Unit 5.1: Cognition and Memory

Question 1

memory

Answer 1

learning that persists over time.
consists of encoding, storage,retrieval.

Question 2

recall

Answer 2

retrieving info not currently in conscious awareness BUT learned earlier
ex: fill in the blank test requires retrieving info

Question 3

recognition

Answer 3

identifing items previously learned
ex: MCQ tests requiring identifying items

Question 4

relearning

Answer 4

learning info more quickly if learned previously
ex: final exmas require relearning (which makes it easier to review)

Question 5

Ebbinghaus forgetting curve

Answer 5

the more repetitions of a list, the less time taken to relearn it
proves that overlearning produces retention and a greater relearning speed

Question 6

information processing model of memory

Answer 6

models memory as computer operations:
encoding - get info in brain
storage - retain info
retrieval - get info back out

Question 7

parallel processing

Answer 7

processing many different components of a problem at once
connectionism: memories viewed as products of interconnnected neural networks

Question 8

Atkinson-Shiffrin three stage memory model

Answer 8

involves sensory, short-term, and long-term memory
external stimuli — sensory memory, which is encoded into short-term mem with attention, which is encoded into long-term memory storage with active maintenance, where it is able to be retrieved into working memory

Question 9

sensory memory

Answer 9

immediate, brief, and fleeting recording of info in memory system
includes iconic (visual stimuli - 1/2 sec duration) and echoic (auditory stimuli - 3-4 sec duration)
processed into short term memory

Question 10

short-term memory

Answer 10

holds few items briefly before info is stored (in long-term memory) or forgotten
capacity = 7 +/- 2 items (Miller’s Rule)

Question 11

long-term memory

Answer 11

relatively permanent and limitless storage of memory for later retrieval (knowledge, skills, experiences)

Question 12

working memory

Answer 12

newer understanding of short-term memories that combines
conscious active processing of incoming sensory info
and
info retrieved from long-term memory

Question 13

explicit/declarative memory

Answer 13

retention of facts+info one can consciously declare

Question 14

effortful processing

Answer 14

encoding that requires attention and conscious effort … helps process explicit memories

Question 15

implicit/nondeclarative memory

Answer 15

unconscious retention of skills or classically conditioned associations

Question 16

automatic processing

Answer 16

unconscious encoding of incidental info - produces implicit + procedural memory (e.g. riding a bike)
involves three items (STFu):
Space - visualize location
Time - know sequence of events
FreqUency - remember how many times something was done

Question 17

What are some key methods of effortful processing?

Answer 17

chunking: organizing info into personally meaningful, smaller units. often automatic
mnemonics: memory aids that use vivid imagery + org as technique (REHUGO)
hierarchies: processing info in terms of broad categories + subdivisions into narrower concepts (e.g. flowcharts)

Question 18

distributed practice

Answer 18

when encoding spread out over time
repeated-self testing = overlearning
retain info better, especially in the long-term

Question 19

shallow processing

Answer 19

encoding on a basic level (structure + appearance of words)

Question 20

deep processing

Answer 20

encoding deeper through semantics (meaning of words)
yields best retention

Question 21

self-reference effect

Answer 21

tendency to remember personally relevant info
strongest in western individualist cultures
weakest in eastern collectivist cultures (self vs family relevant equally remembered)

Question 22

semantic memory

mod 32

Answer 22

explicit memory of facts + general knowledge

Question 23

episodic memory

Answer 23

explicit memory of experienced events

Question 24

What role does the frontal lobe play in memory processing?

Answer 24

Prefrontal cortex involved in working memory processing
right lobe: visuals
left: language (e.g. password)

Question 25

What role does the hippocampus play in memory processing?

Answer 25

processes declarative memory for storage
- stores info for recall later (e.g. birds caching food and finding later)
- NOT permanent (like a loading dock)

Question 26

memory consolidation

Answer 26

the neural storage of a long-term memory
memories migrate from hippocampus to other storage

Question 27

What roles do the cerebellum and basal ganglia play in memory?

Answer 27

cerebellum = implicit memory formation (e.g. cc associations)
basal ganglia = involved in motor movement and procedural learning - receives input from cortex

Question 28

infantile amnesia

Answer 28

not remembering declarative memories formed in early childhood
happens b/c immature hippocampus, etc.

