Reconstructing the Past Flashcards
Define: memory
-the capacity to retain and retrieve information, and also the structures that account for its capacity
Memory is selective. If it were not…
-our minds would be cluttered with mental junk
Recovering a memory is like…
-watching a few unconnected frames and figuring out what the rest of the scene must have looked like
Who was the 1st scientist to describe memory as a reconstructive process?
-Sir Frederic Bartlett
How do we make sense of complex material?
-we typically alter it to make sense of the complex material, based to what we know or think we know
How is a memory reconstructed?
-one often takes bits and pieces from other sources of information to build one integrated account
What is… the inability to distinguish an actual memory of an event from information you learned about the event elsewhere
-source misattribution
Define: flashbulb memory
a personally experienced…
-shocking or tragic event
-exhiliratingly happy event
…that holds a special place in your memory
How long can flashbulb memories last for?
-years, even decades
Remembering is an _______ process.
-active
Why are flashbulb memories not always complete or accurate?
- we typically remember the “gist” of a startling emotional event
- over time, errors can creep into details and “gist” may be forgotten
- facts tend to get mixed with a little fiction
Because memory is reconstructive, it is subject to ______________.
-confabulation
Define: confabulation
- confusion of an event that happened to someone else with one that happened to you
- or a belief that you remember something when it never actually happened
Confabulations are especially likely when…
- you have thought, heard, or told others about the event many times
- the image of the event contains many details that make it feels real
- the event is easy to imagine
What is imagination inflation?
-when your imagination inflates your belief that an actual event occured
You are more likely to add details to an imagined event….
-the longer you think about it
If imagining an event takes little effort, we tend to think….
-the memory is real
When it takes effort to form an image of an experience…
-we tend to believe the event never took place, or that we were never there
Innaccuracy in memories can occur…
- when you first form a memory
- when you retrieve a memory
Can false memories be as stable over time as true ones?
-yes
