Forgetting Flashcards
Forgetting
Inability to retrieve information, due to poor encoding, storage or retrieval.
Encoding Failure
We cannot remember what we did not encode…if we
aren’t paying attention or entering the information into
our long-term memory in the first place, we will not be able to retrieve it later…because it doesn’t exist!
- Memory is not magic!
meaning- you don’t pay enough to begin with to encode it in your memory
Storage Decay
Poor durability of stored memories leads to their decay…yet not deletion!
memory can fall short ware and tare
Retrieval Failure
Although the information is retained in the memory
store it cannot be accessed.
you just can’t remember at all
maybe like injury
Storage Decay
Ebbinghaus showed storage decay with his forgetting curve… the initial drop in retention of info, but it evens out over time.
- Believe this is due to gradual fading of the memory trace in the brain… the connections aren’t as strong and efficient as they once were.
forgeting curve
Bahrick (1984) did similar research, but for “very long
term” memory, and showed similar effects as Ebbinghause (just over years not days).
The biggest loss of information is in the immediate years
right after learning it, then the retention is steady for the
rest of our lives.
Retrieval Failure
TOT is a retrieval failure, but the main retrieval failure you’ll need to know about is Interference = when
information blocks the retrieval of other information.
Proactive Interference
When old information interferes with/blocks the retrieval of new information
Retroactive Interference
When new information interferes with/blocks the retrieval of older information
Studies show that sleeping immediately after learning or
studying information, aids the retention of that info.
Motivated Forgetting
People unknowingly revise their memories; we don’t remember items we don’t WANT to remember
Repression - example of motivated forgetting
Defense mechanism that banishes anxiety-arousing
thoughts, feelings, and memories from consciousness
why do we forget?
sensory meory - the sense momentarily register amazing detail
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short term memory - a few items are both noticed and encoded
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long term memory - some items are altered or decay
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retrieval from LTM- depends on interference cues, moods and motives
forgetting can occur at any memory stage we filter, alter or lose much information during these stages
But not all memory loss is due to factors of “forgetting”.
Some memory loss can be due to structural damage to the brain.
AMNESIA
Partial or complete loss of memory due to physical or
psychological DAMAGE.
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Physical damage to some part of the brain
(Alzheimer’s, disease, stroke, brain
trauma.
Psychological damage could be triggered
by a traumatic event. Most memories
return over time (usually within a few
days).
Anterograde
no new memories
Inability to remember ongoing events after the incidence of trauma or the onset of the disease that caused the amnesia
Retrograde
Inability to remember events that occurred before the incidence of trauma or the onset of the disease that caused the amnesia
Source Amnesia
not amnesia just wrongful source of a memory, so the memory is wrong
This type of amnesia is not a typical case of amnesia of sever
memory loss due to damage (so thank you to whomever
called it this because that totally causes interference for us).
Source amnesia is attributing an event (or piece of
information) to the wrong source we have experienced,
heard, read, or imagined (misattribution).
True vs. False Memories
Just like true perception and illusion, real memories or memories that
seem real are difficult to discern…so just because a memory “feels” real,
doesn’t mean it IS real!
Our brain can tell the difference between real and false memories, but
we cannot…
if something was never heard, there would be no
sensory record to be activated in the temporal lobe
so if the brain was analyzed when you told about
how you heard the false fact, the temporal lobe
would not be activated
Constructed Memories
Elizabeth Loftus has conducted much research in this arena…
Contacted parents of college students and obtained lists of childhood events that
the students were asked to recall
To those lists were added plausible events that never happened like, being lost in
a shopping mall, spilling a punch bowl at a wedding or meeting Bugs Bunny at
Disneyworld (impossible b/c Bugs not a Disney character)
After repeated recall attempts over a period of several days, many of the students
claimed to remember the bogus events…all that was required were some
credible suggestions
Eyewitness Testimony & Memory Construction
Often eyewitness testimony is full of errors…but it is still one of the main
methods used to gain information about crimes!
Important things to remember:
People’s recollections are less influenced by leading questions if forewarned
that questions could create memory bias.
Passage of time allows original memory to fade, so ask right away for more
accurate info.
The age of the witness matters…younger children and adults over 65 may be
especially susceptible to the influence of misinformation.
Improving Memory
Based on what you’ve learned in this unit so far, what are some ways you
could WORK to improve your memory at any of the 3 stages?
Study repeatedly to boost recall long-term recall.
Spend more time rehearsing or actively thinking about the material.
Make material personally meaningful.
Use mnemonic devices:
associate with peg words — something already stored
make up a story
chunk — acronyms
Activate retrieval cues — mentally recreate situation and mood.
Recall events while they are fresh — before you encounter
misinformation.
Minimize interference:
Test your own knowledge
Rehearse and determine what you do not yet know
