Cognitive and biopsychology lecture 5 Flashcards
What is retrieval in the context of memory?
Process that controls flow of information from long-term to working memory store.
What are recall tests?
Subject must reproduce information with limited or no influence from external cues.
What is the difference between recognition tasks and recall tasks?
Recognition tasks present items for the person to determine if they were previously encountered, while recall tasks require reproduction without external cues.
What is the ‘tip of the tongue’ phenomenon?
A failure in retrieval where a person feels close to recalling information but cannot access it.
What does the term ‘marginal knowledge’ refer to?
Knowledge that is available in memory but may not always be accessible.
What is the significance of context cues in memory recall?
Context cues can enhance recall by providing a familiar environment related to the learned information.
What did Jenkins & Dallenbach (1924) find regarding forgetting in LTM?
Recall is better after sleep, emphasizing interference over decay.
Define proactive interference.
Old memories interfere with the ability to remember new memories.
Define retroactive interference.
New memories interfere with the ability to remember old memories.
What is amnesia?
Severe impairment to long-term memory caused by brain damage.
What are the types of amnesia?
- Anterograde amnesia
- Retrograde amnesia
What is the temporal gradient of amnesia, also known as Ribot’s law?
Recent memories are more likely to be lost than older memories.
What is the role of the hippocampus in memory?
Key area for long-term memory; involved in memory consolidation.
How does Korsakoff syndrome affect memory?
Leads to loss of episodic memory due to brain damage from thiamine deficiency.
What is the difference between anterograde and retrograde amnesia?
- Anterograde: Inability to form new memories
- Retrograde: Inability to recall past memories
Fill in the blank: The process that makes a memory for an event enduring is called _______.
[consolidation]
What is the procedure used by Brown and McNeil (1966) to study retrieval?
Subjects were given definitions to low-frequency words and attempted to recall the associated word.
What is the main finding of Godden & Baddeley’s (1975) free-recall experiment?
Words learned in one context are recalled better in that same context.
What is the difference between explicit and implicit memory?
- Explicit: Requires conscious retrieval
- Implicit: Does not require conscious retrieval
What is procedural memory?
A type of implicit memory that involves skills and actions.
What is the impact of interference on short-term memory?
Interference can significantly reduce recall accuracy, as shown in studies.
What happens to memory traces in short-term memory when not rehearsed?
They decay quickly.
What is the role of schemas in memory retrieval?
Schemas can influence how memories are reconstructed and recalled.
What are the primary brain functions discussed?
Perception, emotion, cognition
Where are consolidated memories argued to be located?
In the neocortex
What is retrograde amnesia linked to?
Problems with memory consolidation
What does the process of consolidation involve?
Transfer of information from one brain region to another and gradual re-organization
What are the two broad processes of memory consolidation?
- Hippocampal consolidation
- Systems consolidation
What is the difference between hippocampal consolidation and systems consolidation?
Hippocampal consolidation is the rapid initial encoding of new information, while systems consolidation takes much longer to transfer information for long-term storage.
What does the Multiple Trace Theory suggest?
Consolidation creates multiple traces of a memory in the brain
What is anterograde amnesia?
Inability to form new memories after a critical incident
Who is the famous patient associated with anterograde amnesia?
Patient H.M.
What type of amnesia did patient N.A. experience?
Persistent anterograde amnesia
What does the complexity of amnesia imply?
Amnesia is not simply losing all past memories or the ability to learn new ones
What are the two main types of long-term memory?
- Declarative (Explicit)
- Non-declarative (Implicit)
What is procedural memory?
Memory for skills and tasks
Which task was used to demonstrate procedural memory in amnesic patients?
Mirror-drawing task
What is the difference between semantic and episodic memory?
Semantic memory is knowledge of facts, while episodic memory is the recollection of personal experiences
In retrograde amnesia, which type of memory is typically affected?
Both episodic and semantic memory
What did the case of patient K.C. reveal about semantic and episodic memory?
He had no episodic memory but intact semantic knowledge
What was observed in the case of patient Jon regarding memory types?
Poor episodic memory but intact semantic memory
What effect does prior semantic knowledge have on episodic learning in amnesia?
Semantic knowledge can support acquisition of new episodic information
What is the Method of Loci?
A memory technique that associates items to familiar locations
What is the Pegword system?
A mnemonic device that associates pegwords with items to aid recall
What is a finding from the study by Goodwin et al. (1970) regarding alcohol and memory?
Alcohol consumption inhibits the formation of new memories
What is a common misconception about amnesia?
That all types of memory are equally affected
True or False: Amnesic patients can learn new skills.
True
