Psychology Memory Processes: Recognition, Recollection, and False Memories

What is the difference between 'Remember' and 'Know' responses?

'Remember' indicates episodic recollection with contextual detail, while 'Know' reflects familiarity without episodic detail.

What is familiarity in memory recall?

Familiarity is the feeling of prior occurrence without specific source details, often leading to recognition without accurate recall.

What is spreading activation in memory retrieval?

Spreading activation occurs when activating one memory node facilitates the retrieval of related memories.

How does repeated exposure affect memory?

Repeated exposure increases processing fluency and can move information into semantic/general knowledge, potentially causing an illusion of truth.

What is the relationship between eyewitness confidence and accuracy?

Eyewitness confidence is not a reliable indicator of accuracy; feedback can inflate confidence without improving accuracy.

What are question wording effects in memory recall?

Leading or suggestive wording can alter people's memories, leading to misinformation effects.

What is the self-reference effect in memory?

The self-reference effect occurs when encoding information about oneself enhances retention.

What did the Brewer & Treyens office study demonstrate?

Participants recalled schema-consistent objects and sometimes reported schema-consistent objects that were not present, indicating schema intrusions.

What is skepticism regarding 'recovered' memories?

'Recovered' memories can be real but are vulnerable to suggestion and require corroboration.

What is Highly Superior Autobiographical Memory (HSAM)?

HSAM refers to rare individuals who retain rich autobiographical memories for long periods, which is not typical.

What influences the forgetting rate of memories?

The forgetting rate depends on the initial encoding strength; well-established memories fade less quickly over time.

What did Bartlett's folklore study reveal about memory?

People reconstruct memories using schemas, and over retellings, details change to fit cultural or schema expectations.

How can misinformation and suggestion create false memories?

Misinformation, leading questions, and social suggestion can lead to the creation of confident false memories.

What is the potential problem with retrieval connections?

Strongly overlapping connections can cause intrusions or false memories by activating related but non-present items.

What is the role of lexical decision and priming in memory?

Semantic or repeated priming speeds lexical-decision times for related or previously seen words.