Episodic memory Flashcards
Name a theory of encoding.
Levels of Processing theory (Craik & Lockhart, 1972)
Recall is a copy of an event. True/false?
False - recall is a record of how you process an event.
Which levels can info be processed at?
Shallow - perceptual features
Deep - semantic features
What type of processing leads to better recall?
Deep processing
Craik & Tulving (1975) had pps read unrelated words and use different types of processing at study (encoding). What were these types of processing & what did they involve?
Shallow - upper/lower case judgement
Intermediate - rhyme judgement
Deep - sensible-or-not judgment
What did Craik & Tulving (1975) find when pps were given a surprise recognition test?
Pps who used deep processing at encoding had better recognition than those who used shallow/intermediate
Which researcher/s claimed that deep processing might not always be sufficient for episodic remembering?
Craik (2002)
Craik & Kester (1999) found that WHAT at encoding could impair memory performance?
Divided attention
What underlies the LoP effect?
Elaboration
What is elaboration?
Relating a to-be-remembered item to other info known about the item (other stored knowledge)
What does the elaboration hypothesis state?
We are more likely to remember something if we can relate it to other things we know about
What influences retention?
The amount of info we have about an item (number of things it is linked to in memory)
What type of processing did Craik & Tulving (1975) produces more elaboration?
Semantic processing produces more elaboration than non-semantic processing –> the item is more likely to be remembered
Memory for words that appeared in sentences judged to be sensible (______) was better than memory for words judged to be nonsensical (______)
Memory for words that appeared in sentences judged to be sensible (CONGRUENT) was better than memory for words judged to be nonsensical (INCONGRUENT)
What is the congruency effect?
Congruent info provides more elaboration because it ties items more closely to stored knowledge
We have more elaboration if we process the correct semantic info about the item during encoding –> remember the item better
Does memory depend more on elaboration or the distinctiveness of the encoded info?
Memory depends on distinctiveness of the encoded info (how well it stands out from other items in memory; a more distinctive memory trace) rather than elaboration
What type of processing does Hunt & Elliot (1980) say will produce more distinctive encoding?
Semantic processing
Recall of a distinctive sentence was better than recall of an elaborative sentence. Who found this?
Bransford et al. (1979)
Which are words more likely to be distinct in terms of - their meaning (semantic) or physical appearance (non-semantic)?
Words are more likely to be distinct in terms of meaning
Distinctiveness theory states that semantic encoding will always be better than non-semantic encoding. True/false?
False - semantic encoding isn’t always better than non-semantic encoding
Which researcher/s found evidence for the idea that semantic encoding is not always better than non-semantic?
Eyesenck (1979) - used a non-semantic task with unusual word pronunciations
Found that pps’ memory after the task was as good as that after a semantic task
However, he did conclude that semantic processing is USUALLY more likely to lead to distinctive processing
Winograd (1981) compared distinctiveness & elaboration by having pps look at faces.
Pps either:
- Scanned each face (encoded features –> elaboration) + rated the most distinctive feature (distinctiveness)
- Rated the most distinctive feature (distinctiveness)
Pps then identified which faces they had seen before.
What did they find?
There was no difference in memory performance between the two groups.
- distinctiveness is key (E+D was no better than just D)
- having elaboration may increase the likelihood of detecting a distinctive feature
What are some criticisms of the Levels of Processing theory?
X no objective way to measure depth
X assumes that processing levels are linear & go from one stage to the next (appearance>sound>meaning); research suggests different types of processing occur in parallel (overlap)
X don’t know whether we can fully suppress semantic processing (must be overlap)
X benefit of semantic processing depends of the nature of the test
What is ‘organisation’?
Relationships between items on a list, actions in an event, etc.
What type of material is better remembered - organised or unorganised?
Organised material is better remembered
Pps were shown 20 words in 5 categories - presented randomly (unorganised) OR the categories were grouped together (organised)
Recall was highest for the organised group
Who did this study?
Bousfield (1953)
What is the generation effect?
Info that you generate yourself is better remembered than info that is presented to you
How did Glisky & Rabinowitz (1985) study the generation effect?
