MODULE 5 Flashcards
What is explicit longterm memory?
Declarative memory- its memory that you can consciously declare, like facts or events.
How are explicit and implicit longterm memory systems different?
explicit memory involves conscious recall, like remembering a historical fact, while implicit memory is unconscious and automatic
Episodic memory is a type of ____ memory
explicit
semantic memory is a type of ___ memory
explicit
How is explicit memory typically measured?
explicit memory is measured using recall tests or recognition tests.
what is recall tests
retrieving information without cues
what is recognition test
requires identifying previously learned information from a list of options.
Key difference between recognition/recall tests for LTM vs. STM/WM:
for STM/WM, recognition and recall involve testing recenlty learned information, while LTM, they assess information stored for a longer duration
Which is harder: free recall or serial recall for a word list?
Serial recall is harder because it requires recalling the list in the exact order.
What is implicit long-term memory?
Implicit memory is unconscious memory that influences thoughts or behaviors without conscious awareness.
Types of implicit memory:
procedural memory
priming
classical conditioning
what is procedural memory?
Skills and habits, for example, riding a bike.
What is priming?
Improved performance based on prior exposure for example, recognizing a word faster after seeing it.
what is classical conditioning?
Associative learning, for example, Pavlov’s dog salivating to a bell.
Why/how is speed of word naming a measures of implicit memory?
faster naming suggests prior exposure.
why/how is word fragment completion a measure of implicit memory?
Word fragment completion is a measure of implicit memory because it assesses a person’s ability to recognize and process information from previous experiences without conscious awareness or intentional recall
What is the lexical decision task?
A task where participants decide if a string of letters is a word or non-word.
How does the lexical decision task a measure of implicit memory?
Faster response to related words (e.g., nurse after doctor) shows implicit priming effects.
Can a cued recall task be used as a measure of implicit memory – why or why not?
No, because cued recall involves conscious retrieval, which aligns with explicit memory.
Explicit memory =
Declarative memory.
Implicit memory
= Non-declarative memory.
What is visual coding?
Mental imagery, for example picturing a map.
what is auditory coding?
sound-based representation, for example like remembering a melody
what is semantic coding?
is a process in memory where we encode and store information based on its meaning rather than its physical features, such as its appearance (visual) or sound (acoustic).
What is an of evidence that there is auditory coding in WM?
The phonological similarity effect is the confusion of similar-sounding items.
evidence of visual coding in WM?
Visual recall tasks: Remembering the arrangement of shapes or colors.
Explain how Wicken’s experiments with proactive interference and release from proactive interference
provides evidence for semantic coding in WM
Proactive interference (PI): Memory performance decreased as trials repeated within the same category (e.g., fruits only).
Release from PI: When participants switched categories (e.g., professions to fruits), performance improved, showing STM can process meaning.
What type of coding is typical for LTM?
Semantic coding is typical in LTM, which is focused on meanings rather than specific details.
How does Sach’s study provide evidence for semantic coding in LTM?
Participants remembered the general meaning of a passage but forgot specific wording.
explain Tulving’s distinction between knowing versus remembering
Knowing: Semantic memory, no personal experience.
Remembering: Episodic memory, tied to personal experience.
explain K. C. - who is he, what is his impairment
Impaired WM, Intact LTM - Shows that both systems can exist independently of one or the other.
explain Italian patient - who is she, what is her impairment
impaired semantic memory (e.g., facts and word meanings) while episodic memory remained functional (e.g., recalling daily activities).
explain Changes in semantic and episodic memory with aging
Episodic Memory: Deteriorates more rapidly with age, particularly for tasks involving free recall.
Semantic Memory: Remains stable or even increases until around age 60–65, then declines more gradually.
What is evidence that semantic memory can influence our episodic?
Semantic Knowledge Enhances Episodic Memory: Pre-existing knowledge influences how we perceive and remember new experiences.
how does episodic memories become semantic?
Over time, personal experiences can lose their specific details and context, becoming abstracted into general knowledge (e.g., learning facts about Paris through multiple visits or studies).
