Memory Flashcards
What is coding in memory?
How information is processed i.e. semantically, acoustically etc.
What is the coding method for Short-Term Memory (STM)?
Coded acoustically
What is the coding method for Long-Term Memory (LTM)?
Coded semantically
What type of word lists were the groups in Baddeley (1996) asked to recall
Group 1 – Acoustically similar e.g. cat, hat, mat.
Group 2 – Acoustically dissimilar e.g. pit, cow, few.
Group 3 – Semantically similar e.g. big, grand, huge.
Group 4 – Semantically dissimilar e.g. good, huge, hot.
What were the results of STM recall with acoustically similar words?
Performed worse
What were the results of LTM recall with semantically similar words?
Performed worse
What does the study by Baddeley (1996) suggest about LTM coding?
Information is coded semantically in LTM
What is capacity in the context of memory
Amount of information that can be held in a memory store
What is the capacity of Short-Term Memory (STM)?
7±2 items (5-9)
What is the capacity of Long-Term Memory (LTM)?
Potentially unlimited
What did Jacobs (1887) find about the mean span for digits?
9.3 items
What did Jacobs (1887) find about the mean span for letters?
7.3 items
What did Miller (1956) observe about the capacity of STM?
Capacity is around 7 items
What is duration in terms of memory
Length of time information can be held in memory.
What is the duration range for Short-Term Memory (STM)?
0 to 30 seconds
What is the potential duration for Long-Term Memory (LTM)?
Potentially a lifetime
What was the method used in Peterson & Peterson’s (1959) study?
Students recalled a trigram after counting down from a 3-digit number
What was the retention interval tested in Peterson & Peterson’s study?
3, 6, 9, 12, 15 seconds
What percentage of participants recalled correctly after 3 seconds in Peterson & Peterson’s study?
90%
What percentage of participants recalled correctly after 18 seconds in Peterson & Peterson’s study?
2%
What does Peterson & Peterson’s study suggest about STM duration?
STM may have a very short duration unless rehearsed
What was the focus of Bahrick’s (1975) study?
Recall of names from a yearbook
What were the two conditions in Bahrick’s (1975) study?
Free recall and photo recognition
What was the accuracy of participants tested within 15 years of graduation for photo recognition?
90%
What was the accuracy of participants tested after 48 years for free recall?
30%
What does Bahrick’s (1975) study indicate about LTM duration?
LTM can last a very long time; potentially a lifetime
How would you structure a paragraph about the limitations for coding
P – Artificial Stimuli
E- Suggests that findings from his study has limited application.
E- Baddeley used artificial stimuli. The word lists had no personal meaning to participants. This means we should be cautious about generalising the findings to different kinds of memory tasks.
L- Therefore, validity and reliability of coding can be challenged as the research is not reliable.
How would you structure a paragraph for the strengths of duration
P- High external validity
E- Bahrick’s research into this area has high mundane realism.
E- Bahrick et al’s study used meaningful material and tested people for memories from their own lives. Recall rates are much better in this regard than meaningless tasks.
L- Therefore, ecological validity and external validity is increased.
How would you structure a paragraph for the limitations of capacity
P- Lacking internal validity
E- There could have been confounding variables that were not controlled.
E- Jacob’s study was conducted a long time ago, early research in psychology lacked adequate control e.g. participant may have been distracted while tested which could have effected their performance.
L- Results may not be accurate so reliability and validity can be questioned
What is the first component of the Multi-store model of memory and what does it do?
Sensory Register
It takes in stimuli from the environment, such as sound and smell.
How long does material last in the Sensory Register if attention is not paid?
0.5 Seconds
What are the two types of sensory stores in the Sensory Register?
- Iconic (visual)
- Echoic (sound)
There are also stores for other senses.
What is the capacity of Short-Term Memory (STM)?
7±2 (5-9)
How is information in STM primarily coded?
Acoustically
How long does information last in STM without rehearsal?
18-30 Seconds
What is maintenance rehearsal in relation to STM?
Repeating material to ourselves over and over again
What happens to material in STM if it is rehearsed long enough?
It goes into Long Term Memory (LTM)
What is the capacity of Long Term Memory (LTM)?
Infinite
What did Baherick et al find regarding LTM recall?
Many participants recognized names and faces of school classmates almost 50 years after graduating
How is information in LTM primarily coded?
Semantically
To recall material in LTM, what must happen?
