Memory and short term/ working memory Flashcards
what is memory
processes involved in retaining, retrieving and using information about stimuli, images, events, ideas and skills after the original information is no longer present
encoding
incoming information is acquired and processed
storage
a record of the eoncoded information is stroed in the brain
retrieval
the information is recovered from the memory stored and brought to consciousess or used to execute a behaviour like a motor act
when memory fails =
forgetting can occur at any point in encoding storage retrieval
caveats of stages of memory theory
computer theory of encoding, storage and retrival
in reality not as neat and independe as in the computer
new learning is dependent on knowledge
successful aquisition is dependent on how that information is to be used later
explain the modal model of memory
computer as a model for human cognition memory is an integrated systme that processes information -aquire, store and retrieve information -components of memory do not act in isolation memory has a limited capacity -space -resources -time
how the modal model works diagram
incoming info
sensory memory
short term memory (maintained via rehersal
to either long term memory or lost
the retrieved from long term memory to the short term memory
in modal memory what are control processes
active processes that can be controlled by the person
- rehersal
- strategies used to make a stimulus more memoreable
- strategies of attention
was the modal model of memory special
yes cited to a huge extent
was a benchmark, changed the way memory was studied
in modal memory model what does the sensory memory do
short lived sensory memory registers all of most information that hits our sensory receptors
visual = iconic
auditory = echoic
information decays very quickly
holds large amounts of information for a short period of time
holds the information very accutrately for a short period of time for initial processing and fills in the blanks
eg persistence of vision due to sensory memory - sparklers trail of light
sperling’s modal memory - sensory memory study
measured capacity and duration of sensory memory
array of letters flashed on screen
then tone signalling to remember top middle of bottom (after letters have dissappeared)
when had to whole report - remember whole array = 4.5/12 letters
partial report - 3.3/4 letters for any row
delayed partial report - performance decreases rapidly
modal memory model
short term memory explained
sotres small amounts of information for a brief duration
includes both new information received from the sensory store and information recalled rfom long term memory
modal memory model
long term memory explained
stores unlimited amount of information for an unlimited period of time
no proof for this claim
differences between STM and LTM in modal model memory
capacity
duration
getting infor into or out of STM is easier than LTM
benefits of cues and hints
what is working memory
similar concept to short term memory
limited capacity system for temporary storge and manipulation of information for complex tasks such as comprehension, learning and reasoning
how does working memory differ from original definition of STM
STM is a single component, WM = multiple parts
STM holds info for a brief period of time
WM is concerned with processing and manipulation of information that occurs during complex cognition
what is the primacy effect
better memory for first few items as they were said first in the list
memory rehersal allowed them to transfer from WM to LTM
then when testes items were retrieved from LTM
what is the recency effect
better memory for the last few words in a list
items still fresh in WM
retrieval directly from WM at test
very easy to get info out of WM
name some evidence we have for modal model memory
serial position curve the remebering of items in lists of words depend on their position in a list so primacy effect dip in remembering huge spike at end due to recency effect
how did to prove recency effect
make participants do a filler task after finishing hearing the words
primacy effect stays in tact, recency effect dissapears
what does slow presentation of words do in serial position recall
same recency effect
memory for the list is better as more time to reherse all the words
retrieval from LTM specifically activated the
hippocampus
retrieval from WM specifically activates the
perirhinal cortex
how to measure the duration of WM
read three letters then a number begin counting backwards by threes after a set time recall tree letters delay of three seconds = 80% performance 18 second delay = 10% performance conc - working memory, when rehersal is prevented holds infor 15-20 seconds
what was the original theory that described working memory duration and what is the alternative explanation
decay of information
proactive interference - occurs when information learned previously interferes with learning new information
how was proactive information demonstrated
best on first trisl
got worse after many trials
how can we measure the capacity of WM
digit span test
typical recall = 5-8 items
what improves WM capacity
chunking - small units can be combined into larger meaningful units
chunking study
trained college student with average memory ability to use chunking
initial digit span of 7
230 one hour training session
79 digits by chunking them into meaningufl chunks
also chess pieces on a board (masters vs beginners) - master is better at reproducing actual game positions but masters performance drops to the level of a beginner when arranged randomly
more modern measurement of WM capacity
operation span - measures WM when it is working, not as if it is a box that just holds digits or chunks
reading span
participant reads sentences and remebers last word of each sentence
continue to add sentences until limit is located
have to store some material while simulatanoeuly working with other material
operation span example
perform simple arithmetic while remebering words
operation spans shows a strong positive correlation with…
verbal comprehension tasks
verbal SAT
reasoniing ability tests and IQ tests
individual differences in working memory study set up
determined participants working memory
high and low capacity working memory groups
task = remember the orientations of only the red intem in the visual field indicated by the arrow
ERP - event related potential measured to simple and complex arrays
individual differences in working memory
results
performance is the same when only the red rectangles are present but adding two blue rectangles increased response for the low capacity group but not high
high capacity participants were more efficient at ignoring the distractors (less activation)
is this due to focus or more working memory capacity