What is the difference between autobiographical memories and personal semantic memories?
Autobiographical memory refers to memory for specific personal experiences, and personal semantic memories are more like facts or knowledge about your life that are not tied to specific events or episodes.
What is the difference between remembering and knowing (familiarity)?
Remembering = Vivid, specific, tied to an event (episodic memory).
Knowing = General recognition, no specific context (familiarity).
Describe a study showing evidence for semanticization of remote memories.
Petrican et al. (2010):
Older adults showed that episodic memory (“remember” responses) for public events decreased significantly for events 40–50 years in the past compared to recent events.
Semantic memory (“know” responses) for these same events was more stable over time, indicating that while the episodic components of memory fade, semantic knowledge persists.
Older memories lose episodic details and become more semantic.- As time passes, episodic memories tend to lose their vividness and detailed context, while semantic memories are retained more robustly.
Identify an example of procedural memory for Clive Wearing, piano;
Clive lost the ability to form new memories due to damage to his hippocampus, yet he could still play the piano despite having no memory of previous performances. This highlights procedural memory’s independence from episodic memory.
identify an example of procedural memory for mirror drawing and HM
H.M., who also suffered from memory loss after a brain surgery, could learn new skills despite having no memory of the learning process. One task was mirror drawing, where participants trace an image seen in a mirror. Though H.M. couldn’t remember previous sessions, he improved with practice, demonstrating procedural memory at work.
identify an example of procedural memory for K.C. and library work:
Severe damage to the hippocampus led to the loss of episodic memory, but semantic memory remained intact. He successfully shelved books in a library.
What is repetition priming?
Faster or better performance on tasks after prior exposure. This occurs when exposure to a stimulus makes it easier and faster to process the same or a related stimulus later. The primed response happens without any conscious recollection of the first exposure.
Describe the lexical decision task and explain why/how this measures priming
In a task where participants must quickly decide if a string of letters is a word or not, they respond faster to words they have seen previously (“bird” shown before will make the second presentation of “bird” faster than a new word like “mask”).
Describe how a study must be conducted in order to use a word completion task as a measure of priming
participants are asked to respond to stimuli (e.g., complete word fragments) without directly recalling the specific experiences that influenced their response. The goal is to observe changes in behavior that result from previous exposure without the participant consciously remembering the initial learning event. Present fragments of words previously seen; faster completion indicates priming.
Describe the Graf, Shimamura and Squire experiment 1985 (Korsakoff’s patients and controls)- word recall
(explicit) or word completion (implicit) and results.
The explicit memory recall showed that the amnesic group remembered fewer words than the other groups.
in the implicit memory test, amnesic patients performed just as well as the control groups, completing word fragments with words they had previously seen. This demonstrated that priming operates without conscious awareness.
Describe the Perfect and Askew experiment - the priming experiment with ads
Participants rated the advertisements more favorably if they had been previously exposed to them, even though they could not consciously remember the ads.
What is the propaganda effect? Is this an example of priming – why or why not?
propaganda effect, where repeated exposure to information leads to more positive attitudes, even without explicit memory of the original exposure. he propaganda effect can be considered a form of priming because it relies on prior exposure to influence people’s judgments, without them consciously realizing it
What is classical conditioning?
Classical conditioning is a learning process in which a neutral stimulus (like a bell) becomes associated with an unconditioned stimulus (like food) that naturally triggers a response (such as salivation). Over time, the neutral stimulus alone can trigger the conditioned response.
Describe the experiment by Watson using eye puffs and how this shows classical conditioning
Explain the real-life example (police ticket and country road) from the text. Why do they say this “doesn’t illustrate implicit memory per se”?
conditioning in real life example: Associating a specific road with anxiety (conscious memory involved, so not purely implicit). This example illustrates the classical conditioning of emotions but doesn’t illustrate implicit memory per se, because they were aware of what was causing the conditioned response. (conscious memory involved, so not purely implicit).
If I sit in the same place when I study as when I take the exam:
encoding specifiy: It can improve recall because being in the same environment provides contextual cues that trigger memory retrieval.
