memory - paper one Flashcards

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1
Q

define encoding

A

taking information into memory and changing it into a form that can be stored

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2
Q

define storage

A

holding information in a memory system

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3
Q

define retrieval

A

recovering information from storage

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4
Q

what is episodic memory?+ give an example

A

unique memories which are concerned with personal experiences or events

  1. remembering where you went on holiday last summer
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5
Q

what is procedural memory? + give an example

A

our memory for carrying out complex skills, motor skills

  1. how to tie a shoelace or how to play the piano
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6
Q

what is semantic memory? + give an example

A

memories which are concerned with general knowledge

  1. knowing the Paris is the capital of France
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7
Q

what is the multi-model store of memory?

A

the theory of memory that suggests information passes through a series of memory stores

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8
Q

what is the first store in the MSM

A

the sensory store

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9
Q

what is the capacity, coding and duration of the SENSORY STORE

A

Coding = the same way in which it is received from the senses

Capacity = very limited

Duration = less than one second

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10
Q

what is the capacity, coding and duration of the SHORT TERM MEMORY STORE

A

Coding = mainly acoustic

Capacity = approx. 7 bits of information

Duration = up to 30 seconds

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11
Q

what is the capacity, coding and duration of the LONG TERM MEMORY STORE

A

Coding = mainly semantic

capacity = unlimited

duration = unlimited

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12
Q

how is information transferred into the short term store

A

via attention

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13
Q

how it information transferred from the short term to the long term store

A

through rehearsal or it will be forgotten

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14
Q

how can we access information from the long term memory?

A

via retrieval

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15
Q

evaluation - can you give two negatives for the MSM

A
  1. The MSM does not explain how it is possible to remember some information without rehearsing it or why rehearsed information can be forgotten
  2. The MSM is an oversimplified account of memory, which does not provide detail as to the nature of each memory type
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16
Q

evaluation - can you give a positive for the MSM

A

The MSM has been supported by both lab experiments and single case studies of brain-damaged patients, the results of which have pointed to there being two separate storage facilities for STM and LTM.

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17
Q

what is the serial position effect?

A

the chances of recalling any item depends on it’s position on the list

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18
Q

what is the primacy effect?

A

more of the information at the start is remembered then the middle and the end.

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19
Q

what is the recency effect?

A

more of the information at the end is remembered better than the start or middle

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20
Q

what is effort after meaning?

A

making sense of something after it has happened

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21
Q

what is reconstructive memory?

A

altering our recollection of things so that they make more sense

22
Q

what is a study to support the theory of reconstructive memory?

A

Bartletts War of the Ghosts study

23
Q

can you describe the theory of reconstructive memory?

A

Reconstructive memory is a theory of memory that states that memories consist not only of what we encode and store but is affected by prior knowledge in the form of schemas. A schema is a pre-existing mental representation or expectation of something based on prior knowledge

24
Q

can you give two positive evaluation points of the theory of reconstructive memory?

A
  1. Research into eyewitness testimony (particularly that of Elizabeth Loftus) highlights how important it is to avoid witnesses in a criminal trial giving unreliable accounts of what they observed, thus reconstructive memory has good application
  2. was proven to be correct through Bartletts war of the ghosts study
25
Q

can you give on negative evaluation point for the theory of reconstructive memory

A

It is almost impossible to measure how schemas may impact memory as:
each person’s schemas will be unique to them
schemas cannot be observed or quantified

26
Q

what are the two types of interference

A

retroactive and proactive

27
Q

define retroactive interference

A

when new information gets in the way of remembering old information

28
Q

can you give an example of retroactive interference

A

only being able to remember your new postcode when trying to remember your old one

29
Q

what is proactive interference

A

when old information gets in the way of remembering new information

30
Q

can you give an example of proactive interference

A

driving on the wrong side of the road when in a new country

31
Q

what are false memories?

A

remembering something that never happened

32
Q

what is context?

A

the general setting or environment in which activities happen

33
Q

what are standardised procedures?

A

a set order of carrying out a study that is applied to all participants when nessesarry

34
Q

what do studies show about context and the recall of information

A

it is higher if learning and recall take place in the same place

35
Q

what was the aim of Murdock’s serial position curve study?

