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GCSE Psychology > unit 1 - memory > Flashcards

unit 1 - memory Flashcards

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1
Q

encoding (verb)

A

changing information so that it can be stored in the brain

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2
Q

visual encoding

A

how something looks

‘seeing’ something in your mind

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3
Q

acoustic encoding

A

how something sounds

‘hearing’ something in your mind

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4
Q

semantic encoding

A

the meaning of something

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5
Q

tactile encoding

A

memory of what things feel like to touch

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6
Q

olfactory encoding

A

memory for smells

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7
Q

encoding - storage - retrieval

describe each stage

A

encoding - the form information takes when we put it into memory so that it can be held in our brain
storage - holding information in your memory so it can be retrieved at a later point in time
retrieval - the process of accessing information that has been stored in your brain and being able to use it

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8
Q

name 3 types of retrieval

A

recognition
cued recall
free recall

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9
Q

recognition

A

identifying something previously learned from a number of options

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10
Q

cued recall

A

being given a clue to help you remember

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11
Q

free recall

A

retrieval without cues

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12
Q

name a study of encoding

A

Baddeley

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13
Q

aim of Baddeley’s study

A

to see if there was a difference in the type of encoding used in STM and LTM memory

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14
Q

method of Baddeley’s study

A

4 groups given 12 sets of 5 words to remember
group A - similar sounding words
group B - dissimilar sounding words
group C - similar meanings
group D - dissimilar meanings
groups A and B asked to recall their words immediately whilst groups C and D were asked to recall their words after 20 mins

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15
Q

results of Baddeley’s study

A

group A recalled fewer words than group B (similar sounds were more poorly recalled than different sounding words)
group C recalled fewer words than group D (similar meanings were more poorly recalled than dissimilar meanings)

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16
Q

conclusion of Baddeley’s study

A

shows that STM is encoded by sound and LTM by meaning

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17
Q

give 3 brief evaluation points of Baddeley’s study

A

STRENGTH - extraneous variables were well controlled
WEAKNESS - encoding in the STM doesn’t always involve sound
WEAKNESS - LTM may not have been tested

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18
Q

describe one strength of Baddeley’s study

A

extraneous variables were well controlled
hearing was controlled by giving participants a hearing test for example
therefore we can be more certain that the type of words used was the fact that affected participant’s recall
words were read out at a rate of one per second

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19
Q

describe two weakness of Baddeley’s study

A

encoding in the STM doesn’t always involve sounds
BRANDIMONTE ET AL found that if pictures are used rather than words then visual encoding will be used
this suggests that information doesn’t go straight to our STM in an acoustic form

the LTM may not have been tested in the study because waiting 20 minutes before recall doesn’t mean that the words are in the LTM
this may mean that the conclusion that LTM encodes acoustically lacks validity

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20
Q

LTM

A

memories that last a week, month, year or even a lifetime

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21
Q

3 types of LTM

A

episodic
semantic
procedural

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22
Q

episodic memory

A

memory for events from your life and what you have done

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23
Q

semantic memory

A

memory about what things mean

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24
Q

procedural memory

A

memory of how to do things

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25
Q

difference between declarative and non declarative memories

A

episodic and semantic memories are called declarative because they need conscious recall
procedural memory is non-declarative because it doesn’t need conscious recall

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26
Q

give 3 brief evaluation points of different types of LTM being identified

A

STRENGTH - brain scans show that different types of LTM relate to specific brain locations
STRENGTH - supported by case studies of amnesic patients
WEAKNESS - distinctive types of LTM are difficult to separate

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27
Q

describe two strengths of different types of LTM being identified

A

brain scans show that different types of LTM related to specific brain locations
for example: episodic memory - right prefrontal area
semantic memory - left prefrontal area
procedural memory - motor area
this shows that there are different types of LTM

supported by case studies of amnesic patients
Clive Wearing lost most of his episodic memory but not his procedural memory as he could still play the piano
this shows that there are different types of LTM

