Chapter 7: Memory Flashcards
Memory
Internal record or representation of some prior event or experience
Ex: I remember that my best friend’s name is Matthew
Sensory memory
First memory stage that holds sensory information; relatively large capacity, but duration is only a few seconds
Ex: I remember how he smelled like campfire when I hugged him last
Constructive Process
Organizing and shaping of information during processing, storage, and retrieval of memories
Ex: I have my memories organized up until this moment in time
Encoding
Processing information into the memory system
Ex: Sometimes I forget I’m in high school, it feels as though middle school was yesterday. It’s hard for me to process
Storage
Retaining info over time
Ex: Every year I learn more and more in school and retain that information so I can’t take my finals at the end of the year
Retrieval
Recovering info from memory storage
Ex: I tried to remember what I did for my third birthday, then I remembered that I had a scooby-doo themed party
Parallel Distributed Processing (PDP)
Memory results from weblike connections among interacting processing units operating simultaneously rather than sequentially (also known as the connectionist model)
Ex: swimming in the ocean and seeing a large fin nearby then running for shore. Mind did not compute it was a shark, it just thought it was
Short-term memory (STM)
Second memory stage that temporarily stores sensory information and decides whether to send it on to long-term memory (LTM); capacity is limited to five to nine items and duration is about 30 seconds
Ex: my mother asks me about every five minutes if I brushed my teeth
Maintenance Rehearsal
Repeating information over and over to maintain it in short-term memory (STM)
Ex: asking me the names of everyone in class then having me take a test; 5 minutes later I’ll forget the names
Chunking
Grouping separate pieces of information into a single unit (or chunk)
Ex: telephone numbers (only 7 digits)
Long-term memory (LTM)
Third stage of memory that stores information for long periods of time; it’s capacity is virtually limitless, and its duration is relatively permanent
Ex: identic memories
Explicit (Declarative) Memory
Subsystem within long-term memory that consciously stores facts, information, and personal life experiences
Ex: remembering my phone number or first grade teacher’s name
Semantic memory
Subsystem of explicit/declarative memory that stores general knowledge; a mental encyclopedia or dictionary
Ex: vocab terms
Episodic memory
Subsystem of explicit/declarative memory that stores memories of personally experienced events; a mental diary of a person’s life
Ex: first kiss
Implicit (Nondeclarative) Memory
Subsystem within long-term memory consisting of unconscious procedural skills and simple classically conditioned response
Ex: how to tie my shoes
Levels of Processing
Degree or depth of mental processing occurring when material is initially encountered; determines how well material is later remembered
Ex: whether we remember something because on now deeply or shallowly we process it. If we care about it on an emotional level or not
Elaborative Rehearsal
Linking new information to previously stored material (also known as deeper levels of processing)
Ex: to understand not memorize. Deeper connection of memory
Serial-position effect
Info at the beginning and end of a list is remembered better than material in the middle
Ex: give me a list of words. I’ll remember the first word and the most recent word said
Retrieval Cue
Clue or prompt that helps stimulate recall or retrieval of a stored piece of information from a long-term memory
Ex: recall, recognition, and priming. Trying to remember what happened 5 days ago
Recall
Retrieving a memory using a general cue
Ex: chewing gum while studying. Chewing gum while taking a test will help me remember the information
Recognition
Retrieving a memory using a specific cue
Ex: chewing gum
Priming
Prior exposure to a stimulus (or prime) facilitates or inhibits the processing of new information, even when one has no conscious memory of the initial learning and storage
Ex: how to make special bread
Encoding specificity principle
Retrieval of info is improved when conditions of recovery are similar to the conditions when info was enclosed
Ex: study in a specific room, take a test in the same room with same conditions
Relearning
Learning material a second time, which usually takes less time than original learning (also called the savings method)
Ex: amnesia. Learn everyone’s name again
Retroactive interference
New information interferes with remembering old information; backward-acting interference
Ex: new information in science contradicts previous info learned
Pro active interference
Old information interferes with remembering new information; forward-acting interference
Ex: old history interferes with new history info
Tip-of-the-tongue (TOT) Phenomenon
Feeling that specific information is stored in long-term memory but of being temporarily unable to retrieve it
Ex: what’s the name of the singer singing the song. It’s on the tip of my tongue
Misinformation effect
Distortion of a memory by misleading post-event info
Ex: remembering something the way you want to, not the way it really happened
Source Amnesia
Forgetting the true source of a memory (also called source confusion or source misattribution)
Ex: channel surfing
Sleeper Effect
Info from an unreliable source, which was initially discounted, later gains credibility because the source is forgotten
Ex: my mom
Distributed practice
Practice (or study) seasons are interspersed with rest periods
Ex: spacing learning periods with rest sessions
Massed practice
Time spent learning is grouped (or massed) into long, unbroken intervals (also known as cramming)
Ex: cramming
Long-term potential ion (LTP)
Long-lasting increase in neural excitability, which may be a biological mechanism for learning and memory
Ex: playing tennis
Retrograde Amnesia
Loss of memory for events before a brain injury; backward-acting amnesia
Ex: remembers everything after injury. Forgets old information
Consolidation
Process by which neutral changes associated with recent learning become durable and stable
Ex: heavy rain on wet cement. Brain injury wipes away unstable memories because the cement hasn’t had time to harden
Anterograde Amnesia
Inability to form new memories after a brain injury; forward-acting amnesia
Ex: remembers everything before the injury. amesic and forgets new info. Only remembers things that happened up until the accident
Alzheimer’s disease (AD)
Progressive mental deterioration characterized by severe memory loss
Ex. Your grandma losing her memory
Mnemonic Device
Memory-improvement technique based on encoding items in a special way
Ex: anagrams