I work throughout the semester rather than cram right before the exam:
Spaced practice (Spacing effect).
Improves recall by strengthening memory connections over time instead of overwhelming short-term memory.
Repeating information over and over again:
Maintenance rehearsal. Limited improvement for recall of exact facts but less effective for deep understanding because it doesn’t involve meaningful connections.
Linking new information to previously stored information:
Elaborative encoding. Significantly improves recall by creating meaningful associations, making retrieval easier.
the spacing effect:
It improves recall because spreading out learning sessions strengthens memory traces and prevents decay.
Create words out of 3-letter stems that you must remember later is an example of:
Generation effect.
Enhances recall because active generation of information engages deeper cognitive processing.
Using a new word in a sentence to describe yourself:
Self-reference effect: Improves recall as linking information to personal experiences makes it more memorable.
Rereading my highlights of the textbook is an example of:
Passive review. Limited improvement. It creates an illusion of learning due to familiarity but doesn’t deeply engage memory.
Your mother is making your favorite pie for dessert, but she ran out of ingredients and asks you to go to the
store for her. She only needs eggs, white sugar, and cinnamon, so you do not write the items down. When
you get to the store, you remember the cinnamon, and sugar but cannot remember what the last thing was.
Just then, a woman walks in wearing the same shirt that your mother was wearing, and you suddenly
remember the eggs. Why did this help you remember?
Encoding specificity principle. The shirt served as a retrieval cue because it matched the context of the original encoding (your mother wearing the shirt when asking for the eggs).
Memory for a word will tend to be better if the word is used in a complex sentence (like “the bicycle was blue, with high handlebars and a racing seat”) rather than a simple sentence (like “he rode the bicycle”).
Why?
Complex sentences provide more semantic depth and context, leading to richer encoding. They create multiple retrieval paths compared to simple sentences.
What is the Levels of Processing theory (LOP - Craik and Lockhart)?
memory depends on how information is encoded or programmed into the mind.
Shallow Processing: Focus on physical attributes (e.g., capital letters, font).
Deep Processing: Focus on meaning and making connections (e.g., using words in sentences).
What does depth of processing have to do this with theory?
Deeper processing involves meaning and connections, while shallow processing focuses on physical or sensory features.
What are the results of Craik and Tulving’s 1975 levels of processing experiment?
Deeper processing (fill-in-the-blanks) led to better memory recall.
What is a problem with the theory of depth processing?
Depth of processing is circular; it’s hard to define independently from recall performance. .
Describe Roediger and Karpicke, 2006 experiment on benefits of rereading versus retrieval:
Two groups: one practiced retrieval, the other re-read the material.
Results: The retrieval practice group outperformed the re-reading group after a one-week delay. Actively retrieving information through self-testing enhances long-term retention more effectively than re-reading.
What is a ‘testing effect’?
Actively retrieving information through self-testing enhances long-term retention more effectively than re-reading. because Self-testing helps identify what you know and also improves retention.
What is the enactment effect and how is this related to the ‘testing effect’?
Physically engaging with objects (like lifting or touching) enhances memory as it engages active recall and motor encoding.
What is cued recall and how is this an example of using retrieval cues?
participants are presented with retrieval cues to help them remember previously studied material.
describe Tulving and Pearlstone (1966) experiment
In their study, they provided participants with a list of words categorized into specific groups (e.g., birds, furniture, professions). One group was asked to recall the words freely (free recall), while the other group was provided with category names (cued recall). The results showed that the cued recall group was able to remember 75% of the words, whereas the free recall group only remembered 40%. This clearly demonstrated that retrieval cues significantly enhanced memory recall.
desribe Wagenaar (1986) diary study and self-generated cues:
This experiment involved an individual (Wagenaar himself) who kept a diary for five years, recording 2,400 events. After a one-year recall period, he used different cues to recall these events, such as “what” or “who” was involved. The study showed that memory was best when retrieval cues matched the encoding context, especially when “what” (the event itself) and “when” (the time of the event) were paired together.