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28
Q

describe one weakness of different types of LTM being identified

A

distinctive types of LTM are difficult to separate
there is no clear difference between episodic and semantic memories because memories are usually a mixture of types
therefore having separate types of LTM may be an oversimplification

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29
Q

multi-store model

A

there are three memory stores (sensory memory, STM and LTM) and each has different encoding, capacity and duration
information moves between these stores through attention or rehearsal

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30
Q

sensory memory

A

coding - memories are coded to a form appropriate to the sense (eyes - visual encoding)
capacity - very high capacity (eg. the retina in your eyes contains millions of cells)
duration - very briefly for less than half a second in visual memory unless you pay attention to it

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31
Q

STM memory

A

coding - tends to be acoustic
capacity - on average between 5 and 9 (7+/-2) items or chunks of information
duration - less than 30 seconds if not rehearsed

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32
Q

LTM memory

A

coding - tends to be semantic
capacity - potentially unlimited because the brain is constantly removing unneeded information so we always appear to have more room
duration - up to a lifetime

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33
Q

what is the role of rehearsal in the multi store model of memory

A

if you repeat or rehearse a piece of information it will go into your long term memory
if you then recall them afterwards, this is maintenance rehearsal

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34
Q

give three brief evaluation points of the multi store model

A

STRENGTH - there is support for the existence of different memory stores
WEAKNESS - the model is too simple as it suggests we only have one STM and one LTM
WEAKNESS - research supporting the model used artificial materials

35
Q

describe one strength of the multi store model of memory

A

there is support for the existence of different memory stores
Baddeley’s study of encoding shows that STM and LTM encode information differently
this shows that two types of memory have qualitative differences

36
Q

describe two weaknesses of the multi store model of memory

A

the model is too simple as it suggests that we only have one STM and one LTM
research shows STM is divided into visual and coustic stored whilst LTM is divided int episodic, semantic and procedural memory
memory is more complex than the model suggests

research supporting the MSM used artificial memory tasks
the studies often used nonsense syllables or word lists which means that the results would not illustrate all the different ways we use memory

37
Q

who investigated primacy and recency effect

A

Murdock’s serial position curve study

38
Q

aim of Murdock’s serial position curve study

A

to see if memory of words was affected by where words are located in the list

39
Q

method of Murdock’s serial position curve study

A

words from the 4000 most common words in English were chosen randomly
participants listened to 20 word lists with 10 to 40 words in them and recalled the words after each list

40
Q

results of Murdock’s serial position curve study

A

recall was related to the position of the word in the list
Murdock found higher recall for the first few words (primacy effect) and the last words (recency effect) in the list compared to recall of words in the middle of the list

41
Q

conclusions of Murdock’s serial position curve study

A

shows the serial position effect

results support the MSM as the first few words are rehearsed so are in LTM and the last few words are still in STM

42
Q

what is the serial position effect

A

the position of a word determines likelihood of recall

43
Q

give 3 brief evaluation points of Murdock’s serial position curve study

A

STRENGTH - carried out in lab conditions
STRENGTH - research with amnesiacs supports the study’s conclusions
WEAKNESS - the task used was artificial

44
Q

describe two strengths of Murdock’s serial position curve study

A

the study was carried out in laboratory conditions so things like familiarity of words could be controlled
we can therefore be more certain that it was the position of the words that affected recall

research with amnesiacs supports the conclusions of the study
CARLESIMO ET AL found that some amnesiacs can’t store long term memories and do not show a primacy effect but do show some recency effect
shows that the primacy effect is related to LTM

45
Q

describe one weakness of Murdock’s serial position curve study

A

the task used was artificial
lists of words were used which related to just one type of memory
therefore, the results don’t relate to how we use our memories in other aspects of life

46
Q

what study investigated reconstructive memory

A

Bartlett’s War of the Ghosts study

47
Q

aim of Bartlett’s War of the Ghosts study

A

to investigate how memory is reconstructed when people are asked to recall an unfamiliar story - in particular a story from another culture