It has to be transferred back to STM by retrieval
Who developed the MSM
Atkinson and Shiffrin
Draw the MSM
How would you structure a paragraph for supporting evidence for MSM
P: Supporting research evidence
E:STM and LTM are indeed qualitatively different
E: Baddeley found we tend to mix up words that are similar when we are using our STMs. But we mix up words that have similar meanings when we use LTM. Clearly showing that STM is acoustic and LTM is sematic
L: Therefore this increase the credibility and reliability of the MSM as it shows that these two memory stores are separate and independent
How would you structure a paragraph about the limitations of the MSM on the LTM?
P: There is more than one type of LTM
E: Lots of research evidence that shows LTM is unitary
E: We have one LTM for our memories about facts (Semantic). One for our memories about our lives (Episodic). Lastly one for actions, skills or basically how we do things ( Procedural)
L: Therefore the MSM is an incomplete explanation of memory
How would you strucuture a paragraph about artificial materials during research for the MSM
P: Artificial materials
E: A lot of research studies use meaningless/useless materials
E: An example would be trigrams to test our memory
L: Therefore this lowers the external validity of the research
What type of memory involves memories of past events with contextual details and emotional tone?
Episodic memory
Examples include remembering a birthday party from childhood.
What is the defining characteristic of episodic memories?
They are time stamped and retrieved consciously.
What type of memory is shared for facts and knowledge, and is not time stamped?
Semantic memory
An example is knowing that London is the capital of England.
How are semantic memories recalled?
Consciously.
What type of memory is responsible for knowing how to do things or skills?
Procedural memory
An example is knowing how to ride a bike.
How does procedural memory function?
It is unconscious and automatic.
What clinical research exists for different types of LTM
Henry Morris and Clive Wearing
There is research evidence for distinction between types of memory (declarative and procedural) from research on patients with amnesia.
Amnesic patients have difficulty in retaining episodic and they can’t store new episodic. They are unable to retain declarative information.
However, their procedural memory appears to be unaffected and they can recall skills they have already learnt and can acquire new skills.
What real life application exists for different types of LTM
Bellville et al (2006)
They found that they could train episodic memory in patients with cognitive impairment (effect episodic memory only).
Supports that different types of LTM are distinct and can also, be treated differently.
What limitation exists for different types of LTM
Cohen and Squire (1980) argues that there are only 2 types of LTM: declarative memory (which is episodic and semantic memories) which are retrieved consciously and non-declarative memories (procedural memory) which is recalled unconsciously. Therefore this challenges the idea that there are 3 types of long term memory.
What store did the Working Memory Model (WMM) replace?
Short-Term Memory (STM)
The WMM replaced the traditional understanding of STM in the multi-store model.
How does the Working Memory Model view STM?
As an active processor rather than a passive store
This perspective emphasizes that STM is involved in active processing of information.
What does the Working Memory Model suggest about the nature of STM?
It is non-unitary and has separate components that work together
This indicates that STM is made up of different systems that handle various types of information.
What is the role of the Central Executive in the WMM?
Codes all types of information and allocates tasks to slave systems
It controls attention and manages the flow of information.
What is the capacity of the Central Executive?
Very small capacity
This limited capacity requires careful management of information.
What type of information does the Visuo-spatial Sketchpad store?
Visual and/or spatial information
It is responsible for handling visual data and spatial arrangements.
What is the limited capacity of the Visuo-spatial Sketchpad?
3 or 4 objects
This limitation affects how much visual information can be processed at one time.
What are the two subdivisions of the Visuo-spatial Sketchpad?
Visual cache and Inner Scribe
These components serve different functions in processing visual information.
What does the Visual Cache do?
Codes visual data
It helps in storing visual characteristics of objects.
What is the function of the Inner Scribe?
Records the arrangement of objects in the visual fields
This is crucial for understanding spatial relationships.
What type of information does the Phonological Loop store?
Auditory (acoustic) information
It focuses on processing sounds and spoken words.
What are the two subdivisions of the Phonological Loop?
Phonological store and Articulatory process (inner voice)
These components work together to manage auditory information.
What does the Phonological Store do?
Stores the words you hear (inner ear)
It retains auditory information temporarily.
What is the function of the Articulatory Process?
Allows maintenance rehearsal and stores information for 2 seconds
This mechanism aids in keeping auditory information active.
What is the purpose of the Episodic Buffer?
Temporary store for information that integrates various types of infomation.
maintains a sense of time sequencing
It combines visual, spatial, and verbal information and maintains a sense of time sequencing.