What is the structure of memory?
A network of interconnected nodes representing concepts and their associations.
How are new memories formed?
Consolidation transforms new memories from fragile, easily disrupted states into stable, long-term memories.
Fire together, wire together:
Simultaneous activation strengthens neural connections, forming stronger associations. repeated activation strengthens synaptic connections.
The more it wires together, the stronger the association:
repeated stimulation leads to increased neuron firing, making memory storage more robust.
What is spreading activation in the network:
Activity that spreads out along any link in a semantic network that is connected to an activated node.
How does residual activation explain the priming effect?
When a concept is activated, related nodes in the memory network are also partially activated (priming).
What 3 features of the memory network influence how quickly something comes to mind?
- Frequency of use.
- Strength of associations.
- Recency of activation.
What is consolidation?
is the process that transforms new, fragile memories into more stable, long-term ones.
At what 2 points are memories most fragile?
Immediately after encoding and before/during consolidation.
how does the neural activation change during the process of consolidation?
Over time, reactivation occurs, where the hippocampus “replays” the neural activity associated with a memory. This process helps establish direct connections between cortical areas, eventually reducing the need for hippocampal involvement.
Why does sleep help consolidation?
Reduces Interference: Going to sleep soon after learning reduces distractions.
Active Consolidation: Sleep not only preserves memories but selectively strengthens those that are important or relevant.
What are salience tags?
Sleep seems to prioritize memories marked as important, such as emotional events or information known to be needed for future tasks (like exams).
Describe the connectivity between the cortex and hippocampus:
Brain scans showed that the same areas in the brain—like the prefrontal cortex and hippocampus—are activated when people recall past events and when they imagine the future.
What is the semantization of episodic memory in terms of the changes in your memory network:
Synaptic consolidation
A process of consolidation that involves structural changes at synapses that happen rapidly, over a period of minutes.
how is synaptic consolidation related to the saying ‘things that fire together, wire together’?
meaning that repeated activation strengthens synaptic connections.
How is synaptic consolidation related to memory formation?
where repeated stimulation leads to increased neuron firing, making memory storage more robust.
What is standard model of consolidation?
Incoming information activates various cortical areas, but the hippocampus plays a critical role in initially binding these areas together.
Over time, reactivation occurs, where the hippocampus “replays” the neural activity associated with a memory. This process helps establish direct connections between cortical areas, eventually reducing the need for hippocampal involvement.
Describe the evidence against the standard model of consolidation by Gilboa et al., 2004,
While the standard model suggests the hippocampus is only crucial in the early stages, the multiple trace model posits that the hippocampus is involved in retrieving episodic memories (memories of personal experiences) even after they’ve been stored long-term.
Studies show that the hippocampus activates not just for recent but also for remote episodic memories (e.g., memories from childhood).
The Forgetting Curve:
information is lost over time when there is no attempt to retain it. Memory retention declines rapidly after learning.
the forgetting curve- how fast is it forgotten?
Within 30 minutes: ~50% of information is forgotten.
Within 1 day: ~70% of information is forgotten.
Within a month: ~80% of information is forgotten.
Why do we not typically demonstrate as extreme forgetting as Ebbinghaus exhibited in his study?
Unlike Ebbinghaus’s study with nonsense syllables, real-world memories are often tied to meaningful contexts, emotions, or prior knowledge, which strengthens retention.
People are better at remembering __________ information and ideas that are ___________.
important, meaningful
People are better at remembering __________ information than ___________ information.
gist (general and main ideas) than syntactic
Why do we fill in missing information?
Memory is constructive. We use existing schemas, prior knowledge, and logical reasoning to fill in gaps in our memory.
How do we fill in missing information?
By making inferences based on experience and context.
what is a logical inference:
A deduction based on rules of logic, always correct
what is a pragmatic inference:
An assumption based on context and common experience, not always true
Describe the evidence for inferences in encoding: Loftus hit vs. smashed.
Loftus’s “hit vs. smashed” study showed how language influences memory formation.