48
Q

method of Bartlett’s War of the Ghosts study

A

participants were shown the War of the Ghosts story
they were asked to reproduce it shortly after and he then showed this new version to another person (serial reproductions)
he repeated this with further participants

49
Q

results of Bartlett’s War of the Ghosts study

A

participants changed the story
leaving out information with which they were less familiar
the story was shortened and phrases were changed to those used within the participant’s own culture eg. canoes became boats

50
Q

conclusion of Bartlett’s War of the Ghosts study

A

we use our knowledge of social situations to reconstruct memory as details of the story were invented to improve meaning

51
Q

give three brief evaluation points of Bartlett’s War of the Ghosts study

A

WEAKNESS - there was a lack of control
WEAKNESS - results were biased
WEAKNESS - the story was unusual

52
Q

describe three weaknesses of Bartlett’s War of the Ghosts study

A

there was a lack of control
participants were not told that accurate recall was important - other studies found that recall was better when participants were told this
this suggests that recall is more accurate than Bartlett concluded

Bartlett’s own beliefs may have caused the results to be biased
he analysed the recollections himself so his belief that recall would be affected by cultural expectations may have biased the interpretation of results
we may not be able to fully trust the conclusions therefore

the story was unusual so recall of the story may not affect everyday memory processes as these would not be affect by cultural expectations
this study therefore tells us little about everyday memory

53
Q

what is the theory of reconstructive memory

A

memory is inaccurate - we do not have exact recall so elements are missing and memories are not an
accurate representation of what happened

reconstruction - we record small piece of information in long term memory - during recall we recombine them to tell the whole story so each time the elements are combined slightly differently

social and cultural influences - the way that information is stored and recalled is affected by social and cultural expectations

effort AFTER meaning - we focus on the meaning of events and make an effort to understand the meaning to make sense of parts of the story

54
Q

give three brief evaluation points of Bartlett’s theory of reconstructive memory

A

STRENGTH - the research used to support this reflects memory in our everyday lives
STRENGTH - helps to explain problems with eyewitness testimony
WEAKNESS - not all memories are reconstructed

55
Q

describe two strengths of Bartlett’s theory of reconstructive memory

A

the research reflects how we use memory in our everyday lives
the research doesn’t use word lists or nonsense syllables but instead uses a story
makes the results more relevant to real life memory processes

reconstructive memory explains problems with eyewitness testimony (EWT)
Bartlett’s research showed memory is affected by expectations so shows that people do not always recall accurately
therefore, EWT is no longer solely relied on as evidence in criminal investigations

56
Q

interference

A

if two memories compete with each other, one memory may prevent us from accessing the other memory

57
Q

what study investigated interference

A

McGeoch and McDonald’s study

58
Q

aim of McGeoch and McDonald’s study

A

to see whether the accuracy of recalling a list of words would be affected by a competing set of words

59
Q

method of McGeoch and McDonald’s study

A

participants learned a list of ten words and then were shown a new list
there were 5 different new lists; words with similar meanings to the 1st list ; words with opposite meanings ; unrelated words ; nonsense syllables ; three digit numbers ; or no new list was given

60
Q

results of McGeoch and McDonald’s study

A

when participants recalled the initial list of words, their memory was affected by the new list
the effect was strongest when the new list had words with similar meanings to those in the first list

61
Q

conclusions of McGeoch and McDonald’s study

A

this shows that interference from a second set of information reduces the accuracy of memory
interference is strongest when the two sets of information are similar

62
Q

proactive interference

A

when you recall the word from the 1st set when trying to remember the 2nd set

63
Q

retroactive interfence

A

when you recall the word from the 2nd set when trying to remember the 1st set

64
Q

give three brief evaluation points of McGeoch and McDonald’s study

A

STRENGTH - there was high control
WEAKNESS - does not reflect real life memory activity
WEAKNESS - interference may not be an explanation of forgetting

