CHAPTER 8 - Everyday memories & Memory Errors Flashcards
What are autobiographical memories?
Memory for specific experiences from our life, which can include both episodic and semantic components.
What are two important characteristics of autobiographical memories?
- Multidimensional
(visual, auditory, smells, taste, tactile perceptions) (spatial components)(involve emotions- both positive and negative) - We remember some events in our life better than others.
Which parts of the brain is associated with episodic memories?
The medial temporal lobe (MTL)
Which area of the brain is associated with processing scenes?
The parietal cortex.
Which part of he brain was activated when looking at pictures a person took themselves and why? (2)
- The prefrontal cortex, which is associated with processing information about the self.
& - In the hippocampus, which is involved in recollection (memories associated with mental time travel)
Which type of memories are in autobiographical memories? (2)
- Semantic
- Episodic
Memories often involve…. (2)
- Thoughts
- Emotions
What is the reminiscence bump?
The enhanced memory for adolescence and young adulthood found in people over the age of 40.
What is the self image hypothesis?
Proposes that memory is enhanced for events that occur as a person’s self image or life identity is being formed.
[Memory over the life span]
What are the 3 hypothesis explaining the reminiscence bump?
- The self-image hypothesis
- The cognitive hypothesis
- Cultural life script
What is the cognitive hypothesis?
Periods of rapid change that are followed by stability cause stronger encoding of memories.
Autobiographical memories serves to ….
Define ourself, create and regulate social connections and help direct future behaviour
What is the cultural life script?
Culturally expected events that occur at a particular time in the life span.
What is youth bias?
The tendency for the most notable public events in a person’s life to be perceived to occur when the person is young
What is a flashbulb memory?
Refers to a person’s memory for the circumstances surrounding shocking, highly charged events.
Refers to memory surrounding how a person heard about an event, NOT the memory for the event itself.
What is the explanation for the errors in memory related to flashbulb memories? (2)
- Affected by ppl’s experiences following the event
(ex:ppl may have seen accounts of the explosion) - Affected by their general knowledge
(Ex: ppl often hear about important news on the tv)
What is narrative rehearsal hypothesis?
We may remember events like those that happened on 9/11 not because of a special mechanism but because we rehearse these events after they occur.
(Ex: plane crash replayed endlessly on tv, events were covered for months in media)
IMPORTANT!
Why do we say memory can be “constructed”?
Because people’s memory for an event can be determined by factors in addition to actually experiencing the event. Thus, leading experts to say that memories are ‘constructed’ based on what actually happened + additional influences. (Source monitoring, suggestions, familiarity)
What is the constructive nature of memory?
What people report as memories are constructed on what actually happened + additional factors, such as a person’s knowledge, experiences, and expectations.
What is source monitoring?
The process of determining the origins of our memories, knowledge, or beliefs.
What is a source monitoring error/ missattribution?
Misidentifying the source of a memory
What is cryptomnesia?
The unconscious plagiarism of the work of others.
(An example of source monitoring error)
What is the illusory truth effect?
The enhanced probability of evaluating a statement as being true upon repeated presentation.
(Repetition increased perceived truth, even if the person knew the correct answer)
Why does repetition increase perceived truthfulness?
Fluency- the ease with which a statement can be remembered - influences people’s jugement.
What does Bartlett’s “War of the Ghosts” Experiment demonstrate?
That memories can be comprised of details from various sources (1.one way the original story, 2.knowledge about similar strobiles/ culture) relates to source monitoring.
What are pragmatic inferences?
When reading a sentence leads a person to expect something that is not explicitly stated or implied by the sentence.
These inferences are based on knowledge gained through experience.
What is a schema?
A person’s knowledge about some aspect of the environment.
What is a script?
Our conception of the sequence of actions that usually occurs during a particular experience
How do schemas contribute to constructed memories
People create false memories and “fill in the blank” with incomplete information that usually occurs during such events or situations
What is the misinformation effect?
Misleading information presented after a person witnesses an event can change how the person describes that event later.
This misleading information is referred to as misleading post event information (MPI).
What are the consequences of the (Misleading post event information) MPI effect?
Presentation of an MPI can alter what participants report they saw & alter their conclusions about other characteristics of the situation. (Smash = faster driving vs hit= slower driving car, AND report seing broken glass when there was none)
Explain why the misinformation effect (MPI) happens?
This effect is based on source monitoring. That is, a person can incorrectly conclude that the source of their memory for the incorrect event (yield sign) was the slide show, even though the actual source was the experimenter’s statement after the slide show.
Hearing about an event and then waiting caused the event to emerge a false memory. How can we explain this situation?
This is explained by familiarity.
Familiarity with first expose (when story was told) created a false memory of what happened
what are repressed childhood memories?
Memories that have been pushed out of the person’s consciousness
What is eyewitness testimony?
Testimony by someone who has witnessed a crime
What is weapon focus?
The tendency to focus attention on a weapon that results in narrowing of attention
Note: weapon being fired decreases memory about the perpetrator, the victim, and the weapon
What is the post-identification feedback effect? And why is it a problem?
1.Confirming feedback after making an identification.
2. Because the jurors are influenced by how confident the eyewitnesses are about their judgement.
What is the cognitive interview? Why is it good to use?
1.Letting witness talk without interruption
2.recreate the situation present at the crime scene.
Because it decreases the likelihood of any suggestive input by the person conducting the interview.
