Chapter 7 -- Memory

Question 1

How do you describe the basic processes of memory?

Answer 1

encoding: taking in sensory input

storage: retain it in a mental storehouse

retrieval: recall it

Question 2

What is the idea of memory encoding?

Answer 2

Encoding involves attention, processing, elaborating, and using mental imagery.

Question 3

What are the different memory stores?

Answer 3

sensory memory: holding information from the world in its original sensory form for only an instant.

short-term memory: Limited-capacity memory system in which information is usually retained for only as long as 30 seconds

long-term memory: hours or a lifetime and can be retrieved indefinitely.

Question 4

What is the process of memory retrieval

Answer 4

• Using retrieval cues
• Recalling
• Using recognition

Question 5

What are the different types of forgetting

Answer 5

DECAY memories fade over time if they are not retrieved or rehearsed.
- If you study Ch 1 once but do not review it, the memory can fade, making it harder to recall later.

INTERFERENCE: other information interferes with the memory you’re trying to recall. Newly learned information overlaps with or is similar to previously stored information.
- An old password interferes with your memory of a new password.

FAILURE TO ENCODE: Sometimes, we forget because information was never properly encoded into long-term memory. If we don’t actively pay attention or try to memorize something, it may not be stored in the first place, leading to forgetting.

Question 6

How does memory contribute to health and wellness?

Answer 6

Autobiographical memories provide a unique identity and help with social bonding.

Taking on challenging cognitive tasks delays effects of aging on memory + Alzheimer’s disease

Engaging in every day life means living memorably

Question 7

What are the different levels of processing?

Answer 7

Shallow: physical and perceptual features are analyzed
- “This shape makes up a car”

Intermediate: stimulus is recognized and labelled
- “This is a car”

Deep: Meaningful characteristics are used
- “This car can bring us places”

Question 8

Where is the elaboration of information linked with neural activity in the brain?

Answer 8

In the left frontal lobe, the hippocampus. The part of our brain that is most associated with language and higher-level thought processing.

Question 9

How does the dual code hypothesis explain how image codes are better for memory.

Answer 9

Pictures are stored as both image codes and verbal codes, thus we have 2 avenues to retrieve information.

Question 10

How do we encode memory?

Answer 10

Verbal code (word/label)

Image code (highly detailed and distinctive. better memory)

Question 11

How does the Atkinson–Shiffrin theory model work?

Answer 11

Sensory input turns into sensory memory. With attention, info moves to short-term memory and must be rehearsed so it can go into long term-memory storage and be retrieved.

Question 12

What is echoic memory?

Answer 12

auditory sensory memory

Question 13

What is iconic memory?

Answer 13

visual sensory memory

Question 14

What is chunking and rehearsal?

Answer 14

Chunking: packing information into higher-order units that can be remembered as single units.
(Reciting a phone number)

Rehearsal: repetition of information. Does not always work because there’s no deeper meaning.

Question 15

What is working memory?

Answer 15

The ability to hold and process info in the mind for a short time while performing a cognitive task.

EX: Taking a customer’s coffee order from memory.

Question 16

What 3 components did Baddeley’s model of working memory contain?

Answer 16

• PHONOLOGICAL LOOP: stores speech related to sounds of language
• VISUO-SPATIAL SKETCHPAD: stores visual and spatial info including visual imagery
• CENTRAL EXECUTIVE integrates info from the phonological loop, visual-spatial sketchpad, and long-term memory and is responsible for attention, planning, and organizing.

Question 17

What are the components of long-term memory?

Answer 17

EXPLICIT MEMORY: The conscious recollection of information, such as facts or events and, info that can be verbally communicated.

IMPLICIT MEMORY: Memory in which behaviour is affected by prior experience without a conscious recollection of that experience.

Question 18

What are the components of explicit memory?

Answer 18

Episodic memory: the retention of information about the where, when, and what of life’s happenings—that is, how individuals remember life’s episodes.

Semantic memory: A person’s knowledge about the world, including their favourite sport; general knowledge, such as of things learned in school, and everyday knowledge.

Question 19

What are the components of implicit memory?

Answer 19

• procedural memory: how to do skills
• classical conditioning
• Priming: The activation of information that people already have in storage to help them remember new information better and faster.

Question 20

What is parallel distributed processing and how does it work?

Answer 20

• The theory that memory is stored throughout the brain in connections among neurons, several of which may work together to process a single memory.
• Neural activity is spread across different areas of the brain (nodes). When one node is activated, it triggers others and the synaptic connections help form memories. The strength of these connections influences how we remember things.

Question 21

What brain structures affect memory functions?

Answer 21

Frontal lobes: episodic memory

Amygdala: emotional memories

Temporal lobes: explicit memory, priming.