65
Q

describe one strength of McGeoch and McDonald’s study

A

there was high control
techniques such as counterbalancing were used to reduce the impact that learning the lists in the same order would have on the results
the study was therefore less biased

66
Q

describe two weaknesses of McGeoch and McDonald’s study

A

the study does not reflect real life memory activity
we don’t often have to remember lists of words or very similar things
this means that the conclusion about the effect of interference is limited in terms of its artificiality

interference may not be an explanation of forgetting
it may be that information is not forgotten but just can’t be accessed because the appropriate cue has not been given (TULVING AND PSOTKA)
interference therefore does not CAUSE inaccurate memories

67
Q

context

A

other things that are present at the time of learning act as a cue for recall ; improving the accuracy of memory

68
Q

who investigated the effect of context on the accuracy of memory

A

Godden and Baddeley

69
Q

aim of Godden and Baddeley’s study

A

to see if context improved recall

70
Q

method of Godden and Baddeley’s study

A

divers listened to and and recalled words in the same or different conditions
same context - dry/dry wet/wet
different context - dry/wet wet/dry

71
Q

results of Godden and Baddeley’s study

A

recall was highest in the two matching conditions

when a person is in the same environment for learning and recall, their memories were more accurate

72
Q

conclusions of Godden and Baddeley’s study

A

context of learning acts as a trigger or cue when trying to remember information and thus improves the accuracy of memory

73
Q

give three brief evaluation points of Godden and Baddeley’s study

A

WEAKNESS - research used lists of words
WEAKNESS - study was unrealistic as recall was almost immediate
WEAKNESS - context only acts as a cute for recall if time of learning and recall are very similar

74
Q

describe three weakness of Godden and Baddeley’s study

A

the research used lists of words
research with complex materials in real life produced better recall, suggesting that context does not affect memory as much as the study suggests

the study was unrealistic as participants recalled the words almost immediately
this does not relate to scenarios like exams where the gap between learning and recall is learning so this study only tells us about short term recall

context only acts as a cue for recall if the context at the time of learning and recall are very similar
SMITH found that this rarely happens in real world situations because initial learning takes place in multiple contexts
context only improves memory recall in limited situations

75
Q

false memory

A

a memory for something that did not happen but a person thinks its a true memory

76
Q

who investigated the effect of false memories on the accuracy of memory

A

Loftus and Pickrell

77
Q

aim of Loftus and Pickrell’s study

A

to see if false memories could be created in participants through suggestions

78
Q

method of Loftus and Pickrell’s study

A

participants given 4 stories about childhood events of which three were true and one was false
the false event was about getting lost as a child in a shopping mall
the story was created with the help of a relative so that it sounded realistic
participants read each story and wrote what they remembered

79
Q

results of Loftus and Pickrell’s study

A

68% of the true episodes were remembered

6 out of the 24 participants recalled the false story fully or partially - the other 75% had no memory of it

80
Q

conclusion of Loftus and Pickrell’s study

A

showed that imagining an event can implant a false memory in a person, reducing the accuracy of memory

81
Q

give three brief evaluation points of Loftus and Pickrell’s study

A

STRENGTH - this research has implications for eyewitness testimony
WEAKNESS - research raises ethical concerns
WEAKNESS - the false memory event is not of the same traumatic kind that could be found in therapy

82
Q

describe one strength of Loftus and Pickrell’s study

A

the research has implications for eyewitness testimony
the results suggest that police questioning could accidentally implant false memories which is useful in explaining why EWT may be unreliable

83
Q

describe two weaknesses Loftus and Pickrell’s study

A

the research raises ethical concerns
even thought participants were debriefed, they may be left with implanted false memories which lingered after the study finished
therefore, the study may have caused psychological harm, an ethical issue

the false memory event is not the same traumatic kind that could be found in therapy
harmless events might be implanted easily but traumatic events may not be
therefore, conclusions that can be drawn about false memories are limited

GCSE Psychology (8 decks)

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