what do we mean by coding memory
the way information is represented
what do we mean by physiological coding
how stimulus is represented by the firing of neurons
what do we mean by mental coding
how stimulus or expeience is represented in the mind
- visual
- auditory
- semantic
explain auditory coding study (Conrad) and conclusion about working memory we draw from it
participants briefly saw target letters and asked to write them down
errors occured most often with letters that sounded alike so f and s not e (visual error)
so wm is primarily auditory
explain visual coding (della sala) study and conclusion about working memory we draw from it
presented visual info that is difficult to verbalise (grid with some coloured black)
participants could recreate patterns of up to 9 items
so wm is also visual
explain semantic coding (wickens et al) study and conclusion about working memory we draw from it
participants listened to 3 words
counted backwards for 15 seconds
attempted to recall 3 words
multiple trials = proactive interference so performance was steadily decreasing
on trial 4 one group memorized words from a different category
so relased from proactive interference and memory increased
indicates participants used meaning of words in their processing
wm is semantic
baddeley and hitch working memory model
working memory is divided into 3 components
- central executive
- visuospatial buffer (visuospatial sketchpad)
- articulatory loop (phonological loop)
role of phonological loop
deals with verbal and auditory info in wm
phonological similarity effect - confuse words that sound the same
evidence for specialised language portion of wm = loop
word length effect
memory for lists of words better for short than long words
takes longer to reherse long words by subvocal speech and to produce during recall
articulatory supression
prevention of rehersing words to be remembered (eg by saying the the the the…)
reduces memory span
elimate word-length effect
reduces phonological similarity effect for reading words
visuospatial sketchpad
visual and spatial bit of wm
used for visual imagery, mental rotation etc
Brooks exp 1 visuospatial sketchpad experiments
memorize sentence and consider each word mentally
response is either phonological = yes or no to noun or not
visuospatial = point to y or n if noun or not
results - pointing to your answer was easier
why
task involved the phonological loop
verbal response also involved phonological loop
conducting 2 verbal tasks overloaded the phonological loop
Brooks exp 2 visuospatial sketchpad experiments
visualise capital letter F starting at top left corner
response is either phonological = say out if it is in an exterior corner or in if interior
visuospatial = point to out if exterior or point to in if interior
results - speaking your answers was easier than pointing
why
task involved visuospatial sketch pad
pointing response also involves visuospatial sketchpad
conducting 2 visuospatial tasks overloaded the visuospatial sketchpad
conclusions about wm from Brooks experiments
if task and response on same wm component = performance is worse than if distributed between diff components
wm is set up to ptocess different types of info simultaneously
wm has trouble when similar types of info presented at the same time
= task-specific resource
central executive
attention controller - focus, divide and switch attention
controls supression of irrelevant info
also supresses habit response when necessary
plan and set goals
baddelet revised wm model
episodic buffer
-backup store that communicates with LTM and wm
holds info longer + greater capacity than phonological loop or visuospatial sketchpad
wm and the brain
prefrontal cortex = processes incoming visual and auditory info
-monkeys without prefrontal cortex = difficulty holding info in wm and perform at 50% in delayed response task (move eye to where square was)
monkey study of working memory and the brain (funahashi)
delay response task again
single cell unit recording from prefrontal cortex
neurons responded when stimulus was flashed in a particular location and during delay
info remains available via these neurons for as long as they continue to fire
name the 2 types of rehersal we have
maintenance
relational or elaborative
explain maintenance rehersal
reciting
maintains info but unlikley to transfer to ltm
eg repeating a phone number
eg we have seen pennies before but dont know which one is right for sure
explain relational or elaborative rehersal
linking
more likely to transfer to ltm
levels of processing theory
how memory enters ltm
memory depends on how info is encoded
intentional vs incidental
-intention = trying to leanr
-incidental = didn’t mean to learn
depth of processing
-shallow processing = superficial, little attention to meaning (poor memory)
-deep processing = close attention to meaning (good memory)
effect of level of processing for entering ltm
strong
eg told to learn the words or deep processing like how pleasant imagery (pretty much the same remembering) but count or search for letters is poor memory
effect of learning intent for entering ltm
no difference between deep processing and learn this instructions
what do we mean by indirect effect of intention to learn
when people intend to learn, they often use strategies that involve deeper processing
why does deeper processing aid memory
depth of processig promotes recall by facilitating later retrieval
- learning = establishing indexing, a path to the information
- connections between to-be-remembered items facilitates retrieval
elaborate sentences and memory
elaborate sentences aid memory
perhaps elaborate sentences = richer retrieval paths
how organization could be key to memory
key to creating connections in the to-be-remembered material
we memorize well when we find order in the material
mnemonics improve memory through organization
popular mnemonic systems
peg-wrod -items hung on a system of well known pegs first letter mnemonics SIGECAPS mnemonics work!
how we remember non-arbitrary material
highly dependent on understanding material
eg ambigious pictures are understood and remembered better if they are identified
what matters when encoding situation
what memorizer was doing at the time of exposure
the background knowledge of the memorizer
are aquisition, retriveal and storage easily separable
no
new learning is grounded in previously learnt (stored) knowledge
effective learning depends on how the information will later be retrieved
concept is evident in many new models of memory
cued recall
increased performance over free recall
retrieval cues most effective when created by the person who uses them
which results in a stronger memory trace = re-reading or testing and why
in the short term re-reading does best
but in the long term being tested does best
