Psychology Chapter 4-8

The Study of memory looks at

• How do we process and store information?

• Are there different types of memory?

• How do we retrieve memories?

• Why do we forget?

Memory

is an information processing system like a computer. It is a set of processes used to encode, store and retrieve information over different periods of time

Encoding (Step 1)

Involves the input of information into the memory system.

Storage (Step 2)

Is the retention of the encoded information.

Retrieval (Step 3)

is getting the information out of memory and back into awareness.

When the brain receives information from the environment it

1. Labels/codes it

2. Organizes it with similar information

3. connects new concepts to existing concepts

Encoding occurs through 2 types of processing

1. Automatic processing

2. Effortful processing

Automatic Processing

encoding of details like time, space, frequency, and the meaning of words.

• usually done without conscious awareness

Effortful processing

encoding of details that take time and effort.

Types of coding

• Semantic encoding

• Visual encoding

• Acoustic encoding

Semantic encoding

Encoding of words and their meanings

• most effective form of encoding.

• Attaching meaning to information makes it easier to recall later

Visual encoding

Encoding of images

• words that create a mental image

Acoustic encoding

Encoding of sounds

Self-reference effect

the tendency for an individual to have better memory for information that relates to oneself in comparison to material that has less personal relevance

3 Short-term systems

1. Visuospatial sketchpad

2. Episodic buffer

3. Phonological loop.

Baddeley and Hitch proposed

a model of storage where short-term memory has different forms depending on the type of information received.

• Storing memories is like opening different files on a computer and adding information

Atkinson-Shiffrin Model of Memory

• Information passes through three distinct stages in order for it to be stored in long-term memory.

  Based on the belief that memories are processed the same way that a computer processes information.

Storage is the creation of

Permanent record of information

Sensory memory

storage of brief sensory events, such as sights, sounds, and tastes.

Sensory memory does

• stored for up to a couple of seconds

• first step of processing stimuli from the environment

• if information is not important it is discarded

• If information is important it moves into short-term memory

Stroop effect

discovered while studying sensory memory and describes why it is difficult for us to name a color when the word and the color of the word are different.

Short-term memory/working memory (STM)

a temporary storage system that processes incoming sensory memory.

• either discarded or stored in long-term memory

• Lasts about 20 seconds

• capacity is usually about 7 items

Memory consolidation

Transfer of STM to long-term memory

Rehearsal

The conscious repetition of information to be remembered

Long-Term Memory (LTM)

the continuous storage of information.

• no limit and is like the information you store in a hard drive on the computer

two components of long-term memory

• Explicit

• Implicit

Explicit (declarative) memory

memories of facts and events we can consciously remember and recall/declare.

Two types of Explicit memory

• Semantic

• Episodic

Semantic

knowledge about words, concepts and language

Episodic

Information about events we have personally experienced

Implicit memory

memories that are not part of our consciousness.

• Formed through behaviors

Procedural

stores information about how to do things.

• Skills and actions

Implicit memory include

behaviors learned through emotional conditioning.

• You might have a fear of spiders but not consciously remember why or what occurred to condition that fear

Retrieval

the act of getting information out of memory storage and back into conscious awareness. Needed for everyday functioning

three ways to retrieve information

• Recall

• Recognition

• Relearning

Recall

being able to access information without cues

Recognition

being able to identify information that you have previously learned after encountering it again

Relearning

Learning information that you previously learned

Karl Lashley and Engrams

• Studied parts of the brain involved in memory by making lesions in the brains of animals such as rats and monkeys.

• Trained rats to learn their way around a maze and then made lesions to try to remove the memory.

Equipotentiality hypothesis

if part of one area of the brain involved in memory is damaged, another part of the same area can take over that memory function.

Eric Kandel

Studied the synapse and its role in controlling the flow of information through neural circuits needed to store memories.

Amygdala

• Involved in fear and fear memories (memory storage is influenced by stress hormones).

• Processes emotional information important in encoding memories at a deeper level and memory consolidation

Hippocampus

• Associated with explicit memory, recognition memory and spatial memory.

• Projects information to cortical regions that give memories meaning and connect them with other memories.

• Involved in memory consolidation.

• Damage leads to an inability to process new declarative memories

Patient H.M

• Had both temporal lobes removed (including hippocami) to help control his seizures.

• Declarative memory was significantly effected.

• Could not form new semantic knowledge or episodic memories

Cerebellum

• Plays a role in processing procedural memories, such as how to play the piano and classical conditioning.

• Damage prevents classical conditioning such as an eye-blink in response to a puff of air.

Prefrontal cortex

• Appears to be involved in remembering semantic tasks.

• PET scans show activation in the left inferior prefrontal cortex when completing semantic tasks.

• Encoding is associated with left frontal activity.

• Retrieval of information is associated with the right frontal region.

Neurotransmitters involved in memory

• Epinephrine

• Dopamine

• Serotonin

• Glutamate

• Acetylcholine

Arousal theory

strong emotions trigger the formation of strong memories and weaker emotional experiences form weaker memories

• -Strong emotional experiences can trigger the release of neurotransmitters which strengthen memory.

