Chapter 6+7: Memory Flashcards
1
Q
What is Acquisition?
A
The process of gaining information and placing it into memory.
Learning strategies affect how well information is acquired and later retrieved.
2
Q
Without acquisition what happens?
A
no memory can exist.
3
Q
What is Shallow Processing?
A
Focus on surface-level details (e.g., memorizing a word’s appearance or sound).
4
Q
What is deep processing?
A
Focus on meaning and connections (e.g., understanding a concept and relating it to prior knowledge).
5
Q
What is Elaborative Encoding?
A
Actively making connections between new information and what is already known.
6
Q
What is Short-Term Memory (STM)?
A
Holds information for seconds to minutes.
Limited in capacity (7 ± 2 items).
Information decays unless rehearsed.
7
Q
What is Long-Term Memory (LTM)?
A
Can store information indefinitely.
Has large (potentially unlimited) capacity.
Requires meaningful encoding for strong storage.
8
Q
What is Explicit (Declarative) Memory?
A
Conscious recall of facts and events.
Is semantic
Not contextually-bound
Is concerned with general knowledge and facts
9
Q
What is Episodic Memory?
A
Personal experiences (e.g., “My trip to Paris in 2022”).
Bound to Context (i.e., time, place)
Is concerned with personal past
10
Q
Episodic Memory – How is it Tested?
A
Laboratory-based method that allows for experimental examination of learning and memory encoding: study-test paradigm
Study: judge the following words in terms of your liking
Test: what were the words you saw 20 min ago? (recall) was this one of the words you saw earlier? (recognition)
Study phase serves as episode whose details need to be recovered at test
11
Q
Deep vs. Shallow Encoding
A
Deep encoding (like understanding meaning) generally leads to better memory than shallow encoding (like focusing on sounds or appearance).
12
Q
Time vs. Type of Processing
A
The depth of processing matters more than just the amount of time spent on it.
13
Q
How Integration with Knowledge improves memory
A
Memory improves when new information is meaningfully connected to what you already know—especially when making “yes” decisions.
14
Q
What are the Limits of Semantic Processing?
A
Deep (semantic) processing isn’t always beneficial; it depends on the situation.
15
Q
Matching Encoding & Retrieval
A
Memory is best when the way you learn information matches the way you’re tested on it (transfer-appropriate processing).
16
Q
What does Encoding Specificity mean?
A
Remembering something depends on both how it was encoded and how the retrieval cue (hint) matches that encoding.
17
Q
What is Implicit (Non-Declarative) Memory?
A
Unconscious learning and skills.
Procedural Memory – Motor skills and habits (e.g., riding a bike).
Priming – Exposure to stimuli influences responses (e.g., hearing “yellow” makes “banana” easier to recall).
18
Q
Direct Tests
A
Explicitly refer to prior experience (e.g., recall, recognition).
19
Q
Indirect Tests
A
Do not explicitly reference prior experience (e.g., priming).
20
Q
Method of Opposition
A
Inclusion Condition: Use words from the list or first word that comes to mind.
Exclusion Condition: Avoid words from the list.
If studied words still appear in exclusion, it shows implicit memory influence.
21
Q
What is retrieval?
A
The process of locating stored information and bringing it into awareness.
22
Q
What is Recognition?
A
Identifying information with cues (e.g., multiple-choice test).
23
Q
What is Recall?
A
Recall – Retrieving information without cues (e.g., writing an essay from memory).
24
Q
What is relearning?
A
Learning forgotten material faster the second time.
25
Factors that influence retrieval
Encoding Specificity Principle – Memory is best recalled in the same context it was learned.
Example: Studying in the same room where an exam is taken improves recall.
State-Dependent Memory – Internal states (mood, intoxication) affect retrieval.
Example: Learning while happy makes recall easier when happy.
Priming – Unconscious activation of memory through related stimuli.
Retrieval Cues – Triggers that help access memories.
26
What is interference?
Old and new memories compete.
27
What is Proactive Interference?
Older memories interfere with new ones.
28
What is Retroactive Interference?
New learning disrupts old memories.
29
What is decay theory?
Memories weaken over time if not rehearsed.
30
What is retrieval failure?
Information is stored but inaccessible (tip-of-the-tongue phenomenon)
31
What is the Modal Model of Memory?
Sensory memory
Sensory memory is the name given to the store that briefly retains sensory information
Thought to store sensory information in a raw or uninterpreted form
32
Why do we need such a store? Why can’t information travel directly into STM?
Sensory input from the environment contains far too much information for the brain to process all at once
33
The Sensory Memory system is thought to be responsible for two major phenomena in the visual system
Visible Persistence and informational persistence
34
What is visible persistence?
Both peripheral (retinal) and neural origins
Like an ‘afterimage’ – visual information remains visible briefly after it’s physical presentation
35
What is informational persistence?
Information can be extracted from a stimulus for a brief period of time after the stimulus itself is no longer present
36
How much information can be apprehended from a brief exposure to a visual stimulus?
3-4 levels at both the whole and partial report condition
37
What are the traits of iconic memory?
Large capacity
Brief duration
38
Short-Term Memory (STM) & Working Memory
STM holds information temporarily.
