Chapter 8: Memory Failures Flashcards
What is an example of attributing implicit memory to the wrong source?
-eyewitnesses can select someone from a photo lineup on familairty rather than recollection
-video of staged crime and 2 days later were shown mug shits and 5 days later select from photo line up and there was 29% error rate
False memory based on suggestion?
plane crash - later followup many participants confidently provided details about crash that they could not have known
-study 2 - ask people about 911 - 2/3 report seeing it and princess diana accident 44% saw it
Is memory more accurate when recall is closer to the event?
-yes but
participants waited in office to start study and then taken into a different room and informed that they need to describe first room from memory and 1/3 claim they see books when there was none
What is a hypothesis for memory error?
-connection based errors have a network model of memory and all the events of our memory that are related are remembered in the same clusters
-connection based memory errors - connections are retrieval paths and shared connections can make similar memories less distinguishable and elements might be connected because they are associated or because they were actually part of the memory - one type of error is called an intrusion error
What are intrusion errors?
based on the similarity of memories
-based o inference as well
-People in the neutral condition remembered less - need to make sure correct for the fact that there is more information in the theme condition - in theme condition came up with inferred propositions 15 compared to 3.7- better memory more intrusion sin theme condiotn and neutral conditon worse memory and fewer intrusions
What is the DRM procedure?
participants are presented with a series of words asked to recall the list and sleep is not there but likely to recall cause is the theme word
-get mistaken recall of theme words and unrelated words no recall and words from actual list get the correct recall
What are the causes of memory errors?
connections and schemata based errors
What is schematic knowledge?
a schema refers to the knowledge that describes what is typical of a given situation
-schemata helps us to be comfortable in familiar situation
-schemata can help us when remembering an event
-can cause us to make errors when remembering an event - memories are regularized
What is an example of regularization of memories via schemata?
books are remembered in academic office
video footage of a plane crash is remembered
What is autobiographical memory?
memory of episodes and events in ones own life and memories about ourselves are a mix of genuine recall and schema based reconstruction
-the self schema and self reference effect
-Our perception of ourselves our strengths and weaknesses
What is the self referecne effect?
better memory for information relevant to oneself
What is self schema?
set of beliefs and memories about oneself and self schema play a role in how we rememeber our past - consistency seein past self more like present and adjust recall to accomodate it
positivity self serving - remembering more positive things about selves - college students recalled more As than Ds for HS grades
What is a study for self referencing and the brain?
-does word describe the president
-is it printed in capital letters
-does the word describe you
Mpfc is more active in teh self description condition so more active and is one of the key nodes of the default mode network
Are flashbulb memories accurate?
-strong emotional events which can be positive or negative - so have a picture in mind
-We can create false memories with these but they do seem to stand out and are clear in our mind
-can have many errors
9/11 - one year later 37% gave different recount and three years later 43% gave different recount
other flashbulb memories well remembered
-discussion with other people can act as rehearsal
-people will ater their acocunts to improve convo and pick up info from ohers accounts and alter memory of event and this si co witness contamination
What about traumatic memories?
-stress at time of event increases memory consolidation
-stress enhances memory for material realted to source of stress but oppsoite for other aspects of event
-these memories can be lost due to head injury sleep deprivation. drugs and alcohol and repression and stress durin retrieval can also interfere
-some military training includes preparation for being captured by the enemy - used photo spread technique and seuqential photo techniue to pick interrorgator and 38% in moderate stress conditon wrong and 56% in severe stress conditon wrong
What is alcohol effect on memory?
lab studies of false memory show no effect alcohol amount is less than legal driving
-several field studies show intoxicated have a greater tendency to go along woth siggestuve cues compared to sober participants
What is THC effect on memory?
-one dose of thc have negatuve impact in memor and decision making increased activation of cannabinoid receptor in hippocampus implicated these results
-in drm immediate cannabins intoxicated indiviudal has higher false mempry rate compared to placebo and for delayed they had hgiher false mempry rate compared to placbo
-This is the VR condition - have eye witness scenario which is 4 minutes and perpetrator scenario which is 2 miniutes - cannabis group had higher false mmepry rates still intoxicated but this effect disappered after 1 week when sober again for both
Summary of THC use
examined the effects of cannabis on the susceptibility to spontaneous and siggestion based false mempries and generally found more false memories in intxociated pateints
-most pronounced in the immediate conditon when people still intoxicated
-lower recall drm follow up for correct and related false words could be reflective of the THC induced encoding impairments where impaired processing during the study phase could result in decreased memory for study words thereby reducing memory for similar confusable items
What is the relationship of confidence and memory?
-confidence is not a reliable indicator if memory and there is no widespread reliable indicators of memory accuracy found
-repetition - cna increase confidence without changing recall accuracy
Memory errors and feedback
-Positive feedback really increased the confidence so if teh detective gives the witness positive feedback this increases the confidence and increases likelihood jurors will believe it is likely evidence
-posiitve feedback affected confidence and not accuracy
What is the misinformation effect?
line of research has investigated the misleading information over time becomes part of the remembered event
The cost of memory errors and importance of words you use in questioning?
if asked how fast cars are going when smashed into each other rather than hit then participants a week later would remember the broken glass
What are implanted events?
-can plant plausible memories compared to implausible and add false memories than replace true with false
-imagery increases confidence in false memory visual imagery like picture each event and a photo or video
-Obtained participants childhood images and presented them with these image and recall these experiences and looking at these images they created false memories of events that never happened also with visual imagery this happened
-participants more likely to rememebr fictitious stunt pulled in second grade if shown photo of second grade class
What is impact of social pressure on memory?
-false memories can occur for emotional and consequential events
-participants persuaded that they had committed a crime when that did not happen - participants remebered imaginary event few years later
-so false memories can be planted through repetition and social pressures
-this effect can lead people to confess to crimes they did not commit
-this study involved a lot of manipulation and social pressure not more than subjects experuence during the police investugation