A

to see how to recall of lists of words relates to the serial position curve

36
Q

what was the study design of Murdock’s serial position curve study?

A

. lab study
. control over extraneous variables
. procedures were standardised to ensure replicability

37
Q

what was the method of Murdock’s serial position curve study?

A

16 pps. were presented with a list of 20 words at the rate of one word per second

once they heard all 20 words they were asked to recall as many words as they could remember from the list in any order

they were given 90 seconds to recall all the words

this test was repeated over 80 times over a few days with the same pps.

a different list of words was used each time

38
Q

what were the results of Murdock’s serial position curve study?

A

the words at the beginning of the list were remembered better than the words in the middle and the end (the primacy effect) and the words at the end of the list were recalled better than the words at the start and middle of the list ( the recency effect)

however the words in the middle were not remembered very well at all

39
Q

what was the conclusion of Murdock’s serial position curve study?

A

the primacy effect occurs because those words had been rehearsed and moved on into the long term memory

the recency effect occurs because the words were readily available in the short term memory

the words in the middle were not recalled well because they weren’t in any store

40
Q

give a positive evaluation for Murdock’s serial position curve study

A

this study is important because provided evidence for the existence of separate long and short term stores just like the MSM suggested

41
Q

give two negative evaluation points for Murdock’s serial position curve study

A
  1. remembering lists of words is an unusual task and people do not use there memory for things like this in the real world, therefore this study lacks ecological validity
  2. Murdock’s pps. were all a similar age and were studying psychology - this means the results cannot be generalised because they might have produced different results to people who weren’t studying psychology
42
Q

what was the aim of Bartlett’s War of the Ghosts study

A

to see if people who were given an unfamiliar story to remember would alter the information so it made more sense to them

43
Q

what was the study design of Bartlett’s War of the Ghosts study

A

. lab study
. had control over extraneous variables
. all procedures were standardised to ensure replicability
. they were all undergrad students at Cambridge

44
Q

what was the method of Bartlett’s War of the Ghosts study

A

Bartlett asked 20 participants (who were students) to read the ‘War of the Ghosts’ story, as he knew it would be unfamiliar to them. It was a story based on Native American culture that would be strange to people from Western cultures because it contained supernatural concepts and its structure was quite unusual.

Bartlett asked the participants to tell the story as though it were Chinese whispers. This was done over various periods of time, as Bartlett was also interested in how the memory of the story would alter over time.

45
Q

what were the results of Bartlett’s War of the Ghosts study

A

these details were omitted after doing this 10 times:

  1. the passages became shorter
  2. canoes were changed to boats
  3. paddling was changed to rowing
  4. the order of events was changed
46
Q

what was the conclusion of Bartlett’s War of the Ghosts study

A

concluded that our memory is not an exact copy of what we hear. it is distorted by what we already know about the world. therefore, our memory is influenced by our own beliefs and stereotypes

47
Q

gave a positive evaluation point for Bartlett’s War of the Ghosts study

A

Bartlett’s study was one of the first pieces of research to highlight the role of schema in reconstructive memory e.g. two people who witness the same event may give very different accounts of what they have seen

48
Q

gave a negative evaluation point for Bartlett’s War of the Ghosts study

A
  1. his is very dated research:
    University students in the UK today are much more aware of wider multicultural issues (such as Native American folklore) than they were in the 1930s

2.It is unclear as to whether the memory distortions were the product of schematic interference or individual differences such as:
poor memory generally
lack of attention
personal learning style

49
Q

evaluate the theory of reconstructive memory - positive

A
  1. There is research evidence to support the idea that people add effort after meaning when recalling
    events. For example, in Bartlett’s ‘War of the ghosts’ study, participants changed parts of the story
    when they retold it, showing that memories are reconstructed
  2. It helps us understand why two different people, such as eyewitnesses, can give very different
    versions of the same events. Both have reconstructed the events in different ways
50
Q

evaluate the theory of reconstructive memory - negative

A
  1. Not all memories are reconstructed. Research evidence shows that important personal events such
    as our first day at school, are often accurately remembered.