Describe the evidence for inferences in storage: War of the Ghosts.
“War of the Ghosts” study demonstrated how stories are reshaped during storage to fit cultural schemas.
Describe the evidence for inferences at retrieval: Helen Keller experiment
Helen Keller experiment showed that existing schemas influence what people remember (e.g., assuming a passage was about Helen Keller leads to false memories).
Describe 3 reasons why the accuracy of an eyewitness’s account should not be trusted:
Attention errors: Weapon focus can divert attention from the perpetrator.
Familiarity errors: Misattributing familiarity (e.g., recognizing someone as the robber because they were seen elsewhere).
Suggestion errors: Post-identification feedback can reinforce false memories.
Solutions: cognitive interview
list 3 changes in administration and explain what problem it fixes
- Let witness tell story without interruption
- Reinstate conditions: place back at crime scene
- Use reverse order
Line-ups – list 4 changes in administration and explain what problem it fixes
Double-Blind: The tester shouldn’t know who the suspect is to avoid bias.
Line-Up Composition: Include people who look similar to reduce mistakes in identifying innocent people.
Wording: Witness answers with “Yes,” “No,” or “Not Sure” about the suspect.
Sequential Presentation: Show suspects one by one, not all at once, to reduce false identifications and improve accuracy, though it may lower correct identifications slightly.
what is Guilty Knowledge Technique:
Detects recognition of crime-specific details using physiological responses (e.g., P300 wave in EEG).
What is a P300 and what does it show?
specific type of ERP that is linked to neural processes like attention allocation, working memory, and decision-making., showing the guilty person
What are scripts/schemas?
Mental frameworks that organize knowledge.
How do scripts and schemas demonstrate how we ‘fill in missing information’/ draw inferences to fill in
missing information?
Scripts fill in missing details based on expectations.
Source monitoring - what is it, when does it fail, the famous names experiment (relationship between
familiarity and source monitoring errors)
The process of determining the origin of a memory or piece of information.
Inaccurate source monitoring can lead to errors in memory, especially in situations like eyewitness testimony.
what is the von Restorff effect
Unique/distinctive items are better remembered.
False Memories – DRM procedure (critical lure), Roediger & McDermott ‘sleep’ study
DRM Procedure: People falsely remember a word related to presented words (e.g., recalling “sleep” when presented with “bed,” “rest,” “tired”).
Misinformation Effect – Loftus et al. study explanations.
misinformation effect: Memory experiments in which misleading post-event information (MPI) is presented to participants indicate that memory can be influenced by suggestion.
explanantions:
retroactive interference: New info disrupts old memory.
source monitoring errors theory: People misattribute the source of information.
Misinformation Effect:
refers to how suggestive information can distort memory, leading to false recollections of events that never actually occurred.
This effect plays a crucial role in creating false memories.
Why do we have a flawed memory system? What purpose does it serve?
Memory is not a perfect recorder but a reconstructive process designed for efficiency and adaptability.
Purpose: Prioritizes gist and relevance over details to save cognitive resources and aid survival.
describe the two types of amnesia
Psychogenic: Caused by psychological factors such as trauma or stress, no physical damage.
Organic: Caused by physical brain damage (e.g., injury, stroke, or disease).
Organic amnesia occurs due to damage to…..
damage to the hippocampus
Organic amnesia produces impairments in ___________ memory, but not in ________ (explicit/implicit)
memory (or in working memory).
explicit, implicit
The inability to remember events that occurred after a traumatic brain injury is often referred to
as
anterograde amnesia
Retrograde amnesia is usually less severe for ______ memories
older
Patient H.M. had both ____ and temporally graded___
H.M. had both anterograde amnesia and temporally graded retrograde amnesia.
mirror reading study
Participants: Amnesic patients and controls.
Task: Read mirror-reversed text.
Both groups improved on new words (intact implicit memory).
Normal participants showed better learning for old words (explicit + implicit memory).
Why was there a difference in the learning between the old words and new words for the normal participants
but not the Korsakoff’s patients in the mirror reading?
