Chapter 8 (Memory) Flashcards
Amnesia (memory loss)
a deficit in memory where memory for new, or old (or both) things may be partially or totally lost.
Memory
the processes that allow us to record and later retrieve experiences and information
Encoding
getting information into the system by translating it into a neural code that the brain processes.
Storage
retaining information over time
Retrieval
processes that access stored information
Analogy to computer and memory
decent to some extent, but lacks the significant differences. We forget or distort information.
Sensory memory
briefly holds incoming sensory information.
Sensory registers
Iconic store: visual sensory register
Sperlig (12 letter test) 1960
Echoic Memory (auditory memory)
Short-term Memory
memory store that temporarily holds a limited amount of information.
Memory Codes
mental representations of some type of information or stimulus
Mental images = Visual codes
Sound = phenological codes
Meaning of stimulus = semantic codes
Physical actions = Motor codes
Capacity and duration (short term):
no more than 5-9 meaningful items in short-term memory. “7 +/- 2” - George Miller
Chunking
combining individual items into larger units of meaning
Working memory (short-term memory)
a limited-capacity system that temporarily stores and processes information.
A mental workspace that stores information, actively manipulates it, and supports other cognitive functions such as problem-solving and planning.
Different view than the original 3 stage model^ (holding station vs. Working station)
Components of working memory
- Phenological Loop
Temporarily store and manipulate auditory and verbal info in various situations.
Example: phone numbers, mental math, learning a new song. - Visuospatial Sketchpad
Temporarily stores visual and spatial information
Example: a face, spatial layout of your bedroom - Episodic buffer
Temporarily storage where information from long-term memory and from the phenological and/or visuospatial subsystems can be integrated, manipulated and made available for conscious awareness.
Example: doing mental math.
- Visuospatial = mental image of the numbers
- Phenological = repeat saying the math equation
- Long term = remembering the rules for math
- Long-term just briefly borrows these memories to the episodic buffer. - Central Executive
Directs the overall action.
Long-term memory
our vast library of more durable stored memories
Serial position effect (2 parts)
holds that the ability to recall an item is influenced by the item´s position in a series. Consists of 2 parts:
- Primacy effect: reflecting the superior recall of the earliest number
- Recency effect: representing the superior recall of the most recent items.
According to the 3 stage model, the primacy effect is due to the transfer of early words into long-term memory, whereas the recency effect is due to the continued presence of information in short-term memory.
What happens to recency effect if you wait 5 minutes before asking to recite the numbers?
2 basic types of encoding:
- Effortful Processing: encoding that is initiated intentionally and deliberately, and requires conscious attention.
Example: studying
- Automatic Processing: encoding that occurs without intention and requires minimal attention.
Example: spatial location and sequence of events
Effortful Processing
encoding that is initiated intentionally and deliberately, and requires conscious attention.
Example: studying
Automatic Processing
encoding that occurs without intention and requires minimal attention.
Example: spatial location and sequence of events
Levels of Processing
the more deeply we process information, the better we will remember it.
- Structural encoding: how the word looks
- Phenological encoding: sounding it to yourself
- Semantic encoding: pay attention to what it means.
Maintenance rehearsal
simple, rote repetition
Example: simply reading and re-reading a chapter and expect to understand it and remember it for the exam.
Elaborative Rehearsal
focusing on the meaning of information or expanding (I.e., elaborating) on it in some way.
Example: studying sleep, but instead of memorizing it – you elaborate it. Try connecting it to your own life, your friends and such.
Organizing material in a hierarchy:
enhances our understanding of how items are related: as we proceed from top to bottom, each category serves as a cue that triggers our memory for the items below it.
Hierarchy -> visual organization -> imagery used as supplemental memory code
Dual coding theory
theory which holds that encoding information using both verbal and visual codes enhances memory because the odds improve that at least one of the codes will be available later to support recall.
Example: Construct a mental image of 1) Fire truck vs. 2) Jealousy
Method of loci (loci = location):
a memory aid that associates information with mental images of physical locations.
