How does the episodic buffer support encoding into long-term memory?

• A. It eliminates the need for encoding by attributing events to short-term memory.
• B. It stores phonological information for long durations.
• C. It processes motor sequences for encoding.
• D. By creating integrated multimodal episodes that can be encoded as consolidated memories in LTM.

Answer: (D)

The episodic buffer binds information from different parts of working memory into a single, coherent episode. By holding these integrated multimodal representations temporarily, it provides a unified trace that can be encoded into long-term memory as a consolidated memory. This bridging role—combining sights, sounds, and meanings into one episode—facilitates the transfer to LTM via the hippocampus, turning a collection of separate bits into a lasting memory.