Lesson 5 - Questions Flashcards
Summarize the research on the effect of practice on memory. What is the total time hypothesis? What is the distributed-practice effect (also known as spaced learning)? What is the testing effect?
very high capacity, can store for many decades
long term memory: refers to the high-capacity storage system that contains your memories for experiences and information that you have accumulated throughout your lifetime
(not all psychologists think theres this clear cut line between long term and workingmemrou)
episodic memory: memory of events that happened to you personally (ranges from 10 min to 10 yrs ago)
semantic memory: organized knowledge about the world, words and factual info
info coded for long term memory largely gets coded from its meaning (semantic)
procedural memory: knowledge of how to do something
-usually sequence of motor activity needed to complete task
Describe Craik and Lockhart’s (1972) levels-of-processing approach (or depth-of-processing approach) and the two factors that have been proposed to explain the success of deep processing.
levels-of-processing approach: argues that deep, meaningful processing of information leads to more accurate recall than shallow, sensory kinds of processing
- deeper processing levels should produce better recall
- deep processing levels should mean better recall because of 2 factors - distinctiveness and elaboration
- distinctiveness: stimulus is different from other memory traces
ex. associate someones name w something and you will encode it into long term memory - elaboration: rich processing of meaning and interconnected concepts
ex. semantic processing elaboration if you saw the word duck and associated it with duck on your fave restaurant’s menu
- more elaboration = better recall
Describe the self-reference effect and its relation to the levels-of-processing approach. Describe some of the representative research and the three factors that might be responsible for the effect.
self-reference effect: you will remember info if you relate it to yourself
-this is deep processing
representative research:
study where participants told to think about a word based on
(a) their visual characteristics, (b) their acoustic (sound) characteristics, or (c) their semantic (meaning) characteristics +++ (d) can you relate it to yourself?
- a and b recall was low bc these are shallow processing
-c = high, d = highest (special memory coding when link to yourself)
meta-analysis discovered that people recall significantly more items when they use the self-reference technique, rather than semantic processing or any other processing method
factors responsible:
- self produces a rich set of cues, can easily link cues you are trying to learn and they’re distinctive
- it encourages you to link your traits to each other, and this kind of elaboration leads to more accurate retrieval
- material associated to yourself you rehearse more frequently
data from research may underestimate the power of self reference bc they think ppl cheat when using simple tasks and accidentally use self-reference techniques
Describe the encoding specificity principle. Describe the study by Marian and Fausey (2006), and explain how it illustrates encoding specificity. Describe two explanations that have been proposed for the inconsistency of context effects.
Comment: As mentioned in the overview to this unit, the encoding specificity principle is a critical concept in memory research. Many of the mnemonic techniques or memory strategies that are discussed in Chapter 6 owe their success to the encoding specificity principle. In a nutshell, the principle draws attention to the close relation between encoding and retrieval. What we do during the encoding stage determines what becomes stored, and whatever becomes stored ultimately determines what cues will be effective at retrieval. Encoding specifies retrieval! Note that although many students interpret this principle to mean that when we encode things specifically and with detail, memory will be improved. This is not a correct interpretation of the principle, even though there is some truth to the statement.
encoding specificity principle: recall is better if the context during retrieval is the same as the context during encoding (more likely to forget items if they don’t match)
-when you forget why you came into the room for something and need to retrace your steps bc thats where the contextual cues are…
study:
participants fluent in English and Spanish listened to stories in one language and answered questions about it in both languages
-much higher % correct answers when question language matched story language
-easy to forget info when its out of our current context
inconsistency of context effects in lab vs real life:
- diff kinds of memory tasks
- recall task involves a reproduction of previously learned material vs a recognition task involves the subject judging whether they saw an item at an earlier time
- real life involves recall (from a while back) and lab involves recognition (from like an hour prior)
- the encoding-specificity effect is most likely to occur in memory tasks that (a) assess your recall, (b) use real-life incidents, and (c) examine events that happened long ago - physical vs mental context
- researchers usually modify physical context, which is kinda trivial
- what matters is how the situations feel relative to one another, not how they look
encoding specificity can override levels of processing
- shallow processing can actually be more effective than deep processing when the retrieval task emphasizes superficial information
- this is different from the levels of processing approach
- if you were doing a rhyming task and were asked to recall if the word rhymed with ‘toy’, you would be more likely to know this than use context to determine your answer
- deep, semantic processing is effective only if the retrieval conditions also emphasize these deeper, more meaningful features
Define “explicit memory tasks” and “implicit memory tasks,” and provide examples of each. Summarize the research on implicit memory with normal adults.
