Chapter 8 Flashcards
Memory: What is encoding?
Putting information into a form the brain can understand and getting it into memory.
Memory: What is storage?
The process of retaining memories in the brain for later use.
Memory: What is retrieval?
Recovering stored memories
What are the 2 theories of how memory works?
Information-processing theory
Parallel distributed theory
What is information-Processing Theory?
Information is stored and retrieved piece by piece and moves among 3 memory stores during encoding, storage, and retrieval.
What is parallel distributed theory?
Memories are stored as part of a large integrated web of information and represented in the brain as a pattern of activation across entire neural networks.
3 Stage of Model Memory:
Information enters our…
- Sensory memory, which holds everything we see (iconic), hear (echoic), taste, touch, and smell for a few secs. or less.
If we pay attention, it enters our…
- Working memory, which holds information for 30secs; capacity is 5-9 items.
If we encode the information, it enters our…
- Long-term memory, which stores information forever.
2 Ways to Encode:
Automatic processing - when you automatically remember something with NO effort.
Effortful processing - when you have to work to memorize something.
Transferring from Sensory Memory into Working Memory - What is sensory memory?
Memory involving detailed, brief sensory images/sounds retained for a brief period of time:
- A photograph viewed for a brief moment.
- A brief glance at a passing car.
- Random letters examined for less than a sec.
Transferring from Sensory Memory into Working Memory - What is working memory and rehearsal?
Working memory:
A short-term memory store for information you are thinking about right now; including:
- Recalled memories, such as a phone number.
- What you are reading.
Rehearsal:
Consciously repeating information to ensure it is encoded.
Transferring Working Memory into Long-Term Memory - What is long-term memory and Spaced practice effect?
Long-term memory - all of the information we have gathered that is available for use, such as acquired skills, people we know, and past things.
Spaced practice effect - facilitates moving working memories into long-term memory by rehearsing over time.
- Don’t cram! Studying a little bit over a long period of time is better for memory.
2 Types of Long-Term Memories:
Explicit Memory - conscious memories, such as your home address/date of birth.
- Semantic: memories for facts, today’s date, capital of Canada.
Implicit Memory - unconscious memories, such as learned motor behaviours and skills.
What helps Retrieval?
Retrieval cues - words, sites, or other stimuli that trigger a memory.
Context effects - we can remember things better where we first learned them.
Priming - one piece of information helps us retrieve other related memories.
Forgetting and Misremembering:
Encoding failure:
- Never learned it in the first place.
Storage failure:
- Biological problem (head trauma/Alzheimer’s)
Retrieval failure:
- The info was encoded and stored, but you cannot get it out of your brain!
What are 3 possible reasons for retrieval failure?
Decay theory
Interference theory
Motivated forgetting
