Memory Flashcards
Describe the multi-store model of memory
sensory memory (SM) -attention-> short-term memory (STM) <-retrieval, rehearsal-> long-term memory (LTM)
describe the duration, encoding and capacity of sensory memory (SM)
duration: 0.25-2seconds
encoding: 5 senses
capacity: very large
describe the duration, encoding and capacity of short-term memory (STM)
duration: 18-30seconds
encoding: acoustic
capacity: 5-9items
describe the duration, encoding and capacity of long-term memory (LTM)
duration: forever
encoding: semantic
capacity: unlimited
what are the three types of long-term memory (LTM)
episodic, semantic and procedural
describe episodic memory
responsible for storing information about events we have experienced in our lives. Conscious thought based on events in time and place
describe semantic memory
responsible for storing facts. also known as our dictionary of knowledge
describe procedural memory
responsible for knowing how to complete actions.. also known as motor skills. unconscious thought
describe the working memory model (WMM)
central executive into phonological loop and visuo-spatial sketchpad which combine into one memory through the episodic buffer into long-term memory (LTM)
describe the difference between the phonological loop and the visuo-spatial sketchpad
the phonological loop refers to our sound processor or articulatory control system. it remembers our hearing of a memory. the visuo-spatial sketchpad refers to our sight processor or inner scribe. it remembers our sight of a memory
what is the job of the episodic buffer
to combine the memory from the phonological loop and the memory from the visuo-spatial sketchpad into one memory to be transferred to our long-term memory (LTM)
what are the two explanations for forgetting
interference and cue-dependency
describe the interference explanation for forgetting
consists of proactive and retroactive interference.
proactive: old memories interfere with new memories
retroactive: new memories interfere with old memories
(PORN)
describe the cues-dependency explanation for forgetting
retrieval failure due to absence of cues
types of clues include: context (environmental stimuli), state (internal or external state), organisational (change in organisation)
what are the three main factors which affect the accuracy of eyewitness testimony (EWT)
leading questions, post event discussion, anxiety
describe leading questions and how they affect the accuracy of eyewitness testimony (EWT)
questions designed to influence the individual into giving the desired answer by the police, even if it didn’t necessarily happen
can change what the witness believed happened
describe post event discussion and how it affects the accuracy of eyewitness testimony (EWT)
post event discussion can cause the story to change based on: retroactive interference, media coverage, conformity, repeat interview.
describe anxiety and how it can affect the accuracy of eyewitness testimony (EWT)
too much or too little anxiety can cause individuals to forget what happened causing witnesses to become unsure of what they may have seen
how can you improve the accuracy of eyewitness testimony (EWT)
the cognitive interview is used rather than the standard police interview (SPI)
what are the four events involved in a cognitive interview
mental reinstatement return witness to original external state (environment) elimination retrieval failure.
report everything: recall everything the witness possibly can no matter how irrelevant it seems.
change order: repeat order in reverse
change perspective: recall events from the perspective of someone else. commonly asked to recall from the perspective of someone involved
give research support for sensory memory
sperling (1960): had ppt recall as many letters as they could from a grid of 12 symbols which were displayed for 50ms. only able to recall 4 symbols proving sensory memory decays very quickly
give research support for short-term memory
Jacobs (1887): tested STM capacity with increasingly long lists of numbers or letters and ppt had to immediately recall them in the right order. numbers showed 9.3 capacity. letters showed 7.3 capacity
give research support for long-term memory
Bahrick et al (1975): had ppt remember names and faces from school from 50 names or faces. 90% accurate after 14 years. 60% after 47 years.
give research support for the working memory model
Baddley (1975) on phonological loop: had ppt randomly press keys without making words whilst either; reciting alphabet, counting from 1, alternating between letters and numbers
give research support for cue-dependency
Godden and Baddeley (1975): divers learned 36 unrelated words with 4 conditions.
|beach| water
recall beach | 13.5 | 8.5
recall water | 8.6 | 11.4
give research support for the weapons focus effect
Johnson and Scott (1976): ppt who were exposed to a knife had higher anxiety and were more likely to focus their attention on the weapon and not the face
give research against the weapons focus effect
Pickle (1998): had ppt watch a video of someone have a business meeting either appear empty handed or holding a non-threatening object and asked them to describe their clothes. found without object recalled better than with non-threatening object
give research against the cognitive interview (CI)
Memon et al (1994): deemed a CI was ineffective and in some cases worse than a SPI as police aren’t given sufficient training
give research support for the duration of short-term memory
Peterson and Peterson (1959):
24 psychology students had to remember meaningless three letter sequences in increasing intervals. found ppts recalled correctly 80% of the time after 3 seconds and 10% of the time after 18 seconds
give research support for anxiety as a factor affecting EWT
Yerkes and Dodson’s inverted u hypothesis (anxiety/arousal)
give research support for interference as an explanation of forgetting
Baddeley and Hitch (1977):
asked rugby players to recall the names of the teams they had faced in the previous season.
those who had been playing longer got more wrong as they had faced more teams
give research support for leading questions as a factor affecting EWT
Loftus and Palmer (1974):
had 45 American students estimate the speed of a car when it crashed in a video when the researchers used different words to describe the crash (e.g. smashed, hit, collided, bumped, contacted)
contacted - 31.8
smashed - 40.8
collided - 39.3
hit - 34
bumped - 38.1
result - the more aggressive the terminology used, the faster the estimate
conclusion - EWT may be biased depending on the terminology used during interviews