WM includes STM but also actively manipulates info (like solving problems or thinking through steps).
39
What is the Recency Effect?
Improved recall for the last few items in a list.
40
Why the recency effect happens
These words are still in working memory when recall begins.
Working memory has a limited capacity (~5-7 items).
Newer words replace older words in working memory, but the last few words remain because nothing follows them to displace them.
41
Supporting Evidence for the recency effect
If recall is delayed by a distracting task (e.g., counting backward for 30 seconds), the recency effect disappears.
Why? The task displaces words from working memory, making retrieval harder.
However, this delay does not affect memory for earlier words, supporting the idea that primacy and recency rely on different memory stores.
42
What is The Primacy Effect?
Improved recall for the first few words in a list.
43
Why does the primacy effect?
The first few words receive more attention because there are fewer distractions.
Participants engage in memory rehearsal, repeating the words (e.g., “bicycle, bicycle, bicycle”).
More rehearsal increases the likelihood of transfer to LTM.
44
What is the supporting evidence for the primacy effect?
Slowing down the presentation rate of words improves primacy effect (more rehearsal time).
However, slowing down the list does not affect the recency effect, further supporting the idea of two distinct memory systems.
45
The Effects of Delayed Recall on Recency
Hypothesis: If recency is based on working memory, then interfering tasks should eliminate it.
Experiment:
Participants recall a word list immediately (recency effect is strong).
Then, they are given a 30-second distraction task before recall.
Result: The recency effect disappears, but early words (primacy effect) are not affected.
Conclusion:
Recency depends on working memory, which is fragile and easily disrupted.
Primacy depends on LTM, which is more stable and not affected by short-term distractions.
46
The Effects of Slow Presentation on Primacy
Hypothesis: If primacy is based on long-term memory, increasing study time should improve recall for early words.
Experiment:
Slower word presentation (e.g., 2 seconds per word instead of 1).
Result: Memory for early words improves, but recency remains unchanged.
Conclusion:
Primacy benefits from deeper encoding (LTM-related).
Recency remains independent (working memory-related).
47
Digit Span Task
The traditional method
Participants recall sequences of digits that increase in length.
Capacity estimated as 7 ± 2 items (Miller, 1956).
48
Limitation of digit span tasks
Measures passive storage (how many items fit in the "box") rather than active processing.
Does not reflect how working memory operates in real-world tasks.
49
Operation Span (O-Span)
The modern method
Focuses on how well working memory functions during complex tasks.
Working memory is measured while it is actively "working".
50
The Articulatory Rehearsal Loop
Purpose
Maintains speech-based information for short periods.
Example: Remembering a phone number by repeating it silently ("1, 4, 6, 3").
51
The Articulatory Rehearsal Loop
Process
Subvocalization ("Inner Voice") – Silent rehearsal using mental speech.
Phonological Buffer ("Inner Ear") – Stores the sound representation temporarily.
Repetition keeps information active (without it, memory fades in a few seconds).
52
Evidence for the Rehearsal Loop
Sound-Alike Errors:
People confuse words that sound similar (e.g., mistaking "F" for "S") rather than words that look similar.
Suggests that information is stored as sounds, even when presented visually.
Concurrent Articulation Task ("Tah-Tah-Tah"):
Speaking nonsense syllables while trying to remember a list disrupts subvocalization, blocking the loop.
Result: Memory span drops from 7 to ~5 items.
Eliminates sound-alike errors because the phonological buffer is disabled.
53
What is the Visuospatial Buffer?
Stores mental images, maps, and spatial layouts.
Helps navigate environments and visualize objects.
54
What is the episodic buffer?
Maintains sequences of events (e.g., remembering the order of a story).
Important in amnesia—patients who can’t form new long-term memories can still follow a conversation using this buffer.
55
The Inner Hand
Deaf individuals use covert sign language instead of subvocalization.
Their working memory fails when asked to wiggle fingers, just like speech disrupts hearing people's rehearsal loop.
Errors are based on hand shapes instead of sounds.
56
What is Maintenance Rehearsal (Shallow Processing) and its effectiveness?
Definition:
Repeating information without focusing on meaning.
Example: Repeating a phone number over and over to yourself.
Effectiveness:
Poor for long-term retention.
Information stays in working memory temporarily but does not transfer to LTM.
57
Evidence for maintenance rehearsal
Example: You memorize a phone number for a few seconds but forget it after a distraction (e.g., reading a text message).
Penny Experiment (Nickerson & Adams, 1979): Despite frequent exposure, people cannot recall details of a common object like a coin.
Apple Logo Experiment (Blake et al., 2015): People see the Apple logo hundreds of times but cannot accurately draw it.
Conclusion: Repetition alone is not enough to create strong memories.
58
What is Relational (Elaborative) Rehearsal (Deep Processing) and its effectiveness?
Definition:
Thinking about meaning and connections between information.
Relates new information to existing knowledge.
Effectiveness:
Much better for long-term memory.
Increases retrieval strength by creating associations.
59
What is Intentional Learning?
Definition: Deliberate effort to remember (e.g., studying for an exam).
Expectation of a memory test leads to focused attention.
