). It provides a coherent yet fleeting representation of our visual perception (Pratte, 2018).
Aristotle was among the earliest individuals to have documented the persistence of a visual representation of an object following its physical extinction (Allen, 1926). He pointed out that experiencing a dream involves afterimages.
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Eventually, in 1960, the American cognitive psychologist George Sperling, via several experiments, confirmed capacity and duration as parts of a memory system called visual sensory memory (Sperling, 1960).
Seven years later, Ulric Neisser introduced the term ‘iconic memory’ to refer to this fast-decaying store of memory (Neisser, 1967).
According to the current understanding of iconic memory, informational persistence and visual persistence embody fundamentally distinct properties, and the former is thought to substantially contribute to visual short-term memory (Coltheart, 1980; Irwin & Yeomans, 1986).
Examples of Iconic Memory
Sperling’s Experiments
In his initial experiments conducted in 1960, Sperling presented the observers with a tachistoscopic stimulus comprising various alphanumeric characters for nearly 50 milliseconds (Sperling, 1960).
Afterward, based on a cue, the participants had to recall lines of letters from the display. The performance of memory was compared under whole report and partial report conditions.
While the “whole report” required the participants to recall elements according to their original spatial positions, the “partial report” demanded that subsets of the display’s characters be identified based on cued recall at different time intervals. A high, medial, or low tone would indicate which group of characters needed to be reported.
On the other hand, under the partial report conditions, the participants could recall a specific row in 75% of the trials.
Because the participants were unaware of the row that they would have to recall, the performance herein was tantamount to a random sampling of the memory of the participants for the entire display.
The results herein seemed to suggest that three-fourths of the visual display remained accessible to memory. This outcome signified a manifest increase in iconic memory’s hypothesized capacity.
Iconic Memory and Change Blindness
The length of the interstimulus interval is thought to reduce the iconic memory store. In other words, iconic memory is what enables the detection of changes in a visual scene (Persuh, Genzer & Melara, 2018).
However, lapses in iconic memory, which can be defined as change blindness, are likely to occur in proportion to the length of the interstimulus interval.
Neurology Related to Iconic Memory
The retina’s photoreceptors, the retinal ganglion cells, the middle occipital gyrus, proteins in the brain and various genetic factors impact the functioning of iconic memory.
The visual sensory pathway plays a vital role in iconic memory. The retina’s photoreceptors, namely rods, and cones, remain active beyond a stimulus’ physical offset (Irwin & Thomas, 2008). The transient M-type cells and the sustained P-type cells of the retinal ganglion cells are also involved (Levick & Zacks, 1970).
While the former are active solely during stimulus onset and offset, the latter are active even in between. The primary visual cortex within the occipital lobe, too, plays an important role in the process (Nikolić, Häusler, Singer & Maass, 2009).
Moreover, the middle occipital gyrus shapes iconic memory’s capacity to detect change (Beste, Schneider, Epplen & Arning, 2011). Proteins in the brain and various genetic factors also impact iconic memory’s functioning.
Key Takeaways
FAQs
What does iconic memory store?Iconic memory stores visual information from the environment, allowing for brief and temporary retention of visual stimuli. It is responsible for holding a visual snapshot of the sensory input before further processing and interpretation occur.
What does iconic memory store?
Iconic memory stores visual information from the environment, allowing for brief and temporary retention of visual stimuli. It is responsible for holding a visual snapshot of the sensory input before further processing and interpretation occur.
What is the duration of iconic memory?
References
Allen, F. (1926). The persistence of vision. American Journal of Physiological Optics, 7, 439–457.
Becker, M. W., Pashler, H., & Anstis, S. M. (2000).The role of iconic memory in change-detection tasks.Perception, 29(3), 273-286.
Beste, C., Schneider, D., Epplen, J. T., & Arning, L. (2011).The functional BDNF Val66Met polymorphism affects functions of pre-attentive visual sensory memory processes.Neuropharmacology, 60(2-3), 467-471.
Coltheart, M. (1980). Iconic memory and visible persistence.Perception & psychophysics, 27(3), 183-228.
Dick, A. O. (1974).Iconic memory and its relation to perceptual processing and other memory mechanisms.Perception & Psychophysics, 16(3), 575-596.
Irwin, D. E., & Yeomans, J. M. (1986).Sensory registration and informational persistence.Journal of Experimental Psychology: Human Perception and Performance, 12(3), 343.
Irwin, D. E., & Yeomans, J. M. (1986). Sensory registration and informational persistence. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Human Perception and Performance, 12(3), 343.
Irwin, D., & Thomas, L. (2008). Neural basis of sensory memory.Visual memory, 32-35.
Levick, W. R., & Zacks, J. L. (1970). Responses of cat retinal ganglion cells to brief flashes of light.The Journal of Physiology, 206(3), 677-700.
Neisser, Ulric (1967).Cognitive Psychology. New York: Appleton-Century-Crofts.
Nikolić, D., Häusler, S., Singer, W., & Maass, W. (2009). Distributed fading memory for stimulus properties in the primary visual cortex.PLoS biology, 7(12), e1000260.
Persuh, Marjan; Genzer, Boris; Melara, Robert (20 April 2018). Iconic memory requires attention.Frontiers in Human Neuroscience, 6, 126.
Pratte, M. S. (2018). Iconic memories die a sudden death.Psychological science, 29(6), 877-887.
Sperling, G. (1960). The information available in brief visual presentations.Psychological monographs: General and applied, 74(11), 1.
Further Reading
Sperling, G. (1960). The information available in brief visual presentations. Psychological monographs: General and applied, 74(11), 1.
Öğmen, H., & Herzog, M. H. (2016). A new conceptualization of human visual sensory-memory. Frontiers in psychology, 7, 830.
Sligte, I. G., Vandenbroucke, A. R., Scholte, H. S., & Lamme, V. (2010). Detailed sensory memory, sloppy working memory. Frontiers in Psychology, 1, 175.
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Saul McLeod, PhD
BSc (Hons) Psychology, MRes, PhD, University of Manchester
Saul McLeod, PhD., is a qualified psychology teacher with over 18 years of experience in further and higher education. He has been published in peer-reviewed journals, including the Journal of Clinical Psychology.
Olivia Guy-Evans, MSc
BSc (Hons) Psychology, MSc Psychology of Education
Olivia Guy-Evans is a writer and associate editor for Simply Psychology. She has previously worked in healthcare and educational sectors.
Ayesh PereraResearcherB.A, MTS, Harvard UniversityAyesh Perera, a Harvard graduate, has worked as a researcher in psychology and neuroscience under Dr. Kevin Majeres at Harvard Medical School.
Ayesh PereraResearcherB.A, MTS, Harvard University
Ayesh Perera
Researcher
B.A, MTS, Harvard University
Ayesh Perera, a Harvard graduate, has worked as a researcher in psychology and neuroscience under Dr. Kevin Majeres at Harvard Medical School.