What is the limited capacity of the Episodic Buffer?
4 chunks
This limitation affects how much integrated information can be held at one time.
How does the Episodic Buffer link working memory to LTM?
by integrating and temporarily storing information from various memory components, allowing it to be compared with and encoded into long-term memory.
This connection is crucial for forming long-term memories.
Draw the WMM
Who proposed the WMM
Alan Baddeley and Graham Hitch in 1974.
How would you structure a paragraph about supporting research for the WMM
P - Support research
E- Studies of dual task performance support existence of the VSS.
E- Baddeley and Hitch (1975) showed that participants had more difficulty doing 2 visual tasks than doing a verbal & visual task at the same time. This increased difficulty as both visual tasks compete for the same slave system.
L – Supports WMM as it means there must be a separate slave system (VSS) that processes visual input.
How would you strcutre a paragraph about issues with the central executive
P – Lack of clarity over the CE
E- Cognitive psychologists suggest that the CE is not explanatory. The CE needs to be more specific than just ‘paying attention’.
E- Psychologists believe it may consist of separate components.
L- Therefore, WMM is incomplete/not fully explained.
How would you structure a paragraph about clinical evidence for WMM
P – Clinical Evidence
E- Supports WMM as it shows STM is not unitary & shows existence of a separate visual & acoustic store.
E- KF suffered from Amnesia which effected his memory. Had poor STM ability for verbal information but could process visual information normally. His VSS was intact but his phonological store was affected
L- Therefore, the validity and reliability of the WMM is increased.
What is proactive interference?
When older memories disrupt the recall of newer memories
The degree of forgetting is greater when memories are similar, such as calling your current partner by your previous partner’s name.
What is retroactive interference?
When newer memories disrupt the recall of older memories that are already stored
An example is failing to recall your old addresses.
How does similarity affect memory interference?
Interference is worse when the memories (or learning) are similar.
What evidence exists to support interference
Thousands of lab experiments into this explanation have been carried out e.g. McGeoch and McDonald where they found support for the effects of similarity. Most of the experiments show that both types of interference are likely to be common reasons why we forget info in our LTM. This is a strength because lab experiments are highly controlled, so control the effects of irrelevant influences, thus increasing validity
What is a limitation of interference
Interference usually demonstrated in lab experiments rather than real life situations. Usually the stimulus used is a list of words- more realistic than consonant syllables but still quite different from things we remember in everyday life- e.g. usually we remember faces, birthdays, name
What real life study report exists to support interfernce
Baddeley and Hitch (1977) asked rugby players to recall the names of teams they had played so far in that season week by week. Accurate recall didn’t depend on how long ago the match took place but more importantly the number of games played in the meantime. This study shows that interference explanations can apply to some everyday situations
What is retrieval failure?
A form of forgetting that occurs when we don’t have the necessary cues to access memory.
Retrieval failure highlights the importance of cues in memory recall.
Define a cue in the context of memory.
A ‘trigger’ of information that allows us to access a memory.
Cues can be sensory stimuli or contextual information.
What does the Encoding Specificity Principle (ESP) proposed by Tulving state?
Appropriate cues must be present during both encoding and retrieval for effective memory recall.
If cues differ, forgetting is more likely.
What is context-dependent forgetting?
Forgetting that occurs when external cues at learning differ from those at recall.
This phenomenon was demonstrated by Godden & Baddeley (1975) with divers.
Describe the experiment by Godden & Baddeley (1975) and state the results.
Divers learned a list of words either underwater or on land and recalled them in the same or different environments.
They found accurate recall was 40% lower in non-matching conditions.
What were the four conditions in Godden & Baddeley’s study?
- Learn on land - recall underwater
- Learn on land - recall on land
- Learn underwater - recall underwater
- Learn underwater - recall on land
These conditions tested the impact of context on memory recall.
What is state-dependent forgetting?
Forgetting that occurs when the internal state at learning differs from the internal state at recall.
This concept was explored by Carter and Cassady (1998) using anti-histamines.
Describe the experiment by Carter and Cassady (1998).
Participants learned a list of words and prose while under the influence of an anti-histamine and recalled under varying conditions.
The study examined the effects of internal states on memory performance.
What were the four conditions in Carter and Cassady’s study?
- Learn on drug - recall off drug
- Learn on drug - recall on drug
- Learn off drug - recall off drug
- Learn off drug - recall on drug
These conditions assessed the impact of drug state on memory recall.
