Mental Representation

Question 1

Levels of Mental Rep (2)

Answer 1

1. Visual
2. Verbal

• for both: mem for meaning is better than memory for the actual words (verbatim/style)
• Depends on how attention is allocated – Explicit instructions – Implicit cues
• Practical implications – Cognitive economy

Question 2

Nature of Meaning Based Rep

Perception vs. Abstract Ideas

Answer 2

Perception: Perceptual details represented

Abstract ideas
– Perceptual details are stripped away – Propositions, networks of propositions

Question 3

Proposition(al Network)

Answer 3

Smallest unit of info that can stand alone w/ truth value – (judged as T or F)

• Words are more strongly connected in memory when they come from same proposition.

Question 4

Propositional network Exps

Answer 4

“Children who are slow eat bread that is cold” Exp

• Studyphase:Memorize this sentence
  • Test phase:Given cue X from sentence, respond with 1st word from sentence that comes to mind
• Results: Ps almost always recalled cold rather than slow
• Conclusion: Connections b/t concepts in memory depend on membership in props than phys position in sentence

Question 5

Semantic Network

basic assumptions

Answer 5

How conceptual knowledge is organized
• made up of nodes and link

• node represents a category
• link is category membership (“Is a”)
• No redundancy for cognitive economy
• Categories developed through experience. Likely to be similar across ind.

Question 6

Spreading Activation in Semantic Network

Answer 6

• When concept encountered, nodes activated
• activation primes nearby nodes
• spreads via links
• decays w/ distance & time

Question 7

Testing Semantic Activation

Answer 7

• Present the same prime concept with different Targets
• Target processing should be affected by its distance from prime in the network

Question 8

Canary Sem Act Exp

Answer 8

T/F Statement verification; DV = RT for correct “True”

• 1. A canary is a canary
• 2. A canary is a bird.
• 3. A canary is an animal.

W/ statement verif., pattern of RTs mirrors patterns from free assoc studies

• *Typical category members more strongly assoc w/ the category than are less typical members
• *Frequently encountered properties are stored w/ category even if they can be inferred from higher level

Question 9

Schema

Answer 9

Highly elaborated categories w/ in semantic net –

• Many exposures to instances
• Slot structure: Attributes w/ typical “default” values

Question 10

Script

Answer 10

• “Event Schemas”
• elaborated events w/in the semantic net
• ex: restaurant, dr. office
• Activation of a schema/script primes assoc attributes + default values
  • This activation affects how we interpret/recall info (Filling/inferring details)

Question 11

Schema/Script stereotype activation

Answer 11

• Reconstructing memories as more schema- consistent
• Info stays in foreground when relevant to current script; irrelevant falls to background