Lecture 9. Recognition memory

Question 1

What are some fundamental aspects of memory? What is it influenced by?

Answer 1

Memory is only as good as the input, or what is encoded at the time it happened

Memory is reconstructive

Expectations can be manipulated

Question 2

“Memory is only as good as the details that were encoded”

What are some limitations during the encoding process?

Answer 2

Encoding can be limited by sensory limitations, preventing all of the details of a scene or an event from being registered in memory

Attentional bottlenecks will limit the amount of information the is perceived at any given time (we cant notive every single detail in our environment all the time)

Question 3

What does the visual system do to details?

Answer 3

The visual system removes details with distance

Question 4

What impact does distraction have on encoding?

Answer 4

HUGE, distraction affects how well memory is consolidated massively. (negatively exponentially)

The time between encoding and recall (while being distracted by something else in the meantime) creates a negatively exponential decay that is

Question 5

What kind of faces are easier to remember?

What does this say about distinctive features?

Answer 5

highly attractive or highly unattractive faces are easy to remember

Distinctive features are easier to remember

Question 6

What study did Loftus do?

W___ F___

Answer 6

Weapon Focus study in which it was found participants had a high alertness to weapons and were therefore less likely to remember the perpetrators face

Question 7

What is memory only as good as? The p__1.___ of d__2.__ at the the time of ___3.___

A__4.__, s__5.___ and d__6.___ affect encoding (what gets in)

Answer 7

perception of details at the time of encoding
1. perception of 2.details at the time of 3.encoding

4. Attention, 5. salience and 6. distraction affect encoding

Question 8

What is a schema?

Answer 8

A concept or set of ideas or a framework for representing some aspect of the world.

Schemas can also be called frames, mental sets or scripts

Question 9

How do schemas influence learning?

Answer 9

Schemas influence how you interpret new information and play a large role in determining what you can pay attention to when learning.

It influences what you deem as important, what you learn and how you represent that knowledge

Question 10

What is the beneficial aspect of a schema?

Answer 10

Schemas can facilitate comprehension, as it is a concept that we already hold about something, so we can hit the ground running with interpretation.

Question 11

What is an issue associated with schemas and their influence on memory?

Answer 11

Schemas can lead to distortions in memory.
Information that is inconsistent with the schema is often reinterpreted to fit the schema.
Even in the face of contradicting information, schemas are hard to change and therefore we might distort our memory to suit our schemas, not the other way around

Question 12

Sir Frederick Bartlet sounds like a bit of a story teller, what did he do to test how memories change over time?

Answer 12

Had subjects memorise stories and retell them at different time points to see how they changed.

Question 13

What was the story that Sir Frederick Bartlet told to westerners?

Answer 13

The War of Ghosts

Question 14

Years after Bartlet made his participants remember the War of Ghosts, what remained?

Answer 14

The gist, aka the general outline

Question 15

Why are we so susceptible to leading questions?

Answer 15

memory for detail is poor, people can be influenced by questions that suggests specific expectations.

Question 16

What is the order in rating slow to fast of that car windscreen question?

options: contacted, hit, bumped, collided and smashed

Answer 16

contacted 
hit 
bumped 
collided 
smashed