Memory Flashcards
Memory
Any indication that learning has persisted over time
Recall
Being able to assess the information without being cued
Fill in the blank test without a word bank
Recognition
Identifying information after experiencing it again
Multiple choice test
Relearning
When we learn something for the second time the process occurs faster than the first time
Encoding
The process of putting information into the memory system
Automatic encoding
Time, space, frequency and the meaning of words
Effortful encoding
Requires attention and conscious effort
Visual encoding
Seeing-shallow
Acoustic encoding
Hearing – shallow
Semantic encoding
Meaning – deep
Storage
Creation of a permanent record of encoded information (retain)
Retrieval
Calling back stored information on demand when it is needed
Parallel processing
Brains ability to make sense of several different incoming stimuli at the same time
Atkinson - Shiffrin three stage model of memory
Three different memory systems characterized by time frames
Sensory memory, short-term or working memory, long-term memory
Sensory memory
External stimuli from our senses are held just long enough to be perceived
(0-5 seconds)
Iconic memory
Sensory input creates a fleeting photographic visual image (less than one second)
Echoic memory
1 to 3 seconds auditory recording
Short term or working memory
The information we are currently aware of or thinking about (20 seconds)
George Miller‘s magic 7+/-2
 Number of items a person can remember and repeat back using short term memory
Limits of short-term memory
Distraction - rapid loss
Trying to hold too much information
A demanding task
Long-term memory
All memories we hold for periods of time longer than a few seconds
Vast storage capacity
Retrospective memory
Any memory from the past
Prospective memory
Remembering to do a task in the future
Explicit or declarative memory (conscious)
Information you have to consciously work to remember through effortful processing
(Facts, concepts and events)
Semantic memory
Memories of facts, concepts, names and other general knowledge
Episodic memory
Long term memory that involves recollection of specific events, situations and experiences
Implicit memory (unconscious)
Information you unconsciously and effortlessly remember
Procedural memory
How to perform specific tasks you don’t have to consciously recall
Flashbulb memory
Vivid, detailed memories that people create during times of personal tragedy, accident or emotionally significant world events
(September 11)
Rosy retrospection
Working memory tends to delete mundane and or boring, only store interesting into long-term memory
Context dependent memory
Easier to recall information in the same environment which it was required
State dependent memory
Memories that are triggered or enhanced by current mood
Memory consolidation
Process where a brain converts short-term memory into long-term
Long-term potentiation
Strengthening of a synaptic connection through repeated neural action (Eric Kandes)
Storage decay, forgetting curve
more time goes by the less we remember, 70% of information is forgotten within 24 hours (Herman Ebbinghaus)
Trace decay theory
Overtime our memories biologically degenerate
Amnesia
Full or partial loss of memory due to injury or trauma
Retrograde amnesia
Cannot remember things that happened before the events that caused them
Anterograde amnesia
Unable to create new memories after amnesia inducing event
Serial position effect
We usually recall the last words or first words in a long list
Primacy effect
Better recall of first items from rehearsal
Recency effect
Better recall of last items, still in working memory
Retrieval failure
Failure to recall a memory due to missing stimuli that were present at the time the memory was encoded
Motivated forgetting
Painful or embarrassing events are forced out of mind and harder to retrieve
Tip of the tongue state
Feeling a memory is available but not quite retrievable
Encoding failure
Occurs when a memory was never formed in the first place
In one ear out the other
Proactive interference
Older memories interfere with the retrieval of new memories
Retroactive interference
New memories interfere with the retrieval older memories
Memory reconstruction
Memory is a cognitive process with errors
We construct memories as we encode, alter them as we withdraw and update memories with reasoning
Pseudo memories
False memory that a person believes to be true
Belief bias
Biased on which sorces of information we believe in
Suggestibility
Trusted sources lead to high levels of suggestibility
Misinformation effect
When trusted sources give false information we believe it
Memory construction
A real memory but not every detail
The wording effect
Leading questions can cause us to fill in the blanks correctly
False memory
Repeatedly imagining non-fiction events can create memories that are completely false
Infantile amnesia
No episodic memories under the age of three because the hippocampus is not fully developed
Hypnosis
Heightened state of suggestibility is likely to result in memory construction and false memories
Eyewitness testimony
Found unreliable by Elizabeth Loftus
Distributed practice
Spacing study material by including breaks between study periods
Massed cramming
Memorization and learning into one session
Spacing effect
Using smaller increments of study over longer periods of time is more effective for learning and memory retention
Rehearsal/over learning
Practice repetition and studying increase long-term potentiation
The testing affects
Studying technique that forces you to recall works better than just rereading information
Retrieval cues
Reminders associated with information we are trying to get out of memory, eight us in remembering
Sensory associations
Sight, sound, smells and taste
Context effect
Easier to retrieve memories in the environment they were encoded
Chunking
Process of taking pieces of information and grouping them into larger units
Mnemonic devices
Encoding strategies used to organize to be learned material in order to make it more meaningful and easier to remember
Peg word system
Used for lists, image is visualized which holds the pegs for the information that needs to be recalled
Memory palace
Association of words on a list with the visualization of places on a familiar path
Sleep
Sleeping after learning something new leads to physical changes in the brain
Effortful processing
In order for information to be moved from short-term to long-term memory you need to actively attend to the info