Example: Working memory as Campus:
Central Executive = administration building
Visuospatial sketchpad = art studio
Phonological loop = music room
Episodic buffer = Campus newspaper
The enactment effect
memory for a subject performed task (SPT) is far better than memory for the same information when presented verbally.
Example: Comb your hair
SPT = hearing the command + doing the task vs. Just hearing it.
Mnemonic device
a memory aid. Mnemonic devices reorganize information into more meaningful units and provide extra cues to help retrieve information from long-term memory.
Example: Hierarchies, chunking, visual imagery, acronyms and the method of loci
Schema
a mental framework, an organized pattern of thought about some aspect of the world.
Example: library schema
books, quiet spaces, librarians, shelves, and the expectation of borrowing or reading materials.
Mnemonists (memorist)
a person who displays extraordinary memory skills
Associative Network
a massive network of associated ideas and concepts.
One group of theories proposes that long-term memory can be represented as an Associative Network, particularly semantic knowledge like concepts.
An associative network is a type of schema; it is a mental framework that represents how we have organized information and how we understand the world.
Priming
exposure to a stimulus influences (I.e., primes) how you subsequently respond to that same or another stimulus.
Example: Fire engine primes the node for “red”.
Basically, this makes you think of that.
Neural Network (connectionist) models
each memory is represented by a unique pattern of interconnected and simultaneously activated nodes.
Example: When node 4 is activated simultaneously (I.e., in paralell) with nodes 95 and 423, the concept “red” comes to mind. But when node 4 is simultaneously activated with nodes 78 and 423, the concept of “fire engines” enters the thoughts.
Certain nodes prime other nodes. This is why Neural Network (connectionist) models are called Parallel distributed processing (PDP) models.
Declarative Memory (explicit memory)
involves factual knowledge and includes 2 subcategories
Declarative = declare it (to demonstrate our knowledge, we typically have to declare it)
Episodic memory
knowledge concerning personal experiences; when, where, and what happened in the episodes of our lives.
Examples: first day at school, favourite tv-programme from childhood or dinner last night.
Semantic memory
general factual knowledge about the world and language, including memory for words and concepts.
Example: knowing Kyiv is the capital of Ukraine.
Procedural (non-declarative) memory:
memory reflected in skills and actions.
Example: typing or riding a bike
Explicit memory (declarative memory)
conscious or intentional memory retrieval, as when you consciously recognize or recall something.
Example: Actively recalling something. For example when doing a multiple choice test.
Implicit memory
when memory influences our behaviour without conscious awareness
Example: riding a bike
Retrieval cue
a stimulus, whether internal or external, that activates information stored in long-term memory.
Example: “Have you seen my car keys?” - “Car keys” = retrieval cue
Example: picture of a friend can bring out memories with that person
Priming
is another example of how a retrieval cue (RED) can trigger associated elements (Fire Engine) in memory.
Von Restorff Effect
the more something stands out from the crowd, the more likely it is to be seen.
If you relate something you are studying to something personally meaningful, it will become more distinctive, and easier to remember.
AROUSAL, EMOTION AND MEMORY
We tend to remember arousing stimuli better than neutral because it connect to our emotions.
This is because arousing stimuli trigger the release of stress hormone.
Which makes neurotransmitters to increase activation of the amygdala (a brain structure that helps encode the emotional aspect of experiences into longer-term memories)
Stress hormone activity = remember
Autobiographical memory
memory for the events of one´s life.
Example: getting married.
Flashbulb memories
recollection that seem so vivid, so clear, that we can picture them as if they were snapshots of moments in time.
For flashbulb memories to be formed, the event must both be Surprising and consequential for the individual.
Example: 9/11 (knowing where you were and what you were doing when you found out)
CONFIDENCE AND MEMORY ACCURACY
Flashbulb memories or distinctive memories often come with a much higher confidence, but over time they can actually become less accurate – even though the person is just as confidence.
Encoding specificity principle
memory is enhanced when conditions present during retrieval match those that were present during encoding.
When stimuli associated with an event becomes encoded as part of the memory, they may later serve as retrieval cues.
Example: person being raped going through a certain park, can feel an enhanced memory when walking through a park later.
“General”
Context-dependent memory
Returning to the scene! “It typically is easier to remember something in the same environment in which it was originally encoded.
