Chpater 6: Memory and learning

Question 1

what’re the 3 key functions of memory?

Answer 1

• Encoding - write a file (get info in to our brain); turning what we perceive into a memory
• Storage - save the file (retain info); maintain info in a memory over time
• Retrieval - read from the file (get the info back out); bringing to mind infor that was stored

Question 2

sensory memory. 2 types

Answer 2

• Sensory Memory (SM)- the immediate, brief recording of sensory information for a few seconds or less.
• Two types of SM:
• Iconic - a fleeting photographic (visual) memory.
• Echoic – a fleeting auditory memory.

Question 3

working memory

Answer 3

• Working Memory (WM)- active processing and maintenance of incoming info.
Working Memory is like your brain’s task list or sticky notes. As information is coming into your brain, you are both processing it and, simultaneously, storing it. It’s necessary to learn, reason, and remember.

Imagine trying to do a math problem. You need to store the numbers temporarily while you work with them to solve the problem. Keeping the information temporarily and processing it at the same time is working memory. Working memory is often used synonymously with short-term memory.

Question 4

short term

Answer 4

• Short Term Memory (STM)- activated memory that holds a few items briefly before the info is stored or forgotten.

Question 5

long term memory

Answer 5

Long Term Memory (LTM) – the permanent storehouse of the memory system. Includes knowledge, skills, and experiences

Question 6

what’re the 4 diff memory storage systems?

Answer 6

long term, short term, working mem, sensory mem

Question 7

what’re common short term storage techniques

Answer 7

Chunking- combining small pieces of information into larger clusters or chunks.
• Rehearsal – the process of keeping information in STM by mentally repeating it.

Question 8

what’re two types of amnesia

Answer 8

Anterograde amnesia – inability to transfer new information from the short-term store into the long-term store. Can’t remember new information.
Retrograde amnesia – inability to retrieve information from before a particular date, usually the date of injury. Can’t remember old information

Question 9

an enhanced ability to think of a stimulus such as a wrd or object as a result of recent exposure to the stimulus

Answer 9

priming
243
Priming can occur following perceptual, semantic, or conceptual stimulus repetition. For example, if a person reads a list of
words including the word table, and is later asked to complete a word starting with tab, the probability that he or she will
answer table is greater than if they are not primed. Another example is if people see an incomplete sketch they are unable to
identify and they are shown more of the sketch until they recognize the picture, later they will identify the sketch at an earlier
stage than was possible for them the first time.

Question 10

external info that is associated w stored info and helps bring it to mind; taste, smell and sight that cue memory

Answer 10

retrieval cues

247

Question 11

what’re the 7 sins of memory failure

Answer 11

1. Transience – forgetting that occurs due to the passage of time.
2. Absentmindedness- a lapse in attention that results in memory failure.
3. Blocking – a failure to retrieve information that is available in memory even though you are trying to produce it.
4. Memory Misattribution – assigning a recollection or an idea to the wrong source.
   a. Important part of memory is source memory – recall of when, where, and how information is acquired.
5. Suggestibility – the tendency to incorporate misleading information from external sources in to personal recollections.
6. Bias – the distorting influence of present knowledge, beliefs, and feelings on recollection of previous experiences.
7. Persistence – the intrusive recollection of events that we wish we could forget.
   a. Emotional memories are better remembered than non-emotional memories

Question 12

classical conditioning

Answer 12

• Classical Conditioning- a type of learning in which an organism comes to associate stimuli. Pavlolv

Question 13

explain US, UR, CS, AND CR

Answer 13

US- something that reliably produces a naturally occurring reaction
• UR- a reflexive reaction that is reliable produced by an unconditioned stimulus
• CS- previously neutral stimulus that produces a reliable response in an organism after being paired w a US
• CR- a reaction that resembles an inconditioned response but is produced by a conditioned stimulus

Question 14

whatre the 5 classical conditioning processes

Answer 14

1. Acquisition – initial learning of the stimulus and response relation.
2. Second-Order Conditioning – the US is a stimulus that acquired its ability to produce learning from an earlier procedure in which it was used as a CS.
3. Extinction- diminished response that occurs when the CS no longer signals the US.
4. Spontaneous Recovery- the reappearance of the weakened CR after a pause.
5. Generalization & Discrimination- the tendency to respond to stimuli similar to the CS, and the ability to distinguish between a CS and other stimuli.

Question 15

operant conditioning

Answer 15

• Operant Conditioning – a type of learning in which behavior is strengthened if followed by reinforcement, but diminished if punished.

Question 16

positive and negative reinforcement

Answer 16

– Positive reinforcement – strengthens a response by presenting a pleasurable stimulus.
– Negative reinforcement – strengthens a response by reducing or removing an undesirable stimulus.

Question 17

what’re the 4 diff schedules of reinforcement

Answer 17

– part of operant conditioning
- Fixed Interval Schedule (FI) – reinforcements are presented at fixed time periods.
– Variable Interval Schedule (VI) – reinforcements are based on an average time.
– Fixed Ratio Schedule (FR) – reinforcement is delivered after a specific number of responses have been made.
– Variable Ratio Schedule (VR) – reinforcement is based on a particular average number of responses.

Question 18

observational learning

Answer 18

condition in which learning takes place by watching the actions of others (295)

Question 19

What is the limit of reinforcement?

Answer 19

Overjustification Effect – circumstances when external rewards can undermine the intrinsic satisfaction of performing a behavior.
When u give too much rewards, it takes away their individual motivation

Delayed reinforcement can lose effect.

Question 20

the act of consciously or intentionally retrieving past experiences

Answer 20

explicit memory

Question 21

the influence of past experiences on later behavior and

performance, even without an effort to remember them or an awareness of the recollection

Answer 21

implicit memory

Question 22

the gradual acquisition of skills as a result of practice, “knowing how” to do things

Answer 22

procedural memory

Question 23

a network of associated facts and concepts that make up our general knowledge of the world (think: society)

Answer 23

semantic memory

Question 24

the collection of past
personal experiences that occurred at a particular time and place (think: every single embarrassing moment you have ever had and it will never leave your brain)

Answer 24

episodic memory