Pps generated single words from word fragments then tried to recognise the words in a test
Pps read words or generated their own words at BOTH encoding & retrieval
Found that words generated at encoding (study) were better recognised than words read at encoding (= standard generation effect)
Words generated at encoding AND test were better recognised than words generated at encoding & read at test
What is the effect of transfer-appropriate processing
Recognition is best if the same fragments are generated at both study & test
Morris, Bransford & Franks (1977) showed pps a list of words & had them use different types of encoding. What types of encoding did they use & what was involved?
Semantic - generated a word associated with a word on the list
Phonological - generated a word that rhymed with a word on the list
Morris, Bransford & Franks (1977) then show pps a new list of words (some were familiar, from the previous list) & gave them 2 types of recognition test, what were the tests?
Standard test - saw a list of words that had the previously-studied words + new words); pps had to select words they had seen before
Rhyme test - saw a list of words that rhymed with previously-studied words + new words; pps had to select words that rhymed with words they had seen before
What did Morris, Bransford & Franks (1977) find?
For the standard recognition test, performance was better after semantic processing
For the rhyme recognition test, performance was better after phonological processing
–> performance is best if the type of processing used at encoding matches the type of processing required at test
What is the self-reference effect?
A tendency to encode info differently depending on the level in which the self is implicated in the info (how well it relates to you)
What type of info is better remember - info that is personally relevant or personally irrelevant?
Personally relevant info is better remembered
Pps were shown adjectives & used one type of encoding, either…
Non-semantic - “does it rhyme with…?”
Semantic - “does it mean the same as…?”
Pps rated how descriptive each word was of themselves.
Who did this study?
What did they find?
Rogers, Kuiper & Kirker (1977)
Found that pps recalled more self-rated than semantically-encoded words
–> self-relevance lead to better processing (pps allocated more attention to self-relevant info)
Why might retrieval fail?
Storage failure
- decay
- interference
What is retrieval failure?
When info is present in memory but cannot be recalled
What is decay?
Memories fade over time
The older the memory trace, the more likely it will be forgotten
Occurrence of other events & processing of new info at that time can cause storage failure (interference)
What is interference?
When new info overwrites/replaces old info
Pps learnt nonsense syllables & then slept or stayed awake for a period of time. Who did this study & what did they find?
Jenkins & Dallenbach (1924) found that memory for the nonsense syllables was better for the group who slept.
Why is being asleep/staying awake better for memory consolidation?
Being awake exposes the memory to more interference
Sleep protects memories from interference & helps consolidation
What is consolidation?
New memories become established/consolidated in the hippocampus
Which area of the brain are new memories consolidated/established?
The hippocampus
Bruce & Pihl (1997) found what WHAT might help memory?
Memory may be enhanced when alcohol is consumed shortly after the memory is formed because it disrupts encoding of new memories which would impair consolidation
What is retrieval failure?
When info is present in memory but can’t be recalled
In relation to retrieval, what does successful memory performance depend on?
Info stored in LTM stays there permanently & so is available, but successful performance also depends on ACCESSIBILITY (= the degree to which the info can be retrieved)
Why might retrieval cues help?
Forgetting may occur because items are stored (available) but inaccessible - items may be recalled if cues are used
Pps were shown words in categories, then retrieved the words using free recall OR cued recall.
Recall was higher with cued recall.
Who did this study & what did they conclude?
Tulving & Pearlstone (1966)
A person’s ability to recall info depends on cues present at retrieval.
How can we make medical instructions more memorable?
Ley (1988) found that patients forgot 50% of the info they were given by their doctor; there was a high correlation between the amount of info they recalled &…
- their understanding of the info
- satisfaction with their doctor
- compliance
- recovery from illness
Ley (1988) asked doctors to change the way they presented the info –> explicitly categorising the way info was presented nearly doubled patients’ recall
How can mnemonic techniques aid memory?
‘One is a bun, two is a shoe, three is a tree’
- ‘bottle’ → bun
- ‘table’ → shoe
Use mental imagery to associate the first to-be-remembered item with a bun, shoe, etc.
During recall, we use mneumonic → think of ‘one’ → bun → ‘bottle’ = acts as a retrieval cue
Morris & Reid (1970) found that recall doubled when pps used this mnemonic
Why might testing yourself aid memory?
Assesses what you do/don’t know
Enhances later retention
Practicing retrieving enhances the accessibility of the info –> more likely to remember it
What did Roediger & Karpicke (2006) find about the effect of being tested on memory performance?
Students who are tested showed more retention of the material than those just given further study
