Unit 5.1: Cognition and Memory Flashcards
Modules 31-33
memory
learning that persists over time.
consists of encoding, storage,retrieval.
recall
retrieving info not currently in conscious awareness BUT learned earlier
ex: fill in the blank test requires retrieving info
recognition
identifing items previously learned
ex: MCQ tests requiring identifying items
relearning
learning info more quickly if learned previously
ex: final exmas require relearning (which makes it easier to review)
Ebbinghaus forgetting curve
the more repetitions of a list, the less time taken to relearn it
proves that overlearning produces retention and a greater relearning speed
information processing model of memory
models memory as computer operations:
encoding - get info in brain
storage - retain info
retrieval - get info back out
parallel processing
processing many different components of a problem at once
connectionism: memories viewed as products of interconnnected neural networks
Atkinson-Shiffrin three stage memory model
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
sensory memory
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
short-term memory
holds few items briefly before info is stored (in long-term memory) or forgotten
capacity = 7 +/- 2 items (Miller’s Rule)
long-term memory
relatively permanent and limitless storage of memory for later retrieval (knowledge, skills, experiences)
working memory
newer understanding of short-term memories that combines
conscious active processing of incoming sensory info
and
info retrieved from long-term memory
explicit/declarative memory
retention of facts+info one can consciously declare
effortful processing
encoding that requires attention and conscious effort … helps process explicit memories
implicit/nondeclarative memory
unconscious retention of skills or classically conditioned associations
automatic processing
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
What are some key methods of effortful processing?
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)
distributed practice
when encoding spread out over time
repeated-self testing = overlearning
retain info better, especially in the long-term
shallow processing
encoding on a basic level (structure + appearance of words)
deep processing
encoding deeper through semantics (meaning of words)
yields best retention
self-reference effect
tendency to remember personally relevant info
strongest in western individualist cultures
weakest in eastern collectivist cultures (self vs family relevant equally remembered)
semantic memory
mod 32
explicit memory of facts + general knowledge
episodic memory
explicit memory of experienced events
What role does the frontal lobe play in memory processing?
Prefrontal cortex involved in working memory processing
right lobe: visuals
left: language (e.g. password)
What role does the hippocampus play in memory processing?
processes declarative memory for storage
- stores info for recall later (e.g. birds caching food and finding later)
- NOT permanent (like a loading dock)
memory consolidation
the neural storage of a long-term memory
memories migrate from hippocampus to other storage
What roles do the cerebellum and basal ganglia play in memory?
cerebellum = implicit memory formation (e.g. cc associations)
basal ganglia = involved in motor movement and procedural learning - receives input from cortex
infantile amnesia
not remembering declarative memories formed in early childhood
happens b/c immature hippocampus, etc.
flashbulb memory
clear and sustained memory of emotionally significant event
happens because stress hormones boost brain activity (thanks to the amygdala), especially in memory forming areas
LTP
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”
priming (u5)
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
mood congruency
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
state-dependent memory
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.
serial position effect
tendency to recall the first (primacy) and last (recency) items in a list
encoding specificity principle
idea that memories are context-dependent (affected by cues specific to an event or person)
ex: not recognizing teacher in unfamiliar locaiton
anteretrograde amnesia
mod 33
the ability to remember past events but inability to form new explicit memories
still able to form implicit/procedural memories
retrograde amnesia
an inability to remember past events (cannot retrieve info)
What are the main types of memory failure?
Encoding failure
Storage decay
Retrieval failure
Amnesia
Misinformation effect
encoding failure
we cannot remember what we do not encode
lack of encoding effort + selective attention to pertinent info = forgetting
storage decay
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)
retrieval failure
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
motivated forgetting
unknowingly self-censoring info
Freudian concept - relates to repression
proactive vs retroactive interference
also significance of interference theory?
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)
repression theory
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
reconsolidation
when previously stored memories, upon retrieval, are potentially altered before being stored again
(“replaying memory” = slightly modifying it)
reactivating memory BUT stored differently
Elizabeth Loftus
Bunny effect experiment (ppl falsely recalled meeting bugs bunny at disneyland) shows ppl subject to construction: fabrication of memories
misinformation effect
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
illusory memory / imagination
imagining nonexistent actions, which distorts our actual memory
source amnesia
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
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:
source amnesia
The inability to remember how Lincoln’s head appears on a penny is most likely due to a failure in:
encoding
Police officers have been trained to ask less suggestive and more effective questions in order to avoid:
misinformation effect
schema theory
idea that preconceptions bias the way new info is interpreted and recalled
deja vu
the eerie sense that you’ve experienced a certain situation before
How reliable are young children’s eyewitness descriptions?
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
List some tips on how to improve your memory.
RMRMSS
repeat rehearsal
make material meaningful
recreate or retrace for retrieval
mnemonics … make ‘em!
study before sleep (and sleep lots!)
SQ3R