What was the conclusion of Carter and Cassady’s study?
Memory performance was worse in conditions where the state at learning and recall did not match.
This supports the idea of state-dependent forgetting.
What is a strength for R.F
Godden & Baddeley and Carter and Cassady. They found that accurate recall was lower in conditions that were mismatch. Therefore, for memory to be effective then the external cues as well as internal cues have to be similar at encoding and retrieval. Thus increasing the validity of the explanations.
What alternative explanations exist for R.F
There are other explanations for forgetting such as interference and Freud’s theory of repression, where we push painful memories into our unconscious mind. Therefore, this theory cannot fully explain all forgetting
What is a limitation for experiments into R.F
There are problems with supporting research as it uses artificial tasks.
Remembering a list of words is meaningless and does not reflect what memory looks like in the real-world. We remember things that are more important/meaningful to us, e.g. dates, birthdays, facts, etc.
Therefore, it makes it difficult to generalize beyond the experiment, thus lacking in ecological validity and reducing the validity of the explanation
What are the two types of misleading infomation for EWT
Leading questions and Post-event discussion
What is the key study related to leading questions in eyewitness testimony?
Loftus and Palmer 1st study
This study tests the effect of leading questions on the accuracy of eyewitness testimony.
What was the aim of the Loftus and Palmer study?
To test the effect of leading questions and whether it distorts accuracy
The study aimed to understand how different phrasing affects speed estimates.
What was the procedure in the Loftus and Palmer study?
Participants watched film clips of a car accident and answered a questionnaire
Participants were asked a critical question about the speed of the cars.
How many groups were participants split into in the Loftus and Palmer study?
5 groups
Each group was asked the critical question using different verbs.
What were the different verbs used in the critical question of the Loftus and Palmer study?
- contatcted
- hit
- bumped
- collided
- smashed
These verbs influenced participants’ speed estimates.
What was the mean estimate speed for the verb ‘Contacted’ in the Loftus and Palmer study?
31.8 mph
This reflects a lower speed estimate compared to other verbs.
What was the mean estimate speed for the verb ‘Smashed’ in the Loftus and Palmer study?
40.8 mph
This reflects a higher speed estimate influenced by the verb used.
What conclusion can be drawn from the Loftus and Palmer study?
Leading questions influence eyewitness testimony
The study demonstrates how language can alter memory recall.
What is the key study related to post-event discussion in eyewitness testimony?
Gabbert et al.
This study examines how discussions after an event affect memory recall.
What was the procedure in the Gabbert et al. study?
Pairs of participants watched a video of the same crime but saw different elements
After watching, they discussed what they saw before completing a recall test.
What percentage of participants in the Gabbert et al. study recalled aspects they hadn’t seen?
71%
This indicates significant memory conformity due to post-event discussion.
What was the outcome for the control group in the Gabbert et al. study?
There were no errors
This group did not engage in post-event discussions, highlighting the effect of discussion on memory.
What conclusion can be drawn from the Gabbert et al. study?
Witnesses go along with each other’s recollections (memory conformity)
This shows how discussion can modify individual memories.
What is a positive for Misleading infomations for EWT
Practical use for police officers and investigators- Loftus concluded that leading questions can distort memory and therefore officers should be more careful about how they phrase questions when interviewing eyewitnesses
How does population validity affect misleading questions for EWT
Individual differences /population validity
Loftus et al used students for their sample. Research has suggested that younger people generally have better recall. However, in this case, it may be that students are less experienced drivers so maybe more prone to leading questions as they’d find it harder to estimate the speed. Therefore it lacks population validity.
What is a limitation of misleading info for EWT regarding the use of artificial tasks
Watching clips of accidents are very different to watching accidents in the real world. This is largely because there is less anxiety when watching videos in a lab. As the task lacks mundane realism, it may be difficult to generalise findings to explain how leading questions effect real EWT
What key factor can have both a negative and positive affect on eyewitness testimony?
Anxiety
Anxiety can have both negative and positive effects on eyewitness testimony.
What was the identification rate for Johnson and Scott’s 1976 study regarding low anxiety conditions?
49% of participants identified the man carrying a pen
This study demonstrated how anxiety affects identification in eyewitness testimony.
What was the identification rate for participants in the high anxiety condition in Johnson and Scott’s study?
33% of participants identified the man with the paper knife
This indicates that higher anxiety can impair eyewitness identification.
