During an exam, Joe found that he could look at questions and know the meaning of acronyms such as PET, MRI, fMRI, PET, and ERP. Although he found it difficult to encode the spelling of each word because that surpassed his 7+/-2 working memory capacity, he knew the meaning of each letter. This example illustrates what method used to expand working memory capacity?
A) spelling
B) temporal overload
C) chunking
D) episodic buffer

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The example illustrates the use of chunking as a method to expand working memory capacity. Chunking involves grouping or organizing information into meaningful units, which allows more information to be stored in working memory. In this case, Joe was able to chunk the acronyms into meaningful units (e.g. PET, MRI), which allowed him to remember their meanings despite the limited capacity of his working memory.

During an Exam, Joe Found That He Could Look at Questions