Question 29

flashbulb memory

Answer 29

clear and sustained memory of emotionally significant event
happens because stress hormones boost brain activity (thanks to the amygdala), especially in memory forming areas

Question 30

LTP

Answer 30

long-term potentiation
an increase ina cell’s firing potential after brief, rapid stimulation, whereby after sensory neurons need less persuading to release NTs
neural basis for learning and memory
“neurons that fire together wire otgether”

Question 31

priming (u5)

Answer 31

unconscious activation of memory association
rpedisposes us to certain retrievals
e.g.
exposed to word “rabbit” for 1/10 sec
afterwards, hearing word “hair/hare” retrieves word “hare” more often

Question 32

mood congruency

Answer 32

tendency to recall experiences that are consistent with one’s good/bad mood
having a bad day? you recall other bad times … primes negative associations that we use to explain our current mood

Question 33

state-dependent memory

Answer 33

people remember more information if their physical / mental state is the same at time of encoding and time of recall
e.g. caffeinated when you lost your keys? may remember better if caffeinated.

Question 34

serial position effect

Answer 34

tendency to recall the first (primacy) and last (recency) items in a list

Question 35

encoding specificity principle

Answer 35

idea that memories are context-dependent (affected by cues specific to an event or person)
ex: not recognizing teacher in unfamiliar locaiton

Question 36

anteretrograde amnesia

mod 33

Answer 36

the ability to remember past events but inability to form new explicit memories
still able to form implicit/procedural memories

Question 37

retrograde amnesia

Answer 37

an inability to remember past events (cannot retrieve info)

Question 38

What are the main types of memory failure?

Answer 38

Encoding failure
Storage decay
Retrieval failure
Amnesia
Misinformation effect

Question 39

encoding failure

Answer 39

we cannot remember what we do not encode
lack of encoding effort + selective attention to pertinent info = forgetting

Question 40

storage decay

Answer 40

poor durability of stored memories = decay
Ebbinghaus forgetting curve - newly learned info is initially rapidly forgotten, then forgetting levels off w/ time (some memory discarded)

Question 41

retrieval failure

Answer 41

info is retained in memory store but cannot be accessed
tip-of-the-tongue effect (so close to being retrieved!)
retrieval cues (e.g. “it begins with an m”) = better accessed

Question 42

motivated forgetting

Answer 42

unknowingly self-censoring info
Freudian concept - relates to repression

Question 42

proactive vs retroactive interference

also significance of interference theory?

Answer 42

Proactive.Old.Retroactive.New.
old info disrupts recall of new info (e.g. locker)
new info disrupts recall of old info (e.g. lyrics)
interference stronger when material is similar (french-spanish, locker combo 2 locker combo)

Question 43

repression theory

Answer 43

motivated forgetting acts as basic defense mechanism that banishes anxiety-inducing memories from consciousness
controversial b/c no lab ev - hard to forget emotional events b/c flashbulb memories

Question 44

reconsolidation

Answer 44

when previously stored memories, upon retrieval, are potentially altered before being stored again
(“replaying memory” = slightly modifying it)
reactivating memory BUT stored differently

Question 45

Elizabeth Loftus

Answer 45

Bunny effect experiment (ppl falsely recalled meeting bugs bunny at disneyland) shows ppl subject to construction: fabrication of memories

Question 46

misinformation effect

Answer 46

incorporating false post-event info into one’s memory of an event
often fills in the gaps in our memory
leading questions lead to inaccurate eyewitness testimony b/c of this effect

Question 47

illusory memory / imagination

Answer 47

imagining nonexistent actions, which distorts our actual memory

Question 48

source amnesia

Answer 48

also known as source misattribution
faulty memory when it comes to how/when/where info was learned
ex: singer attributes lyrics to creativity BUT it’s plagarized from somewhere

Question 49

After hearing stories of things they both had and had not actually experienced with “Mr. Science,” preschool children spontaneously recalled him doing things that were only memtioned in the stories. This best illustrates:

Answer 49

source amnesia

Question 50

The inability to remember how Lincoln’s head appears on a penny is most likely due to a failure in:

Answer 50

encoding

Question 51

Police officers have been trained to ask less suggestive and more effective questions in order to avoid:

Answer 51

misinformation effect

Question 52

schema theory

Answer 52

idea that preconceptions bias the way new info is interpreted and recalled

Question 53

deja vu

Answer 53

the eerie sense that you’ve experienced a certain situation before

Question 54

How reliable are young children’s eyewitness descriptions?

Answer 54

Inaccurate w/ leading questions b/c easily molded and suggested (front lobe not truly matured)
BUT w/ more neutral language, accuracy improves
caveat - memories from 0-4 years are unreliable

Question 55

List some tips on how to improve your memory.

RMRMSS

Answer 55

repeat rehearsal
make material meaningful
recreate or retrace for retrieval
mnemonics … make ‘em!
study before sleep (and sleep lots!)
SQ3R