Example studying in a quiet room, and then taking the exam in the same quiet room. (vice versa with noisy)
“Specific (environment)”
State-dependent memory
Our ability to retrieve information is greater when our internal state at the time of retrieval matches our original state during learning.
It is basically that it’s easier to remember something when you feel the same way you did during encoding (learning).
Example: if you study while being relaxed, you will retrieve it easier while being relaxed.
Relatedness: State-dependent memory supports why it is difficult to remember things sober you did drunk.
Mood-congruent state
we tend to recall information or events that are congruent (consistent) with our current mood.
Example: you are more likely to remember positive events while being happy, and negative while being sad.
3 Memory enhancement strategy categories:
External aids: shopping lists, notes, calendar etc.
General memory strategies: organizing and rehearsing information. Example: remembering lines for a speech.
Formal mnemonic techniques: acronyms, loci method. Purposely used techniques to remember.
Hermann Ebbinghaus
German psychologist Hermann Ebbinghaus pioneered the study of forgetting by testing only one person – himself.
Relearning: 20 trials to study the deck of cards one week, but only 10 the week after = 50% saving percentage
WHY DO WE FORGET?
Explanation for normal memory loss emphasize difficulties in encoding, storage and retrieval.
ENCODING FAILURE
In several cases, the problem is not in us forgetting something, but rather from failing to encode it properly into the long-term memory in the first place.
Because we prioritize our attention to something else.
Decay theory
with time and disuse, the long-term physical memory trace in the nervous system fades away.
Opposing concept: Reminiscence
Scientists still debate the validity of the Decay theory.
Interference theory
we forget information because other items in long-term memory impairs our ability to retrieve it.
There are 2 types of interference:
- Proactive Interference
- Retroactive interference
Proactive Interference
occurs when material learned in the past interferes with recall of newer material.
Example: Memory of your old phone number interferes with your new.
Retroactive interference
occurs when newly acquired information interferes with the ability to recall information learned at an earlier time.
Example: struggling to remember your old phone number, because the new one is interfering.
Tip-of-the-tongue (TOT) state
when we cannot recall something but feel that we are on the verge of remembering it.
MOTIVATED FORGETTING
Psychodynamic and other psychologists think that sometimes you are motivated to forget – either consciously or unconsciously.
Repression
a motivational process that protects us by blocking the conscious recall of anxiety-arousing memories.
Controversial concept (forget both traumatic and happy memories)
Prospective memory
remembering to perform an activity in the future.
Take out the trash
Draws on other cognitive abilities
Planning & allocating attention
People with psychological difficulties (depression) may struggle with prospective memory.
Retrospective memory
past events.
Age Prospective Memory Paradox
when older people perform as well or better than younger people in prospective memory tasks, despite the general decline in cognitive abilities.
Amnesia
memory loss due to special conditions. (brain injury, illness or psychological trauma)
BUT Amnesia can take several forms.
Retrograde amnesia
memory loss for events that took place sometime in life before the onset of amnesia.
Example: rugby players when they get knocked out, but cannot remember the evtns just before being hit.
Anterograde amnesia
memory loss for events that occur after the initial onset of amnesia.
Example: remembers things from before the amnesia, but cannot form new long-term memories.
Dementia
impaired memory and other cognitive deficits that accompany brain degeneration and interfere with normal functioning. There are more than a dozen types and causes of dementia. Can happen at any time, but most typical with elderly.
Alzheimer´s disease (AD)
a progressive brain disorder that is the most common cause of dementia among adults over the age of 65.
Reason for 50-60% of dementia above 65 years
Memory is the first psychological function affected (subcortical temporal lobe regions, areas near the hippocampus and the hippocampus itself)
Result of Alzheimer’s (biological)
Neurons become damaged and die, brain tissue shrinks and communication between neurons is impaired as AD disrupts several neurotransmitter systems, especially the acetylcholine system.
Working (STM) and long-term memory worsen as AD progresses.
Infantile amnesia
not typically remembering things from the age of 1-3 or 4.
Why? Brain regions for Long-term episodic memories haven’t developed. We do not encode deep enough. Lack of self concept.
