Memory and Forgetting Lecture Notes

Flashcards covering false memory types, retention measurements, theories of forgetting, and the controversy surrounding repressed memories based on the lecture transcript.

Semantic false memory

A type of false memory where activating a semantic network of words or concepts (like fire engine, truck, and red) triggers the belief that a related but absent word (like house) was part of the original list.

Episodic false memories

False memories occurring in episodic events where a schema of what typically happens (such as speed being associated with an accident) triggers an idea of an event that was not part of the actual incident.

CS Lewis

Author of the Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe series who possessed a photographic memory and noted that it made forgetting undesirable memories impossible.

Ebbinghaus forgetting curve

A graph showing that retention and forgetting over time is steep and rapid, specifically when based on nonsense syllables or meaningless words.

Retention

The portion or percentage of material that is kept in memory versus what is forgotten.

Retention interval

The length of time between the initial presentation of materials to be remembered and the measurement of forgetting.

Recall

A method of testing retention that requires participants to reproduce information from scratch without cues, as seen in open-ended questions.

Recognition

A method of testing retention that requires participants to select previously learned information from an array of options, as seen in multiple-choice questions.

Pseudo-forgetting

A lack of memory caused by a failure to attend to information during the initial presentation.

Decay theory

The theory that memory traces fade with time, which researchers argue applies more to sensory and short-term memory than to long-term memory.

Interference effect

Forgetting that occurs due to competition from other similar materials that a person has been exposed to.

Retroactive interference

Occurs when new information impairs the retention of previously learned information, such as Peter Jackson's Lord of the Rings movies replacing an original mental image of Middle Earth from the books.

Proactive interference

Occurs when previously learned information interferes with the retention of new information, such as using an old girlfriend's name for a new girlfriend.

Encoding specificity principle

A principle stating that the value of a retrieval cue depends on how well it corresponds to the memory code used during encoding.

Repressed memory

A memory that is buried deep in the unconscious and kept from consciousness because it is threatening or traumatic.

Repressed memory controversy

A debate regarding whether recovered memories of sexual abuse and trauma are authentic or if they are false memories created by the suggestions of zealous therapists.