Test 1- Memory Flashcards
Three Key Processes of Memory
Encoding, Storage, Retrieval
Encoding
Getting information into memory
Storage
How things get into memory
Divided into long and short term memory
Retrieval
How is the information pulled out of memory
The Role of Attention
The more your attention is divided, the less you will remember
Levels of Processing
Structural (physical structure)
Phonemic (sounds)
Semantic (relating to another memory)-> deepest
Ways to improve encoding
Visual imagery (imagining things when remembering)
Elaboration (thinking of examples in your own life)
Storage
Sensory Memory
Short-term Memory
Long-term Memory
Sensory Memory
Things experienced through senses
lasts ~1 second
If remembered, it moves to short term memory
Short-term Memory
Limited duration (~20 seconds)
limited capacity (4+-1)
Rehearsal
Repeating thoughts to extend short-term memory
Chunking
Grouping items into more meaningful units to improve short-term memory
Working Memory
Active short-term memory
Procedural Memory
Memory of movements in order
(ex. doing one thing then another then another)
Long-term Memory
Unlimited capacity and length
Flashbulb Memories
Vivid recollections of major events
no more accurate than standard memories
Clustering
Remembering items in groups
Conceptual Hierarchies
Multi-level classification system based on properties
Schemas
Clusters of knowledge about things applied to new situations
use past experience for new situations
stereotype: can make you remember things consistent with your schema that is not actually present
Semantic Networks
Memories are connected
recalling one can lead to another
Retrieval
Getting information out of memory
Serial Position Effect
Remembering items at the beginning and end of a list
Primacy Effect
Tendency to remember at the beginning of the list
Recency Effect
Tendency to remember things at the end of a list
Isolation Effect
Tendency to remember unusual things
Tip of the Tongue Phenomenon
Memory emerges as details are revealed
happens around once a week
occurs more with age
Context Cues
Surroundings help trigger memory recall
Misinformation Effect
Memory distorted by leading questions or media
Reality and Source Monitoring
Determining if a memory is real or imagined
Ebbinghaus’ Forgetting Curve
Shows how information is lost over time
based on one of the first big experiments in psych
memory has a big drop off early on, then continues to drop as time passes but more gradually.
(logarithmic)
Recall
Pulling memories out without cues
more difficult
Recognition
identifying things when presented
Easier
Pseudoforgetting
Not actually remembering what was never memorized
harder to remember after as time was not spent memorizing
Decay
Forgetting due to passage of time
Interference
Forgetting due to competing memories
Proactive Interference
Old info interferes with new info
Retroactive Interference
New info interferes with old info
P.O.R.N
P: Proactive interferes with the…
O: Old
R: Retroactive interferes with the…
N: New
State Dependent Memory
Memory can depend on the internal/mental state of the person.
ex. Happy= remembering happy memory
Context Dependent Memory
Memory is easier to recall in the context it was encoded
Motivated Forgetting
Forgetting unpleasant memories (repression)
has both skeptics and supporters
Skeptics of Repressed Memories
® Do not think that individuals are lying on purpose
® Therapists may ask leading questions until the patient creates a false memory
® Many studies show that it is easy to create false memories
® Some court cases discredit the existence of repressed memories
® Misinformation effect, source monitoring, and other researched areas show us that memory is not as reliable as many of us think.
Supporters of Repressed Memories:
® Abuse is more common than we think
® Repression is a natural response to trauma
® Lab research on implanting memories cannot be compared to emotional events like sexual abuse
Amnesia
Retrograde (forget past)
Anterograde (can’t form new memories)
Hippocampus
Brain region associated with memory
Consolidation
Hypothetical process of solidifying long-term memories
Declarative Memory
Factual Memory
Nondeclarative/ Procedural Memory
Things that aren’t as factual, “showing not telling”
ex. riding a bike
Emotional memory
Declarative: Semantic
General knowledge
ex. Paris is the capital of France
Declarative: Episodic
More personal factual memory
ex. remembering you got sick in France
Retrospective Memory
Thinking about what happened in the past
Prospective Memory
Reminding yourself of something in the future
Destination Memory
– Not on Test–
The process of remembering to whom one has told information
Dual-coding theory
Theory that states that memory can be enhanced by forming both semantic and visual codes
Source Monitoring
The process of making inferences about the origins of memories.
can be difficult to pinpoint the source of a memory
Source-monitoring Error
Occurs when a memory derived from one source is misattributed to another source.
people can remember seeing things that someone else told them
Retention Interval
The length of time between the presentation of materials to be remembered, and the measurement of forgetting
Relearning
A measure of retetention that requires a participant to memorize information a second time, later in the future, to determine how much time or effort is saved by having learned it before
Mnemonic Devices
Making information personally meaningful
Mnemonic Device: Acrostics & Acronyms
Acrostics: Phrases in which the first letter of each word or line functions as a cue to help you recall info
Acronyms: A work formed out of the first letters of a series of words
Mnemonic Device: Link Method
Forming a mental image of items to be remembered in a way that links them together.
The stranger the image, the stronger the memory
Mnemonic Device: Method of Loci
Involves taking an imaginary walk along a familiar path where images of items to be remembered are associated with certain locations
Images on the path should serve as cues for the retrieval of memories
