Cognitive Psych Exam 2 study

What is the difference between implicit and explicit memories?

Explicit (declarative): memories you consciously recall (remembering facts or events)

Implicit (nondeclarative): unconscious memories that affect behavior (how to ride a bike)

Give me a few examples of memory tests

Sensory memory: Briefly show letters or images and ask what you saw

Working memory: repeat a series of numbers immediately after hearing them

Explicit memory: recall facts or events

Implicit memory: test skills or behaviors without consciously recalling learning them

What nutritional deficiency causes Korsakoff’s syndrome?

Thiamine (B1)

What is Korsadoff’s syndrome?

A memory disorder caused by severe thiamine deficiency, leading to problesm forming new memories

What determines the strength of long term connections in memory?

Strength depends on how deeply and meaningfully info is processed

How can a learner affect long-term memory?

Connect new info to existing knowledge, focus on meaning, organize info in chunks, visualize it, and apply it to real-life situations

What type of processing improves memory most?

Deep processing (meaning and connections)

What type of processing is less effective at improving memory?

Shallow processing (repetition or capitalization)

What is intentional learning?

Purposefully trying to learn or memorize info

What is incidental learning?

Learning info without intending to memorizing it

How does deep vs. shallow processing affect memory?

Deep processing improves memory, shallow processing is less effective

What are the stages of the modal model of memory?

Sensory memory —> working memory —> long-term memory

How long does sensory memory last?

Iconic (sight): 0.3-0.5 sec

Echoic (hearing): 3-4 sec

Haptic (touch): less than 1 sec

How long does short-term/working memory last?

Many years, potentially life long

What is the capacity of sensory memory?

Very large (nearly unlimited)

What is the capacity of short-term/working memory?

5-9 items (7 ± 2)

What is the capacity of long-term memory?

Very large, depends on the individual

What brain areas are most responsible for maintaining short-term memories?

Dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (maintenance) and inferior frontal cortex (rehearsal)

What brain area is most responsible for encoding long-term memories?

Hippocampus (especially explicit long-term)

What is chunking?

Organizing info into meaningful units

Why is chunking important

It helps you remember more info by grouping items together

What is the primacy effect?

Remembering the first items in a list best

What type of memory is associated with the primacy effect?

Long-term memory

What is the recency effect?

Remembering the last items in a list best

What type of memory is associated with the recency effect?

Working (short-term)

What type of memory is responsible for the “recency” effect?

Sensory, working (short-term), flashbulb, or long-term

Working memory (short-term)

When asked to recall a list of 25 words, participants are likely to remember only some of them. The words recalled are likely to include:

last 12 words on the list
first 12 words on the list
first few words and the last few words on the list
words drawn from positions scattered through the list

the first few words on the list, and also the last few words on the list

By thinking of a list of digits in terms of racing times, one person was shown to report up to 79 digits. This suggests that this person

is well practiced at memory retrieval
does not show the primacy or recency effect
can remember this info due to a unique chunking stretegy
has a larger memory than most other participants

can remember this info due to a unique chunking strategy

In the video shown in the supplemental material with Clive, which of his memory systems was LEAST affected?

working memory
new long-term memory
semantic memory
procedural memory

procedural memory

Korsakoff’s syndrome is caused by?

alcohol
retrograde amnesia
thiamine (B1) deficiency
anterograde amnesia

thiamine B1 deficiency

______ long-term memory consists of factual info independent of time and place

episodic
semantic
implicit
procedural

semantic

What is state-dependent learning?

Memory improves when your physical or mental state during learning matches your state during recall

What is context reinstatement?

Recreating or imagining the original learning environment to improve recall

How does meaning play a role in state-dependent learning?

Contextual cues can sometimes override deep processing

For example: sound hints may help more than meaning hints if info was learned through rhyming

What is source confusion?

Incorrectly identifying the source of a memory or feeling of familiarity

(purse thief)

How does implicit familiarity bias perception?

Familiar things can seem more famous, quieter, or more believable even when those judgments are incorrect

How can familiarity masquerade as truth?

Repeated exposure makes info feel familiar, which can cause people to believe it is true even when it is false

What is the difference between retrograde and anterograde amnesia?

Retrograde affects explicit memories from before brain injury

Anterograde impairs the formation of new memories after injury

What is the difference between explicit and implicit anterograde amnesia?

Explicit amnesia impairs forming new conscious memories

Implicit amnesia impairs forming new unconscious memories or learned responses

What brain area is associated with anterograde explicit memory loss?

hippocampus

What brain area is associated with anterograde implicit memory loss?

amygdala

What is Korsakoff’s syndrome caused by?

Thiamine (B1) deficiency

What memory deficits are associated with Korsakoff’s syndrome?

Difficulty forming new explicit memories, while many older memories and the ability to hold conversations may remain intact

What is important to know about Clive Wearing’s memory?

He could not form new conscious explicit memories and had impaired working memory, but retained older memories and implicit procedural learning

What did the cases of Clive Wearing, H.M., and E.P. demonstrate?

People can lose the ability to form new explicit memories while retaining the ability to learn new procedural skills implicitly