Repeated neuron activity leads to

• increased neurotransmitters in the synapse

• stronger synaptic connections.

Flash bulb memory

a record of an atypical and unusual event that has very strong emotional associations

Flashbulb memory formation may depend on

cultural reference and personal investment/involvement. 

Amnesia

the loss of long-term memory that occurs as the result of disease, physical trauma, or psychological trauma.

Anterograde Amnesia

inability to remember new information after the point of trauma. (Brain trauma)

Two types of Amnesia

• Anterograde amnesia

• Retrograde amnesia

Retrograde amnesia

loss of memory (partial or complete) for events that occurred prior to the trauma.

What will happen when Hippocampus is affected by trauma?

causes the inability to transfer information from STM to LTM.

Construction

formulation of new memories

Reconstruction

process of bringing up old memories

Suggestibility

the effects of misinformation from external sources that leads to the creation of false memories.

Example of suggestibility

• Can cause people to claim to remember something that was only a suggestion someone made.

• Memories are fragile making them vulnerable to the power of suggestion.

• An important area of study has been the role of suggestibility in eyewitness testimonies.

Eyewitness identification and testimony

used in the prosecution of criminals

Misinformation effect paradigm

after exposure to incorrect information, a person may misremember the original event.

Elizabeth Loftus

Studied false memories

The study of 1974

• Asked college students to estimate the speed of cars using different forms of questions.

• Participants were shown films of car accidents and were asked to play the tole of eyewitness and describe what happened.

• Were asked, “About how fast were the cars going when they (smashed, collided, bumped, hit, contacted) each other?”

• Participants that heard the word smashed estimated that the cars were travelling a lot faster than those that heard the word contacted.

• If they heard the word glass, they were more than twice as likely to say they remember seeing glass (a false memory).

• The implied meaning of the word used influenced the participants memory of the accident.

False memory syndrome

recall of false autobiographical memories

psychologist believe it is possible to completely repress traumatic childhood memories such as sexual abuse.

• Can lead to psychological distress in adulthood.

• Some believe that these can be recalled through hypnosis and guided imagery techniques.

Forgetting

loss of information from long-term memory

Encoding Failure

occurs when the memory is never stored in our memory in the first place

Successful encoding requires

Effort and Attention

Schacter’s 7 sins of mem

1. Transience (Forgetting type)

2. Absentmindedness (Forgetting type)

3. Blocking (Forgetting type)

4. Misattribution (Distortion type)

5. Suggestibility (Distortion type)

6. Bias (Distortion type)

7. Persistence (Intrusion type)

Transience (Forgetting type)

Accessibility of memory decreases over time (storage decay).

• unused information tends to fade away

Absentmindedness (Forgetting type)

Forgetting caused by lapses in attention

Blocking (Forgetting type)

Accessibility of information is temporarily blocked (aka tip-of-the-tongue phenomenon)

Misattribution (Distortion type)

Source of memory is confused

Suggestibility (Distortion type)

False memories

Bias (Distortion type)

Memories distorted by current belief system

Persistence (Intrusion type)

Inability to forget undesirable memories

Ebbinghaus (1885)

Studied the process of memorization

Schacter (Bias)

your feelings and view of the world can distort your memory of past events.

Stereotypical bias

involves racial and gender biases

Egocentric bias

involves enhancing our memories of the past

• people remember events in a way that makes them look better

Hindsight bias

the tendency to think an outcome was inevitable after the fact

• Thinkin gyou knew it all along

Proactive interference

Old information hinders recall of new information

Retroactive interference

New information hinders recall of old information

Rehearsal

conscious repetition of information to be remembered

Chunking

organizing information into manageable bits or chunks

Elaborative rehearsal

technique in which you think about the meaning of the new information and its relation to knowledge already stored in your memory

Mnemonic devices

memory aids that help us organize information for encoding.

Cognition is associated with

• Perception

• Knowledge

• Problem-solving

• Judgement

• Language

• Memory

Sensations and information are received by our brains

filtered through emotions and memories, and processed to become thoughts.

How does the brain organize information?

• concepts

• Prototype

Concepts

Categories of linguistic information, images, ideas, or memories.

• use relationships among different elements of experience

• Can be complex and abstract or concrete

Prototype

the best example or representation of a concept

Natural concepts

Created through either direct or indirect experience

• concept of dogs, there are different breeds and traits associated with dogs, we know because we interact with them.

Artificial concepts

Defined by a specific set of characteristics

• Geometric shapes follow a system (Square, triangles)

• Mathematical numbers (positive, negative, whole number, pi)

Schema

a mental construct consisting of a collection of related concepts.

When a Schema is activated

we automatically make assumptions about the person/object/situation

Role Schema

makes assumptions about how individuals in certain roles will behave.

Event Schema (Cognitive script)

A set of routine or automatic behaviors.

• Can vary widely among different cultures and countries

• Make habits difficult to break (because they are automatic)

Example of Event Schema

When we receive a text, we pick up our phone and reply. The problem is that this automatic reaction will arise even in situations when it is not safe to reply.