Comment: The feature that distinguishes implicit and explicit memory tasks is the awareness of recollection or retrieval. In an implicit memory task, there is no awareness of having recalled or retrieved information. In an explicit memory task, there is a conscious act of retrieval.
explicit memory tasks: directly asked to remember some information, you realize your memory is being tested, test requires you to intentionally retrieve some info you previously learned
-most common explicit memory task is recall, recognition task is also explicit
implicit memory task: indirectly access your memory, you see the material (usually words or pictures) later, during the test phase, you are instructed to complete a cognitive task that does not directly ask you for either recall or recognition
- previous exposure to the material should help with performance on the task
- previous experience seems to automatically creep out, even when theres no conscious effort to recall it
studies:
- adults have a better time remembering info when an implicit task is used vs explicit
- people typically recall more words if they have used deep levels of processing to encode them. For example, participants recall more words on an explicit memory test if they had originally used semantic encoding, vs encoding physical experience
- on an implicit memory test, semantic and perceptual encoding may produce similar memory scores, or people may even score lower if they had used semantic encoding
- these results fit the definition for dissociation because depth of processing has a large positive effect on memory scores on Test A (an explicit memory task), but depth of processing has no effect or even a negative effect on memory scores on Test B (an implicit memory task)
Define “anterograde amnesia” and “retrograde amnesia.” Summarize the work of Warrington and Weiskrantz (1970) on explicit and implicit remembering in amnesia.
Comment: Amnesiacs also illustrate the distinction between episodic memory and semantic memory. In most cases, semantic memory is intact, but there is a profound impairment in the ability to recall episodic information prior to disease onset (retrograde amnesia) or after disease onset (anterograde amnesia).
- ppl with anxiety disorders remember threatening words better than those without anxiety disorders (but other studies disagree, kinda depends on type of memory task)
- high and low anxiety ppl score the same on recognition tasks
- for recall tasks, high anxiety ppl are more likely to recall negative words but less likely to recall neutral and pleasant words … maybe because they pay more attention to the negative words or maybe have more of a developed network of concepts related to negative words
amnesia involves severe deficits in episodic memory, related to brain damage
retrograde amnesia: loss of memory about events that occurred before the brain damage, especially years just before damage, autobiographical memory impairment
-can involve some semantic memory loss sometimes, or fact based knowledge in long term memory
anterograde amnesia: loss of memory about events that happen after brain damage
ex. someone leaves room and after 3 min you forget they were even there
- recall next to nothing during explicit memory tasks
study:
recall and recognition tasks for words
-those w anterograde performed worse than controls
-identical results for both groups on implicit memory tasks
-the dissociation was evident because the memory-status variable (amnesic versus control) had a major effect when measured by explicit memory tests, but had no effect when measured by implicit memory tests.
Define “autobiographical memory,” and provide original examples of it. Summarize the three characteristics of autobiographical memory as identified by Matlin and Farmer.
autobiographical memory: memory about yourself and related to events involving yourself
- affects memory accuracy
- studies on this high in eco validity
- sometimes we are inaccurate but for the most part memory is accurate
- mistakes are generally made just with the peripheral ideas and not with the main idea
- memories blend together from a variety of sources and we use a unified version during retrieval
Define “schema,” and provide original examples of it. Define “consistency bias,” and explain how it is related to schemas and autobiographical memory. Define “source monitoring,” and provide original examples involving source monitoring failures. Define “reality monitoring” and its relation to source monitoring.
schema: general knowledge or expectation, which is distilled from past experiences
ex. you probably have a schema for eating lunch
- we use schemas to guide recall
consistency bias: during recall, we tend to exaggerate the consistency btwn our past feelings about a current viewpoint
- recall is usually consistent with our current views/schema
- can influence memories of the past so that they seem similar to our current views
source monitoring: process of trying to identify the origin of a particular memory
- not often we make errors here
- sometimes accidental plagiarism (ex. song writing)
- source monitoring errors: you make a mistake by thinking that Source A provided some information, when Source B actually provided this information
- reality monitoring: try to identify whether an event really occurred
- in a study, 1/4 of participants said they broke a pencil when reinforced w the idea that they did over 2 wks when they never broke it
Define “flashbulb memory.” What did Brown and Kulik (1977) find regarding the types of information included in a flashbulb memory? Summarize the more recent research on flashbulb memory and what it reveals about whether flashbulb memories are special.
