Chifukwa choganiza choncho chinali nkhani ya katswiri wa zamaganizo wa ku Harvard George Armitage Miller, "The Magic Number 7±2," yomwe inasindikizidwa mu nyuzipepala ya Psychological Review kumbuyoko mu 1956. Mmenemo, adalongosola zotsatira za mayesero pa ntchito yake ku Bell Laboratories: malinga ndi zomwe adaziwona, munthu akhoza kusunga zinthu zisanu mpaka zisanu ndi zinayi mu kukumbukira kwakanthawi kochepa - zikhale mndandanda wa zilembo, manambala, mawu kapena zithunzi.
Ophunzira analoweza ndondomeko zovuta kwambiri poika zinthu m'magulu kuti chiwerengero cha magulu chikhalenso kuyambira 5 mpaka 9. Komabe, maphunziro amakono amapereka zotsatira zochepa kwambiri - "chiwerengero chamatsenga" chimaonedwa kuti ndi 4 ± 1. Kuwunika koteroko приводит, makamaka, pulofesa wa zamaganizo Nelson Cowan m'nkhani yake ya 2001.
Nthawi yayitali kukumbukira kumapangidwa mosiyana - nthawi yosungiramo zidziwitso momwemo ikhoza kukhala yopanda malire, voliyumu imaposa kukumbukira kwakanthawi kochepa. Kuphatikiza apo, ngati ntchito ya kukumbukira kwakanthawi kochepa imaphatikizapo kulumikizana kwakanthawi kwa neural m'dera la frontal ndi parietal cortex yaubongo, ndiye kuti kukumbukira kwanthawi yayitali kumakhalapo chifukwa cha kulumikizana kokhazikika kwa neural komwe kumagawika mbali zonse zaubongo.
Mitundu yonse ya kukumbukira kulibe mosiyana - imodzi mwa zitsanzo zodziwika kwambiri za ubale pakati pawo zinaperekedwa ndi akatswiri a zamaganizo Richard Atkinson ndi Richard Shiffrin mu 1968. Malinga ndi malingaliro awo, chidziwitso choyamba chimakonzedwa ndi kukumbukira kukumbukira. Zokumbukira zokumbukira "ma buffers" zimapereka chidziwitso kwakanthawi kochepa. Komanso, ngati chidziŵitso chibwerezedwa mobwerezabwereza, ndiye kuti chimachokera ku kukumbukira kwakanthawi kochepa "kukasungira kwa nthawi yayitali."
Kukumbukira (kolunjika kapena modzidzimutsa) mu chitsanzo ichi ndiko kusintha kwa chidziwitso kuchokera ku nthawi yayitali kupita ku kukumbukira kwakanthawi kochepa.
Chitsanzo china chinaperekedwa zaka 4 pambuyo pake ndi akatswiri odziwa zamaganizo Fergus Craik ndi Robert S. Lockhart. Zimachokera pa lingaliro lakuti nthawi yayitali bwanji yomwe chidziwitso chimasungidwa komanso ngati chimakhalabe mu kukumbukira kwachidziwitso kapena chimalowa mu kukumbukira kwa nthawi yaitali zimadalira "kuya" kwa processing. Njira yowonongeka kwambiri komanso nthawi yochuluka yogwiritsira ntchito, imakhala ndi mwayi woti chidziwitsocho chidzakumbukiridwa kwa nthawi yaitali.
Kafukufuku wa maubwenzi pakati pa mitundu ya kukumbukira kwachititsa kuti pakhale magulu ovuta kwambiri ndi zitsanzo. Mwachitsanzo, kukumbukira kwa nthawi yayitali kunayamba kugawidwa m'mawonekedwe omveka (omwe amatchedwanso ozindikira) ndi osamveka (osazindikira kapena obisika).
Kukumbukira momveka bwino - zomwe timakonda kunena tikamalankhula za kuloweza. Iwo, nawonso, anawagawa episodic (zokumbukira za moyo wa munthu) ndi semantic (kukumbukira mfundo, mfundo ndi zochitika) - kugawanika anayamba akufuna mu 1972 ndi zamaganizo Canada chiyambi Estonian Endel Tulving.