Hippocampus: explicit memory, priming

Cerebellum: implicit memory

Question 22

What is permastore memory?

Answer 22

that portion of original learning that appears destined to stay with the person virtually forever, even without rehearsal.

Question 23

What is the serial position effect?

Answer 23

The tendency to recall the items at the beginning and end of a list more readily than those in the middle.

Primacy effect + recency effect

Question 24

What are retrieval cues and the retrieval task?

Answer 24

retrieval cues are clues and prompts that help trigger memory.

the retrieval task is the type of memory you’re trying to perform.

EX: Recognizing a familiar song and trying to remember someone its associated with.

Question 25

What is the difference between recall and recognition?

Answer 25

Recall: Requires retrieving previously learned information without cues (e.g., essay tests).

Recognition: Involves identifying learned information when it is presented (e.g., multiple-choice tests).

Question 26

Why is recognizing a face easier than recalling a face from memory?

Answer 26

Recognizing a face is easier because the face is presented as a cue. Recalling a face from scratch, such as in police sketches, is much more difficult as there are no retrieval cues.

Question 27

What is the encoding specificity principle?

Answer 27

The encoding specificity principle states that information present at the time of learning (encoding) acts as an effective retrieval cue. If you encounter the same context, your memory retrieval is easier.

Question 28

How does context affect encoding and retrieval?

Answer 28

Context-dependent memory suggests that memory retrieval is better when you are in the same context in which you learned the information.

EX: I can recall flashcards better in my room where I studied them vs the test hall.

Question 29

What is a special case of memory retrieval?

Answer 29

Memory retrieval can be imprecise. You may not always find the exact memory you want or might have gaps that need to be filled. This is influenced by schemas, scripts, emotions, and the situation associated with the memory.

Question 30

What is autobiographical memory?

Answer 30

Autobiographical memory is a special form of episodic memory that involves recollections of personal life experiences.

Question 31

What is the reminiscence bump?

Answer 31

The reminiscence bump is the phenomenon where adults remember more events from their second and third decades of life (teens and twenties) than from other decades.

• This may be because these years are crucial for forming a sense of identity, and many important events occur during this time.

Question 32

What are the three levels of autobiographical memory, according to Conway and Rubin?

Answer 32

Life time periods (remembering high school)

General events (a grad trip)

Event-specific knowledge (details about a skiing experience)

Question 33

How do emotions affect memory?

Answer 33

Emotion enhances memory because strong emotions increase attention, and attention improves memory. Emotional events are more likely to be remembered vividly.

Question 34

What are flashbulb memories?

Answer 34

Flashbulb memories are vivid and detailed memories of emotionally significant events, such as the 9/11 attacks, that people often remember with high accuracy.

• flashbulb memories are not as precise as people believe. Over time, the details of these memories can change, especially with media exposure and discussions.

Question 35

How does memory for traumatic events differ from everyday events?

Answer 35

Traumatic events are often remembered with more detail and accuracy than ordinary events, likely due to the release of stress-related hormones that strengthen memory.

Question 36

What is repression in the context of traumatic memories?

Answer 36

Repression is a defense mechanism where a person forgets a traumatic event and may even forget the act of forgetting, to protect themselves from painful or anxiety-laden memories.

Question 37

How do flashbulb memories differ from memories of everyday events?

Answer 37

Flashbulb memories tend to be more durable and accurate, as they are emotionally charged and often rehearsed. However, details can change over time, and people may remember personal aspects of the event more than the event itself.

Question 38

What can be done to improve the accuracy of eyewitness identifications influenced by bias?

Answer 38

double-blind procedures and presenting suspects sequentially (one at a time) instead of all at once.

Question 39

What is proactive interference?

Answer 39

Situation in which material that was learned earlier disrupts the recall of material that was learned later.

EX: Learning to remember someone’s new pronouns

Question 40

What is retroactive interference?

Answer 40

Situation in which material that was learned later disrupts the retrieval of information that was learned earlier.

Question 41

What is prospective memory?

Answer 41

Remembering information about doing something in the future; includes memory for intentions.

Question 42

What is anterograde amnesia
and retrograde amnesia?

Answer 42

anterograde amnesia: a memory disorder that affects the retention of new information and events.

retrograde amnesia: memory loss for a segment of the past but not for new events.

Question 43

What are redemptive and contamination stories?

Answer 43

redemptive stories: describing life experiences that go from bad to better

contamination stories: self-defining memories go from good to bad.

Question 44

What is a cognitive store?

Answer 44

mental capacity allowing avoidance of harm to the brain (Alzheimer’s, strokes, head injury, neurotoxin poisoning) by remaining mentally engaged.