week 7: semantic memory

Question 1

semantic memory general definition

Answer 1

• encyclopedic general knowledge
• generalizations that apply to variety of similar circumstances

Question 2

semantic priming

Answer 2

• not just info that is needed in the moment, but also other related info that may be relevant
• when a concept is activated, the activation spread to other related concepts (and thus they can be used more readily)

Question 3

lexical decision task

Answer 3

• priming task
• ppl given string of string of letters and are asked if its a word
• there are primes and targets (we look at how fast ppl respond to target)
• if ppl respond to target faster if the prime is related

Question 4

semantic priming occurs because concepts are not understood in isolation but in terms of ______

Answer 4

how they relate to each other

Question 5

what is N400

Answer 5

• when memory is surprised by the anomalous info, it works harder to see whats going on
• ERP shows increased negativity around 400ms after hearing conflicting info

Question 6

mediated priming

Answer 6

• priming through an intermediate link
• more connection = faster activation
• mediated priming is when two possibly unrelated concepts are mediated by a related one
• smaller magnitude

Question 7

conscious thought influences priming

Answer 7

• learned associations can drive priming
• learning to expect a category member after category name or building a different expectation for member of a different category

Question 8

t or f: semantic memory follows the fan effect

Answer 8

false, it is the opposite, where more connections make it easier and faster to retrieve

Question 9

taxonomic vs thematic realtions

Answer 9

• taxonomic: shared features, concrete concepts
• thematic: co-occurrence, items that go together, abstract concepts, typically retrieved faster

Question 10

inhibition can help narrow a semantic memory by ______

Answer 10

• suppressing related concepts during retrieval

Question 11

t or f: concepts in semantic memory are generally fixed

Answer 11

false, they are dynamic
- long term and recent experiences
- context and current tasks
- mental states

Question 12

concrete nouns activated more of the ____ cortex and action verbs activated more of the ___ cortex

Answer 12

• sensory, motor

Question 13

similarity based grouping (category) levels

Answer 13

• superordinate: broad, general info
• basic: what we operate at most often, just enough detail for differences
• subordinate: specific examples

Question 14

what category level is fastest to retrieve from

Answer 14

basic then sub- then superordinate

Question 15

categories: prototypes

Answer 15

• a central tendency for categories
• average category ideal

Question 16

categories: graded membership

Answer 16

• some exemplars fit the category better than others

Question 17

categories: family resemblance

Answer 17

• category members may not be defined by a single set of features
• features may be shared among several instances
• ex ambiguity of defining features for ‘furniture’

Question 18

artifact vs natural kind categories

Answer 18

• artifact: things that ppl make, lateral fusiform gyrus and posterior middle temp. gyrus, more graded membership
• natural kind: found in nature, medial fusiform gyrus and superior temp gyrus, more certain

Question 19

in most semantic memories, the ___ hemisphere is more involved than the ____

Answer 19

left, right

Question 20

classical theory of categorization

Answer 20

• necessary and sufficient features
• must be present and if it is, they are in the category

Question 21

cons to classical theory of categorization

Answer 21

• doesnt account for graded membership, central tendency, and family resemblance
• ex ppl finding 4 a better even number example than 106 although they are both equally even numbers

Question 22

prototype theory

Answer 22

• prototypes are an average rep of all category members
• can come from meaningless patterns as well

Question 23

consequence of prototypically

Answer 23

• increased preference/attractiveness (ppl rate composite faces more attractive than non meshed together faces)
• similarity indicates membership
• members of the category contribute to defining it

Question 24

caricatures and prototypes

Answer 24

caricatures, in context of other related categories, are better representations of categories bc they emphasize the features

Question 25

exemplar theory

Answer 25

- ppl use all category members to make a decision/judgement - prototypes doesnt convey anything about size or variance of category - Accounts for: Central tendency, graded membership, family resemblance, context to sensitivity

Question 26

explanation based theory

Answer 26

- categories are theories/explanations of why things should go together - ppl use real world knowledge to understand how members of a category form a coherent group - defined by actions and interaction and causes rather than the effects

Question 27

ad hoc categories

Answer 27

- category description can be generated on the fly if given exemplars

Question 28

psychological essentialism

Answer 28

- members of a category share common underlying essence that may be outside awareness

Question 29

semantic ordering effects

Answer 29

- semantic distance: ppl make faster judgements about order as distance between them increases (less time to distinguish between them) - semantic congruity: ppl are faster to judge relationship between two items if it matches end of dimension they're on (attributes match judgement) - serial position: faster at the extreme ends of a dimension than in the middle (more distinct)

Question 30

spacial numerical association of response codes

Answer 30

- ordered embodied responses - smaller number = left hand faster, opposite is true for right hands - mental number line going left to right - larger numbers= larger magnitude and take more time to travel to

Question 31

schemas general defnintion

Answer 31

- knowledge structures about the world - 'blueprint' for events - semantic structures that capture info about regular occurrences and commonly experienced scenarios - basic info about the components of certain aspects of life and how they fit together and interact with one another

Question 32

neural bases for schemas

Answer 32

- co-activated long term reps housed in: - restrospenial cortex - anterior temp lobe - middle temp gyrus - superior temp sulcus - temporoparietal junction

Question 33

schemas are bound by ____ possibly with the help from ____

Answer 33

ventromedial prefrontal cortex, hippocampus

Question 34

five primary processes of schemas general

Answer 34

- selection - abstraction - interpretation - integration - reconstruction

Question 35

five primary processes of schemas: selection

Answer 35

sorting central and peripheral details

Question 36

five primary processes of schemas: abstraction

Answer 36

moving from surface form to abstraction or mental model

Question 37

five primary processes of schemas: interpretation

Answer 37

filling in gaps in things that were missed, inferences based on schematic info

Question 38

five primary processes of schemas: integration

Answer 38

schemas guide us putting together pieces in a coherent whole

Question 39

five primary processes of schemas: reconstruction

Answer 39

retrieval, memories are only fragments and we use schemas to produce a complete memory

Question 40

temporally ordered schemas

Answer 40

- scripts - we tend to process events in a forward order - when we recall events that were presented in order vs scrambles, we still order them and summarize them similarly

Question 41

problems w schemas

Answer 41

- semantic illusions: false memories or errors can happen in the same way as in episodic memory - naive physics: semantic stories incorporate physical info abt the world and also reveal misunderstandings - bias to infer causes and not effects