Comment: The tragedy of the September 11, 2001, attack on the World Trade Center is an example of recent flashbulb memory. Most people have a vivid memory of when they first heard and apprehended the magnitude of the event. What do you recall from that day? Have you shared your memory with others?
lashbulb memory: the memory for the circumstances in which you first learned about a very surprising or emotion-evoking event
-lots of ppl think they remember specific details about these times
study:
- ppl often note the location
- these types of memories are more accurate than plain old mems
- later studies suggested that ppl reported wrong details to serious events earlier in life and that these mems are the same as any old mem
- recall for both tragic events and everyday events decrease in accuracy over a period of months, but both types of memories show the same trend (participants were confident in their answers in both cases even though they got stuff wrong)
- there is likely no special mechanism for flashbulb memories
- increased accuracy may be explained by other mechanisms - rehearsal frequency, distinctiveness, and elaboration
- both flashbulb and normal memories decrease in accuracy w time
Define the “post-event misinformation effect” and its relation to eyewitness testimony. Describe the study by Loftus and her colleagues (1978) that produced the misinformation effect. Is confidence related to the misinformation effect? What other factors affect the accuracy of eyewitness testimony?
Comment: As Matlin and Farmer point out, Loftus’s work on eyewitness memory is consistent with the constructivist approach to memory, or the approach that recognizes the reconstruction of the past using present concerns and current knowledge. Another important figure in this approach is Frederick Bartlett, a British psychologist who published an influential book on memory in 1932. (Bartlett’s work is described briefly in Chapter 8 of Unit 4.) Bartlett’s work is recognized as the first to demonstrate empirically how recollections of past events can be distorted in systematic and predictable ways. Bartlett was one of the first psychologists to use the concept of “schema” to refer to the organization of past experiences. Moreover, he explained the systematic distortions in recall as a direct result of schemas. According to Bartlett, past experiences are combined with our schemas to reconstruct the past, an explanation that predates the constructionist approach.
post-event misinformation effect: after event people are given misinformation about it then later they recall this incorrect info
-involves retroactive interference (where people have trouble recalling old material because some recently learned, and new material keeps interfering with old memories)
study:
1/2 ppl saw yield sign and 1/2 saw stop sign, then did questionnaire where one or the other was mentioned
-most participants later claimed they saw whatever sign was talked about in the questionaire
-partly has to do w poor source monitoring
-consistency bias involved
we construct memory from a variety of sources
3 potential problems with the eyewitness testimony:
(1) People may create memories that are consistent with their schemas; (2) people may make errors in source monitoring; and (3) post-event misinformation may distort people’s recall.
factors affecting accuracy:
- more errors made if they were stressed out
- more errors made when time delay between event and testifying
- more errors made if info is plausible
- more errors if social pressure
- more errors if someone provided positive feedback
people’s confidence about their eyewitness testimony is not strongly correlated with the accuracy of their testimony
Describe what is meant by the context-specific nature of expertise. Summarize the advantages that experts have over novices on context-specific memory tasks. How are the findings on expertise related to the own-ethnicity bias?
ppl with expertise demonstrate impressive memory abilities, as well as consistently exceptional performance on representative tasks in a particular area
context-specific nature of expertise: when you are more knowledgable about a subject, your memory of things that fall under it is better
- people who are experts in one area may not display outstanding general memory skills
- memory experts don’t score crazy high on intelligence tests
memory experts vs. novices:
Experts possess a well-organized, carefully learned knowledge structure, which assists them during both encoding and retrieval. For instance, chess players store a large number of common patterns that they can quickly access.
Experts are more likely to reorganize the new material that they must recall, forming meaningful chunks in which related material is grouped together.