Korsakoff patients lacked explicit memory for old words.
Study 2: Tower of Hanoi
Participants: Amnesic patients.
Results: Improved over time, despite no recollection of prior attempts.
Study 3: Recognition & Word Fragment Completion
Participants: Amnesic patients and controls.
Amnesiacs: Impaired on recognition (explicit) but normal on word fragment completion (implicit).
In a PET imaging study, participants studied a list of words and later were asked to complete two tasks, what
were the two tasks
Recognition: which is a measure of explicit memory
word stem completion, which is a measure of implicit memory
in a PET imaging study brain activity showed:
Explicit task: Increased activity in the hippocampus and prefrontal cortex.
Implicit task: Decreased activity in the visual cortex due to priming.
Study 1: Modality of Learning
Participants learned a list of words. Half the words were presented _________, the other half were presented
_____________.
visually, auditory
Modality of learning: describe how memory was tested
Explicit test: Yes-no recognition test (visual presentation).
Implicit test: Visual word naming/priming test.
There was an effect of modality of presentation in the __________ test but not in the _________ test, thus
demonstrating a _________ (single/double) dissociation
implicit but not explicit double
Study 2: Depth of Processing
Participants learned a list of words. How was the level of processing manipulated during this learning?
Participants processed a list of words in two ways:
Shallow Processing: Judged whether a word rhymed with another.
Deep Processing: Rated how pleasant they found each word.
Tests:
Explicit Test: Recall task, measuring accuracy of word recall.
Implicit Test: Fragment completion task, measuring the likelihood of using previously learned words. Findings:
Explicit Test:
Words processed more deeply (pleasantness rating) were recalled more accurately.
Depth of processing significantly influenced explicit memory. Implicit Test:
No significant difference in performance between shallow and deep processing.
Implicit memory performance was unaffected by depth of encoding. Conclusion:
Depth of processing impacts explicit memory but not implicit memory, demonstrating a behavioral dissociation.
In an experiment where participants were shocked every time they saw colored square.
Participants with damage to their hippocampus showed:
Participants with damage to their amygdala showed:
Participants with hippocampal damage: No memory for square-shock association.
Amygdala damage: No emotional response but retained factual memory.
emotion improves memlry: This demonstrates that the amygdala is important for _______________ and the hippocampus is imporatnt
for the _____________, this together represents a _________ (single/double)r
emotion, episodic memory, double
How does emotion influence the consolidation process?
Emotions can impair memory for specific details, as seen with weapon focus or less accurate recall of contextual details
What is a flashbulb memory?
Flashbulb memories are vivid, long-lasting memories of the circumstances surrounding emotionally charged public events
How could the Fredrickson model (broaden and build) help explain these results?
Negative emotions focus attention, while positive emotions encourage exploration.
why are flashbulb memories not accurate?
People believe their flashbulb memories are accurate and vivid, but research shows they are prone to inaccuracies over time. Flashbulb memories undergo changes, just like everyday memories, especially as people are influenced by later experiences. People maintain high confidence in their flashbulb memories, even if details become distorted.
challenger study:
Participants were asked about their memories of the Challenger explosion in 1986, one day after and then 2.5–3 years later.
Findings:
Right after the event: 21% of participants remembered hearing about it on TV.
2.5 years later: 45% of participants “remembered” hearing about it on TV.
This change suggests that memories may become influenced by later experiences (e.g., TV reports) rather than the actual event.
Conclusion: Flashbulb memories might be more prone to distortion than originally thought.
9/11 study
Method: Participants were asked about:
Their memories of 9/11 (flashbulb event).
A recent, unremarkable event in their life (everyday memory).
They were tested on these memories one day, one week, six weeks, and 32 weeks after the event.
Findings:
Both flashbulb and everyday memories showed a decrease in details remembered over time.
Difference: For flashbulb memories, participants still rated their memories as vivid and accurate, even though accuracy dropped.
Conclusion: Flashbulb memories are not more accurate than regular memories, but people believe them to be.
