memory - paper one Flashcards
define encoding
taking information into memory and changing it into a form that can be stored
define storage
holding information in a memory system
define retrieval
recovering information from storage
what is episodic memory?+ give an example
unique memories which are concerned with personal experiences or events
- remembering where you went on holiday last summer
what is procedural memory? + give an example
our memory for carrying out complex skills, motor skills
- how to tie a shoelace or how to play the piano
what is semantic memory? + give an example
memories which are concerned with general knowledge
- knowing the Paris is the capital of France
what is the multi-model store of memory?
the theory of memory that suggests information passes through a series of memory stores
what is the first store in the MSM
the sensory store
what is the capacity, coding and duration of the SENSORY STORE
Coding = the same way in which it is received from the senses
Capacity = very limited
Duration = less than one second
what is the capacity, coding and duration of the SHORT TERM MEMORY STORE
Coding = mainly acoustic
Capacity = approx. 7 bits of information
Duration = up to 30 seconds
what is the capacity, coding and duration of the LONG TERM MEMORY STORE
Coding = mainly semantic
capacity = unlimited
duration = unlimited
how is information transferred into the short term store
via attention
how it information transferred from the short term to the long term store
through rehearsal or it will be forgotten
how can we access information from the long term memory?
via retrieval
evaluation - can you give two negatives for the MSM
- The MSM does not explain how it is possible to remember some information without rehearsing it or why rehearsed information can be forgotten
- The MSM is an oversimplified account of memory, which does not provide detail as to the nature of each memory type
evaluation - can you give a positive for the MSM
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.
what is the serial position effect?
the chances of recalling any item depends on it’s position on the list
what is the primacy effect?
more of the information at the start is remembered then the middle and the end.
what is the recency effect?
more of the information at the end is remembered better than the start or middle
what is effort after meaning?
making sense of something after it has happened
what is reconstructive memory?
altering our recollection of things so that they make more sense
what is a study to support the theory of reconstructive memory?
Bartletts War of the Ghosts study
can you describe the theory of reconstructive memory?
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
can you give two positive evaluation points of the theory of reconstructive memory?
- 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
- was proven to be correct through Bartletts war of the ghosts study
can you give on negative evaluation point for the theory of reconstructive memory
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
what are the two types of interference
retroactive and proactive
define retroactive interference
when new information gets in the way of remembering old information
can you give an example of retroactive interference
only being able to remember your new postcode when trying to remember your old one
what is proactive interference
when old information gets in the way of remembering new information
can you give an example of proactive interference
driving on the wrong side of the road when in a new country
what are false memories?
remembering something that never happened
what is context?
the general setting or environment in which activities happen
what are standardised procedures?
a set order of carrying out a study that is applied to all participants when nessesarry
what do studies show about context and the recall of information
it is higher if learning and recall take place in the same place
what was the aim of Murdock’s serial position curve study?
to see how to recall of lists of words relates to the serial position curve
what was the study design of Murdock’s serial position curve study?
. lab study
. control over extraneous variables
. procedures were standardised to ensure replicability
what was the method of Murdock’s serial position curve study?
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
what were the results of Murdock’s serial position curve study?
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
what was the conclusion of Murdock’s serial position curve study?
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
give a positive evaluation for Murdock’s serial position curve study
this study is important because provided evidence for the existence of separate long and short term stores just like the MSM suggested
give two negative evaluation points for Murdock’s serial position curve study
- 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
- 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
what was the aim of Bartlett’s War of the Ghosts study
to see if people who were given an unfamiliar story to remember would alter the information so it made more sense to them
what was the study design of Bartlett’s War of the Ghosts study
. lab study
. had control over extraneous variables
. all procedures were standardised to ensure replicability
. they were all undergrad students at Cambridge
what was the method of Bartlett’s War of the Ghosts study
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.
what were the results of Bartlett’s War of the Ghosts study
these details were omitted after doing this 10 times:
- the passages became shorter
- canoes were changed to boats
- paddling was changed to rowing
- the order of events was changed
what was the conclusion of Bartlett’s War of the Ghosts study
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
gave a positive evaluation point for Bartlett’s War of the Ghosts study
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
gave a negative evaluation point for Bartlett’s War of the Ghosts study
- 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
evaluate the theory of reconstructive memory - positive
- 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 - 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
evaluate the theory of reconstructive memory - negative
- Not all memories are reconstructed. Research evidence shows that important personal events such
as our first day at school, are often accurately remembered.