Experts typically have more vivid visual images for the items they must recall.
Experts work hard to emphasize the distinctiveness of each stimulus during encoding.
Experts rehearse in a more strategic fashion. For example, an actor may rehearse her or his lines by focusing on words that are likely to trigger recall.
Experts are better at reconstructing missing portions of information from material that they partially remember.
Experts are more skilled at predicting the difficulty of a task and at monitoring their progress on this task.
info from long term mem can go to working mem to help u w a task
-Hruska and colleagues found that areas of the prefrontal cortex implicated in working-memory processes were more activated in the novice relative to the expert doctors. They interpreted this result as evidence that expert doctors possessed more sophisticated long-term memory knowledge. Moreover, this more robust knowledge base was recruited by the working-memory system during case reasoning, thus reducing the burden on the working-memory system, as evident in the expert-doctor reductions in prefrontal cortical activation. The more knowledge you possess about a domain can ease the burden of processing experienced when encountering relevant information, and this expertise-related reduction can affect multiple cognitive systems.
own-ethnicity bias: you are generally more accurate in identifying members of your own ethnic group than members of another ethnic group
- related to expertise bc u interact w these ppl more
- memory is better when more distinctive
- study found black ppl rated black ppls faces more distinctive than other races
- some evidence that the more were exposed to another race the more accurate we get w it too
What is the Pollyanna Principle? How is it related to Demonstration 5.4? What are the three ways by which emotional material can influence memory?
emotion: reaction to a specific stimulus
mood: refers to a more general, long-lasting experience
The Pollyanna Principle states that pleasant items are usually processed more efficiently and more accurately than less-pleasant items. This principle holds true for a wide variety of phenomena in perception, language, and decision making
3 ways emotion can influence long term memory:
- more accurate recall for pleasant items
- proved in 39/52 studies
- neutral items recalled the least, even after negative ones
- when stimuli are negative, ppl don’t notice background info as much
- pleasant events more accurately recalled than unpleasant - more accurate recall for neutral stim associated with positive stim
- study where 1/2 ppl watched a violent film and other 1/2 watched non-violent film, each with neutral advertisements in the middle
- those who watched non-violent film had better recall of the ads
- anger and violence reduce memory accuracy - over time, unpleasant memories fade faster than pleasant ones
- plesant events later recalled as slightly less pleasant but unpleasant events rated as much less unpleasant
- positivity effect: people tend to rate unpleasant past events more positively with the passage of time
- when people at risk for depression look back on their lives, the unpleasant events still remain unpleasant
Compare and contrast the recovered memory perspective and the false memory perspective. Be sure that your evidence includes the arguments for and against each perspective.
Comment: These two perspectives usually generate plenty of discussion. You may wish to read the book by Williams and Banyard (1999) for a balanced treatment of this topic.
huge controversy
recovered-memory perspective: some individuals who experienced sexual abuse during childhood managed to forget that memory for many years. A child would be especially likely to forget these traumatic events if the abuser was a close relative or a trusted adult. At a later time, this presumably forgotten memory may come flooding back into consciousness
- little eco validity in lab studies discussed below
- sexual abuse is a bit more aggressive than this lab work
- there is documented sexual abuse of ppl who don’t recall the event at all (meaning that it is possible to recover it later on if some ppl have yet to recover it)
- betrayal trauma: a child may respond adaptively when a trusted parent or caretaker betrays him or her by sexual abuse. The child depends on this adult and must actively inhibit memories of abuse in order to maintain an attachment to this person.
false-memory perspective proposes that most of these recovered memories are actually incorrect memories. In other words, they are constructed stories about events that never occurred (still related to sexual abuse in childhood)
- lab setting - sometimes recall a word that wasn’t there (intrusion errors common in recall)
- lab research where ppl constructed mems for events that never happened (25% of participants)
both are at least partly correct
- some ppl may forget
- some ppl may encode false mems about abuse
potential memory errors:
- flashbulb, eyewitness testimony, source monitoring
- therapist may suggest sexual abuse in childhood and this social pressure could cause a false memory
encoding
retrieval
process info to represent it in your memory
retrieval: access info from mem storage,
processes that allow you locate information that is stored in long-term memory and to have access to that information
these babes go hand in hand
