Memory Flashcards
What is the definition of memory?
It is the faculty of the brain by which information is encoded, stored, and retrieved when needed
How does memory relate to future action?
It is the retention of information over time for the purpose of influencing future action
How many stages are involved in memory?
A three-stage process
What are the three stages of memory?
- encoding
- storage
- retrieval
What is encoding?
The process by which we take in information from sensory input and transform it
What is the purpose of encoding?
Information needs to be changed into a form that can be stored
What are the 3 ways in which information can be encoded (stored)?
- visual
- acoustic
- semantic
What is semantic processing?
This involves converting a sensory input into a meaning
How is a phone number remembered through acoustic coding?
This involves repeating the number to yourself
How is a phone number remembered through visual coding?
If you can remember the number through seeing it on a page
What is meant by storage?
The retention of information and the nature of the memory stores
What influences the nature of memory stores?
Where the information is stored
Duration - how long does the memory last for
Capacity - how much information can be stored at any time
How does storage affect retrieval of information?
The way in which information is stored affects the way it is retrieved
How does storage vary in STM and LTM?
It can only be stored briefly from 0 to 30 seconds in STM
It can be stored for a lifetime in LTM
What is involved in retrieval?
This involves getting information out of storage
If something cannot be remembered, it may be because it cannot be retrieved
How is information retrieved in STM?
It is retrieved and stored sequentially
e.g. remembering the 4th word of a list involves going through the list in order until the 4th word is reached
How is memory retrieved in LTM?
It is stored and retrieved by association
What helps to aid information retrieval?
Organising information
e.g. alphabetically, in sequences or by time
What does the multi-store memory model describe?
The flow between 3 permanent storage systems of memory:
- sensory register
- STM
- LTM
What is the sensory register?
It is where information from the senses is stored
How long is information stored in the sensory register?
Around half a second and then it is forgotten
What is meant by the sensory register being ‘modality-specific’?
Whichever sense is registered will match the way the information is held
What happens if sensory information is attended to?
It moves into short-term memory for temporary storage
It is encoded visually, acoustically or semantically
What is the capacity and duration of STM?
Capacity of 5 - 9 items
Duration of 30 seconds
How can the capacity of STM be increased?
Through ‘chunking’
What will help to retain information in the STM and consolidate it to LTM?
rehearsing information via the articulatory loop
How is information in LTM encoded?
mainly semantically
What is the capacity and duration of LTM?
Information can be stored and retrieved for up to any duration
It has a seemingly unlimited capacity
When asked to remember a list of words, what information is generally recalled better?
Information at the beginning and the end of the list
Information in the middle is commonly forgotten
What is the serial position effect?
Information presented at the beginning and the end of a list of words is recalled better regardless of how many words are in the list
What is the primacy effect?
It states how the first few items in a list are recalled more frequently than middle items
What is the recency effect?
This states how items at the end of a list are more frequently recalled than words in the middle
Why should diagnosis and treatment options be discussed at the end of a consultation?
This is the information that people are most likely to remember
Recency effect
What is echoic memory?
The sensory memory register specific to auditory information
How does echoic memory differ to visual memory?
The eyes can see the stimuli over and over but the auditory stimuli is only perceived once
Which ‘effect’ is present in echoic memory?
The recency effect
How does the duration of echoic memory differ to visual memory?
Phonological memory lingers
Visual memory does not linger as the image does not persist on the visual retina
What is iconic memory?
This is the short-term visual memories that people store when seeing something very briefly
What are the characteristics of iconic memory?
The image quickly fades
There is no recency effect
If words are written in a list rather than spoken, how does the recency effect change?
For written lists, there is no recency effect
What is the digit span?
When presented with a spoken sequence of numbers, 7 +/- 2 is the average amount that is remembered
What is chunking?
Breaking down a sequence of information into chunks or memorable blocks
How does chunking make information easier to remember?
It recodes new material into larger, more meaningful units
What happens when people are asked to count backwards for 30 seconds before recalling a list of words?
Counting backwards interferes with the ability to remember the words as the recency effect is lost
How does counting backwards affect the short-term memory?
STM has a limited capacity
Displacement occurs as the words are replaced by numbers
How does focusing on a word for a longer period of time help memory?
It allows rehearsal of the word and to provide connections with things in long-term memory
How can primacy be improved?
Increased rehearsal
e.g. repeating words in a list over and over
What are the 3 types of long-term memory?
- episodic
- semantic
- procedural
What is episodic memory?
The memory of autobiographical events that can be explicitly stated or conjured
What kind of things are examples of episodic memory?
It is a collection of past personal experiences that occurred at a particular time and place
Memory of things that you were involved in
What is semantic memory?
Ideas and concepts that are not drawn from personal experience
What types of things are examples of semantic memory?
Things that are common knowledge
e.g. names of colours, sounds of letters
What is procedural memory?
Skill-based memory that is responsible for knowing how to do things
What types of things are examples of procedural memory?
How to perform certain procedures
e.g. walking, talking, riding a bike
How is information in LTM encoded?
It involves elaborating on information and adding meaningful connections
What is the method of Loci?
Making up a story of a journey to remember information
What are examples of using the method of Loci?
luria’s S - to remember mathematical formula
a journey through the home placing objects in various locations
What is the Memory Palace?
Using spatial awareness and location to remember objects
e.g. journey through the home placing objects in various locations
Why are mnemonics used for memory?
They provide visual imagery
They follow the idea of idiosyncrasy
What is idiosyncrasy?
A characteristic, habit or mannerism that is specific to an individual
What is eidetic imagery?
Photographic memory
They can continue to see an object that is no longer objectively present
They describe it as if it was still present and they are not recalling a past event
What is synaesthesia?
Joining or the merging of senses that are not normally connected
How does synaesthesia work?
The stimulation of one sense causes an involuntary reaction in another sense
e.g. hearing colour
What is hyperthymesia?
What is it specific to?
An individual possesses a superior autobiographical memory
They can recall the vast majority of personal experiences and events in their life
What are the negatives to having hyperthymesia?
Most people have OCD to some extent
An irrepressible stream of memories impairs cognitive performance
What are the 2 derivatives of the cognitive system?
Explicit and implicit
What is meant by implicit (procedural) memory?
Where does it occur?
Information acquisition bypasses consciousness
Basal ganglia and cerebellum
What 2 types of information are implicit?
Skills
Classical conditioning
What is the process following explicit memory?
- working memory
- consolidation in the hippocampus
- long-term memory
- episodic or semantic memory
How can recall from LTM be better?
If recall is in the same context as encoding