What does the tunnel theory suggest about eyewitness testimony?
Witnesses’ attention narrows focus on a weapon due to it being the source of anxiety
This can lead to poorer identification of the perpetrator.
What did Yuille and Cutshall’s 1986 study find about eyewitness accuracy after a real-life shooting?
Witnesses were accurate in their accounts with little change after 5 months
This study provides evidence for the positive effect of anxiety on eyewitness testimony.
How did witnesses in Yuille and Cutshall’s study rate their stress levels?
Using a 7-point scale
This allowed researchers to correlate stress levels with accuracy.
In Yuille and Cutshall’s study, what was the relationship between reported stress levels and accuracy?
Participants with higher stress levels were more accurate
This contrasts with Johnson and Scott’s findings.
What types of details were less accurate in Yuille and Cutshall’s study?
Details such as colour, weight, and height
These specifics were often remembered less reliably despite overall accuracy.
What is the Yerkes-Dodson law?
Performance increases with arousal to a point, then decreases dramatically
This explains the relationship between anxiety and recall in eyewitness testimony.
Fill in the blank: The Yerkes-Dodson law is shaped like an _______.
inverted U
This shape illustrates the relationship between arousal and performance.
How might have Johnsons and Scotts experiment have had low internal validity
Johnson and Scott experiment may be testing surprise rather than anxiety. They may be more surprised by the weapon than scared. Pickel (1998) conducted an experiment using scissors, a handgun, a wallet or a raw chicken as the held-held items in a hairdressing salon video. Eyewitness accuracy was significantly poorer in the high usualness conditions. This suggests that the weapon focus effect is due to unusualness rather than anxiety/threat and therefore tells us nothing specifically about the effects of anxiety on EWT
What is an issue in using field studies to research Anxiety on EWT
Researchers usually interview real-life eyewitnesses sometime after the event. Between the event and the interview, the participant could have experienced anything that the researcher has no control over, such as accounts they may have read or seen in the media, the effects of being interviewed by police etc. This is a limitation of field research as extraneous variables may be responsible for the accuracy of recall
What is an advantage of using field experiments such as Yuille and Cutshall on anxiety on EWT
+High external validity
Field experiments like Yuille and Cuthsall have higher external validity, as these were real eyewitnesses to a real crime. This means that we can use findings of such studies and generalise them more easily to EWT in the real world
What did Fisher & Geisleman create to improve the accuracy of eyewitness testimony and why?
Cognitive interview
argued EWT could be improved by better interviewing techniques.
This highlights the importance of methodical approaches in gathering accurate eyewitness accounts.
What is the first technique proposed to improve eyewitness testimony?
Report Everything
This technique emphasizes the importance of recalling even small details that may seem insignificant.
Why is recalling small details important in eyewitness testimony?
It may cue memory of an important item.
Small details can trigger the recall of larger, more significant memories.
What does the technique ‘Reinstate the Context’ involve?
Recalling emotions during the event and going back into the scene.
This technique utilizes emotions and context as cues to aid memory retrieval.
How does ‘Reinstate the Context’ help eyewitnesses?
It makes memories more accessible.
Emotions and environmental context can enhance memory recall.
What is the purpose of the technique ‘Reverse the Order’?
To prevent expectations of how events occurred and dishonesty.
Recalling events in a different chronological order helps mitigate biases.
What should witnesses do in the ‘Change Perspective’ technique?
Recall the incident from other people’s perspectives.
This approach aims to disrupt the effects of expectations and schemas on recall.
What is the goal of the ‘Change Perspective’ technique?
To ensure the eyewitness testimony is accurate.
This technique helps reduce the influence of personal biases on memory.
What is a strength of using CI
+CI is effective
A meta-analysis by Kohnken et al (1999) combining findings from 50 studies found that enhanced CI consistently provided more correct information than the standard interview used by police. There is therefore strong evidence that the use of the CI for EWT is beneficial for society as a whole
Why might police be reluctant to use CI
Police may be reluctant as CI may take too long. More time is needed to establish rapport with the witness and allow them to relax.
Therefore, its unlikely that the proper version of the cognitive interview is used.
Why might CI be flawed
Milne and Bull’s (2002) research on the cognitive interview (CI) found that combining the “report everything” and “context reinstatement” stages significantly improved recall compared to using these stages alone, or other CI techniques
Therefore, not all elements are equally effective, and maybe do not all need to be used.
