CH. 8: Memory

Question 1

The persistence of learning over time through the encoding, storage, and retrieval of information.

Answer 1

Memory

Question 2

Evidence that learning persists includes what 3 measures of retention?

Answer 2

Recall; Recognition; Relearning

Question 3

A measure of memory in which the person must retrieve information learned earlier, as on a fill-in-the-blank test.

Answer 3

Recall

Question 4

A measure of memory in which the person identifies items previously learned, as on a multiple-choice test.

Answer 4

Recognition

Question 5

The processing of information into the memory system - for example, by extracting meaning.

Answer 5

Encoding

Question 6

The process of retaining encoded information.

Answer 6

Storage

Question 7

The process of getting information out of memory storage.

Answer 7

Retrieval

Question 8

The processing of many aspects of a problem simultaneously; the brain’s natural mode of information processing for many functions.

Answer 8

Parallel Processing

Question 9

The immediate, very brief recording of sensory information in the memory system.

Answer 9

Sensory Memory

Question 10

Activated memory that holds a few items briefly, such as the seven digits of a phone number while calling, before the information is stored or forgotten.

Answer 10

Short-Term Memory

Question 11

The relatively permanent and limitless storehouse of the memory system. Includes knowledge, skills, and experiences.

Answer 11

Long-Term Memory

Question 12

A newer understanding of short-term memory that adds conscious, active processing of incoming auditory and visual-spatial information, and of information retrieved from long-term memory.

Answer 12

Working Memory

Question 13

What are two basic functions of Working Memory?

Answer 13

1) Active processing of incoming visual-spatial and auditory information.
2) Focusing our spotlight of attention.

Question 14

What are the three stages in the Atkinson-Shiffrin information-processing model?

Answer 14

1) Sensory Memory
2) Short-Term Memory
3) Long-Term Memory

Question 15

Memory of facts and experiences that one can consciously know and “declare” (also called Declarative Memory).

Answer 15

Explicit Memories

Question 16

Encoding that requires attention and conscious effort.

Answer 16

Effortful Processing

Question 17

Unconscious encoding of incidental information, such as space, time, and frequency, and of well-learned information, such as word meanings.

Answer 17

Automatic Processing

Question 18

Retention of learned skills or classically conditioned associations independent of conscious recollection. (Also called Nondeclarative memory.)

Answer 18

Implicit Memory

Question 19

Without conscious effort you automatically process information about what 3 things?

Answer 19

Space, Time, and Frequency.

Question 20

A momentary sensory memory of visual stimuli; a photographic or picture-image memory lasting no more than a few tenth’s of a second.

Answer 20

Iconic Memory

Question 21

A momentary sensory memory of auditory stimuli; if attention is elsewhere, sound and words can still be recalled within 3 or 4 seconds.

Answer 21

Echoic Memory

Question 22

What is the difference between Automatic and Effortful processing?

Answer 22

Automatic processing occurs unconsciously (automatically) for such things as the sequence and frequency of a day’s events, and reading and comprehending words in our native language.

Effortful processing requires attention and awareness and happens, when we work hard to learn new material in class, or new lines in a play.

Question 23

What are some effortful processing strategies that can help us remember new information?

Answer 23

Chunking
Mnemonics
Hierarchies
Distributed Practice

Question 24

The processing strategy of organizing items into familiar, manageable units; often occurs automatically.

Answer 24

Chunking

Question 25

The processing strategy that acts as memory aids, especially those techniques that use vivid imagery and organizational devices.

Answer 25

Mnemonics

Question 26

The tendency for distributed study or practice to yield better long-term retention than is achieved through massed study or practice.

Answer 26

Spacing Effect

Question 27

Enhanced memory after retrieving, rather than simply rereading, information.

Answer 27

Testing Effect

Question 28

Encoding on a basic level based on the structure or appearance of words.

Answer 28

Shallow Processing

Question 29

Encoding semantically, based on the meaning of the words; tends to yield the best retention.

Answer 29

Deep Processing

Question 30

Explicit memories of facts and general knowledge; one of our two conscious memory systems.

Answer 30

Semantic Memory

Question 31

Explicit memory of personally experienced events; one of our two conscious memory systems.

Answer 31

Episodic Memory

Question 32

A neural center in the brain, located in the limbic system; helps process explicit memories for storage.

Answer 32

Hippocampus

Question 33

The neural storage of a long-term memory.

Answer 33

Memory Consolidation

Question 34

Which parts of the brain are important for Implicit memory processing, and which parts play a key role in Explicit memory processing?

Answer 34

The Cerebellum and Basal Ganglia are important for Implicit Memory processing, and the Frontal Lobes and Hippocampus are key to Explicit memory formation.

Question 35

A clear memory of an emotionally significant moment or event.

Answer 35

Flashbulb Memories

Question 36

An increase in a cell’s firing potential after brief, rapid stimulation. Believed to be a neural basis for learning and memory.

Answer 36

Long-Term Potentiation (LTP)

Question 37

Which area of the brain responds to stress hormones by helping to create stronger memories?

Answer 37

The Amygdala

Question 38

The activation, often unconsciously, of certain associations, thus predisposing one’s perception, memory, or response.

Answer 38

Priming

Question 39

Bits that you can later use to access information.

Answer 39

Retrieval cues

Question 40

The tendency to recall experiences that are consistent with one’s current good or bad mood.

Answer 40

Mood-Congruent Memory

Question 41

Our tendency to recall best the last (recency effect) and first (primacy effect) items in a list.

Answer 41

Serial Position Effect

Question 42

The inability to form new memories.

Answer 42

Anterograde Amnesia

Question 43

The inability to retrieve information from one’s past.

Answer 43

Retrograde Amnesia

Question 44

The forward-acting disruptive effect of prior learning on the recall of new information.

Answer 44

Proactive Interference

Question 45

The backward-acting disruptive effect of new learning on the recall of old information.

Answer 45

Retroactive Interference

Question 46

In psychoanalytic theory, the basic defense mechanism that banishes from consciousness anxiety-arousing thoughts, feelings, and memories.

Answer 46

Repression

Question 47

What are 3 ways we forget, and how does each of these happen?

Answer 47

1) Encoding Failure - Unattended information never entered our memory system.
2) Storage Decay - Information fades from our memory.
3) Retrieval Failure - We cannot access stored information accurately, sometimes due to interference or motivated forgetting.

Question 48

A process in which previously stored memories, when retrieved, are potentially altered before being stored again.

Answer 48

Reconsolidation

Question 49

When misleading information has corrupted one’s memory of an event.

Answer 49

Misinformation Effect

Question 50

The act of attributing to the wrong source an event we have experienced, heard about, read about, or imagined. (This along with the Misinformation effect, is at the heart of many false memories.)

Answer 50

Source Amnesia

Question 51

That eerie sense that “I’ve experienced this before.”

Cues from the current situation may unconsciously trigger retrieval of an earlier experience.

Answer 51

Deja Vu

Question 52

What are some memory strategies that can help you study smarter and retain more information?

Answer 52

Rehearse Repeatedly - to boost long-term recall.

Schedule Spaced Study Times - spend more time rehearsing or actively thinking about the material.

Make the Material Personally Meaningful - with well organized and vivid associations.

Refresh Memory - by returning contexts and moods to activate retrieval cues.

Use Mnemonic Devices.

Minimize Interference.

Plan for a complete night’s sleep.

Test Yourself Repeatedly - retrieval practice is a proven retention strategy.