60
What is Incidental Learning?
Definition: Learning without awareness that memory will be tested.
61
Study: Godden & Baddeley (1975) – Encoding Specificity Principle
Experiment with divers learning and recalling words either on land or underwater.
Results:
Better recall when context is the same (Land-Land, Underwater-Underwater).
Worse recall when context changes (Land-Underwater, Underwater-Land).
Key Takeaway: Environmental context affects memory retrieval. Learning and testing in the same environment enhances performance.
62
State-Dependent Memory
Memory retrieval is better when internal states match between encoding and retrieval.
Example: Alcohol & Recall Experiment
Better recall if learning & testing states match (Sober-Sober or Drunk-Drunk).
Worse recall if state changes (Sober-Drunk or Drunk-Sober).
63
Mood-Dependent Memory
Mood during learning influences recall when retrieval mood is similar.
Example: Encoding Mood Experiment
Memory recall is higher when mood at retrieval matches mood at encoding (e.g., Happy-Happy, Sad-Sad).
Neutral mood at encoding leads to better recall in all retrieval moods.
64
Reminiscence Bump
Enhanced recall of episodic and semantic memories from adolescence and early adulthood (ages 18–30).
65
Why does the Reminiscence Bump happen?
Identity Formation: This period includes autobiographically consequential experiences that shape self-identity.
Distinctive Events: Major life experiences (e.g., marriage, first job, birth of a child) make memories more vivid.
66
Three key patterns in autobiographical memory
Infantile Amnesia – Few or no memories from early childhood (before age 4).
Reminiscence Bump – High memory recall for ages 18–30.
Period of Recency – Increased recall of recent life events due to proximity in time.
67
Distribution of Personal Memories Over the Lifespan
a low number of memories recalled from childhood, an increase in memory recall during early adulthood, and another rise in recall for recent life events.
68
why does Childhood/Infantile Amnesia happen?
Lack of Language Skills: Without developed language, early experiences are hard to encode in a retrievable format.
Brain Development: The hippocampus (essential for memory consolidation) is still developing.
Difficulty Binding Experiences: Infants struggle to link different elements of an experience into a meaningful, lasting memory.
69
Semantic Priming
RT to targets is faster when preceded by a related
prime (i.e., nurse – BUTTER; bread – BUTTER)
Influenced by
automatic spreading activation AND
controlled expectations
“When prime is BODY, expect a target from
the building category (i.e., BODY-door)”
Spreading activation yields facilitation at
short SOAs, but inhibition at long SOAs as
expectancy develops
70
Direct Tests
71
Errors of omission
Forgetting due to poor encoding or retrieval failure.
72
Errors of commission
False remembering of events/details that never happened.
73
Deese/Roediger-McDermott (DRM) Paradigm
Leads to false memories by over-relying on gist information.
Occurs even when warned about potential illusions.
74
False Fame Effect
Reading a list of non-famous names can later make them seem famous.
Delay increases this effect because the source of familiarity is forgotten.
75
Fluency Heuristic
Ease of processing (fluency) leads to false recognition.
Familiarity can be due to prior exposure or experimental manipulation.
76
Suggestibility
Incorporating external information into personal memories.
Real-world implications:
Eyewitness testimony: Can be altered by suggestion.
Recovered memories in therapy: Can be influenced by therapists.
77
Misinformation Effect
Memory can be altered by misleading post-event information.
Example: Changing wording in a question affects eyewitness recall ("How fast were the cars going when they smashed vs. bumped each other?").
78
Flashbulb Memories
Highly vivid, detailed memories of emotional events (e.g., 9/11 attacks).
Talarico & Rubin (2003): Flashbulb memories are not more accurate than regular memories, despite higher confidence.
79
What is Anterograde Amnesia?
Inability to form new memories.
80
What is Retrograde Amnesia?
Inability to recall past memories.
81
Alzheimer’s Disease is caused by?
Caused by neurofibrillary tangles & amyloid plaques, which kill neurons.
82
How does Alzheimer’s Disease start?
Starts in the medial temporal lobe (entorhinal cortex), leading to:
Episodic memory loss (first symptom).
Spreads to other brain areas, causing cognitive decline.
83
What is Capgras Syndrome (CS)?
Belief that a familiar person is an imposter. Caused by a disconnection between face recognition and emotional response.
84
Symptoms of Capgras syndrome
Patients recognize a person visually but lack feelings of familiarity.
Autonomic nervous system responses (heart rate, skin conductance, facial muscle activity) are reduced.
85
What is Semantic Dementia?
Selective loss of semantic memory (concepts, meanings) but intact episodic memory.
86
Brain region affected by semantic dementia
Anterior temporal lobe
87
Semantic dementia symptoms
Category Fluency: Difficulty listing examples (e.g., “name as many fruits as possible”).
Naming: Difficulty naming objects.
Word-Picture Matching (WPM): Struggles to match words to pictures.
88
What is Category-Specific Semantic Impairment caused by?
Caused by Herpes Simplex Virus Encephalitis (HSVE).
89
Sensory/Functional Theory
Living things are recognized via perceptual features.
Non-living things are recognized via function/use.
