cog psych exam 3

What are the three main processes of long term memory?

Encoding, retrieval, consolidation

Encoding

The process of acquiring information and transferring it into LTM

Retrieval

The process of bringing information into consciousness by transferring it from LTM to working memory

Consolidation

The process of “strengthening” memories and rendering them more permanent

Levels of processing theory

Encoding of information depends on the depth of processing that the information revives

Shallow processing

Processing of information that involves little attention to meaning and emphasizes superficial aspects of stimuli

Deep processing

Processing of information that involves close attention to meaning and connections to other things

What generally leads to better encoding of information?

Deep processing

Self-reference effect

Relating words to yourself to remember them better

Generation effect

Generating information yourself instead of passively recording it to enhance learning and retention

Testing effect

Practicing memory retrieval which results in better memory for that information

Tip-of-the-tongue phenomenon

Knowing that we know something but being unable to access it

Retrieval cue

A stimulus that helps remember information stored in memory

Free recall

Recall without retrieval cues

Cued recall

Retrieval with cues

What typically results in better recall?

Cued recall

Encoding specificity

We are better able to retrieve information when the conditions we encoded it are the same when we retrieve it

Context-dependent learning

When physical surroundings during retrieval matches when encoding

State-dependent learning

Refers to superior retrieval of memories when one’s internal state is the same as it was during encoding

Transfer-appropriate processing

Retrieval is better when the cognitive processes engaged during encoding match cognitive processes during retrieval

What are the two broad mechanisms of consolidation?

Synaptic and systems

Synaptic consolidation

Happens over a short timescale, occurs at the level of synapses between individual neurons

Systems consolidation

Happens over a long timescale, involves transferring information from the hippocampus to the cortex

Why is sleep so important for consolidation?

Sleep eliminates environmental stimuli that could interfere with consolidation, so neutral processes seem to be stronger during sleep

Reconsolidation

When a memory is retrieved, it becomes fragile, so it needs to be reconsolidated to strengthen it again

Reminiscence bump

40+ year olds’ enhanced memory of events from adolescence to adulthood compared to other periods of life

What hypotheses help explain the reminiscence bump?

Self-image, cognitive, cultural life script

Self-image hypothesis

Enhanced memory for events that contributed to self image (15-20 yrs)

Cognitive hypothesis

memories are better for adolescence and early adulthood because encoding is better for periods of rapid change that are followed by stability

Cultural life hypothesis

Events in a persons life story become easier to recall when they for the cultural life script for that persons culture

What area of the brain is most closely associated with emotional aspects of memory?

Amygdala

what do we mean when we say memory is constructive?

Memories are a mix of what actually happened and a persons expectations, knowledge, and experience

Source monitoring

Process by which people determine the origins of memories, knowledge, or beliefs

Source monitoring error

Misidentifying the source of a memory

What does the “war of ghosts” experiment suggest about how recall changes over time?

Recall accuracy is changed by time, our inferences, and our culture

Nostalgia

A memory that involves a sentimental affection for the past. Can serve as a self-regulation mechanism

Involuntary memories

Occur as an involuntary response to a stimulus

Conceptual knowledge

Knowledge that enables people to recognize objects and events, and to make inferences about their properties

Concepts

A mental representation of a class or individual

Categories

Groups of objects that belong together because they belong to the same class of objects

Prototype approach

We decide whether something is a member of a category be determining whether it is similar to a standard representation of the category, called a prototype

Typicality effect

Ability to judge the truth or falsity of sentences involving high-prototypical members more rapidly than sentences involving low-prototypical members of a category

Exemplar approach

Members of a category are judged against exemplars- previously encountered examples of members of the category

Which approach better describes how we categorize things?

Exemplar, but we use both

Spreading activation

Activity that spreads out along any link in a semantic network that is connected to an activated node

Reasoning

The process by which we come to a conclusion

Conclusion

A judgment we reach via a reasoning process

Decision

A choice among alternatives

Deductive reasoning

Involves starting from a general principle to reach specific conclusions

Inductive reasoning

Involves starting from specific observations to reach general conclusions

Confirmation bias

Bias that occurs when people sell out and give greater value to information that confirms their hypothesis while failing to seek out or ignoring information that goes against it

Myside bias

Specific type of confirmation bias rich people evaluate evidence in a way that is biased towards their existing opinions and attitudes

Availability heuristic

Estimating the likelihood of an occurrence based on the ease with which it comes to mind

Representativeness heuristic

Judging the likelihood of an individual instance being part of a larger category based on its similarity to characteristics we normally associate with that category

Syllogism formula

2 initial statements/premises followed by a conclusion

Categorical syllogism

Start with all, no, or some

Conditional syllogism

If…. Then

Valid conclusion

The syllogism is valid because the premises to conclusion makes sense

True conclusion

The syllogism’s premises and conclusion both make sense and are correct

Decision-making

Choosing among alternatives

Risk aversion

Tendency to make decisions that avoid risk

What is the asymmetry between feelings of loss and gain?

We expect a huge loss and a medium win, when we actually feel a small loss and a small gain. We try to avoid taking risks that will end in loss

Status quo bias

Tendency to do nothing when faced with making a decision

Framing effect

Decisions are influenced by how the choices are stated

How do we respond differently when choices are framed in terms of losses vs gains?

If the loss is highlighted, we won’t choose it

Ultimatum game

A game in which a proposer is given a sum of money and makes an offer to a responder as to how the money should be split. The responder must choose to accept the offer or reject it. Used to study decision-making strategies

Characteristics of system 1

Intuitive, fast, automatic, nonconscious

Characteristics of system 2

Reflective, slow, conscious, controlled, effortful

What’s the value of having 2 systems of reasoning?

Using system 1 most of the time frees up time and mental resources for using system 2 when needed