Chapter 6 Memory Flashcards
What did Hermann Ebbinghaus discover?
The forgetting curve (using nonsense syllables)
When is recall highest according to the forgetting curve?
Right after a list is first learned
When is the rate of forgetting highest according to the forgetting curve?
Within the first few hours
What can slow the rate of forgetting (other than time)?
Re-learning the information
Who does the Forgetting curve apply to?
Seemingly all of animal kingdom
What is the serial position effect?
The idea of primacy and recency, discovered by Ebbinghaus
Define Primacy
Items presented early are recalled very frequently
Define Recency
Items presented late were recalled very frequently
What was psychology’s response to memory after Ebbinghaus?
Disinterest (except for classical conditioning) until George Miller in the 1950s
What did Atkinson & Shiffrin discover (1968)?
3 component structure of memory
What are the three components of memory according to Atkinson & Shiffrin?
Sensory store, short-term store, and long-term store
Why is the 3 compartment model making a comeback?
Neuroimaging
Define Sensory Memory
ongoing activation based on sensation & perception
Where does visual sensory memory occur?
In the visual cortex of the occipital lobe
Where does auditory sensory memory occur?
Perceptual regions in the cortex in the temporal lobe
Define Iconic memory store
Brief memory buffer that can effectively hold all information in the visual display
Define echoic memory store
brief memory buffer that works as an echo for auditory stimuli
Why are the 3 other main senses not documented to have buffers?
They probably do, but they are harder to study systematically
Define short term memory
intermediate system that handles transfer between sensory and long-term memory
How is short-term memory moved to long-term memory
It is attended to or rehearsed until it is solidified
What is our capacity for short term memory?
4 +/- 1 (used to think 7 +/- 2 and 30-60 secs)
What is the visual/structural level of processing?
Remembering the look and appearance of an object
What is the acoustic level of processing?
How the words sound and being able to rehearse those sounds
What is the semantic level of processing?
Understanding what the information means/ how it fits into current cognitive framework
What is the weakest level of processing?
visual/structural processing
what is the deepest level of processing?
semantic processing
Define Working Memory
Our ability to temporarily store and manipulate information from our environment
What does working memory encompass
Mental math, mental rotation, reading comprehension, and problem solving
Who developed the most enduring and influential model of working memory?
Baddeley and Hitch (1974)
What does the Baddeley and Hitch model of working memory include?
Phonological loop, visuospatial sketchpad, central executive
Which two types of memory are virtually interchangeable?
Short-term memory and working memory
Define visuospatial sketchpad
storage that allows for cognitive maps/shapes/images
Define phonological (or Articulatory) loop
Storage that allows for verbal information and rehearsal
Define central executive
system that controls the two storage units
According to Baddeley’s model, how is visual and auditory stimuli memorized?
separately (and very well). But visual information will interfere with visual memory and auditory with auditory memory
What are the benefits to Baddeley and Hitch’s working memory model?
it’s simple and predicts many laboratory findings
What are the drawbacks to Baddeley and Hitch’s working memory model?
not well supported; doesn’t account for sensory experiences besides vision/hearing; doesn’t account for abnormal memory
What is Kane & Engle’s Working memory model?
Working memory is focused attention and fluid intelligence
What were the findings from Cowan (1993, 1999)?
short-term memory is activated long-term memory; working memory is the ability to activate long-term memory
What is attention’s role in memory?
It acts as a spotlight
What were the findings from Postle (2006)?
the prefrontal cortex works as a switchboard selecting which network we attend to
Define Long-Term Memory
Spreading activation– as we invoke one memory, we invoke others nearby
What happens to associated memory when regarding attended stimuli?
Associated memories become increasingly available
Define Priming
The history of a stimulus makes you more likely to respond a certain way
What were the findings in the Meyer and Schvaneveldt (1971) study?
when pairs of words had an associated relationship, participants were faster at judging whether the words were real; evidence of priming
Define the power law of learning
Memory performance improves with practice; increasing practice has diminishing returns
Define long-term potentiation
The more a memory is accessed, the stronger the connections between neurons related to that memory
Where does long-term potentiation occur?
the hippocampus and cortical areas
What is the “use it or lose it” rule?
If memories are not retrieved, we begin to lose access to them as those neural connections weaken
Define flashbulb memories
Memories with vivid detail
What does research say about flashbulb memories?
our confidence in our retrieval ability is increased, but the actual memory is about the same as everyday events (they fade with time)
