memory/cognition unit 3

memory

mental capacity to store, recall, or recognize people, events, or information.

schema

a concept or framework that organizes and interprets information.

according to the atikinson and schiffrin model, memory has 3 basic stages:

encoding, storage, and retrieval.

encoding

the process of getting information into the memory system

storage

the retention of encoded information in memory over time.

retrieval

the process of getting information out of memory storage.

encoding: automatic processing

the unconscious and effortless process of encoding information such as space, time, and frequency.

encoding: effortful processing

encoding that requires attention and conscious effort.

overlearning

continuing to rehearse even after the information has been memorized. (rehearsing past the point of mastery. helps ensure information will be available even under stress.)

rehearsal

conscious repetition of information. (more time spent on rehearsal, the more information one tends to remember.)

distributed rehearsal

spreading rehearsal out in several sessions separated by periods of time. (usually enhances the recalling of the information).

massed rehearsal

putting all rehearsal together in one long session (cramming). not as effective as distributed rehearsal.

serial position effect

the tendency to recall the first and last items in a list more easily.

primacy effect

the ability to recall information near the beginning of a list.

recency effect

the ability to recall information near the end of a list.

von restorff effect

distinct or unusual stimulus is easier to remember.

constructive memory

filling in the gaps in our memory based on our schemas.

serial reproduction

how the information/details of the memory changes as it gets repeated.

leveling

simplifying the information.

sharpening

highlighting or emphasizing certain details.

assimilation

changing details of the information to fit the subject of our prejudices.

self-reference effect

enhanced coding of information that is personally relevant. (making information meaningful to a person by making it relevant to one's life.)

mnemonic device

a memory trick or technique to improve memory.

acronyms

a pronounceable abbreviation of a multi-word or term composed of the first letters of each word. ex: PEMDAS.

acrostic

a verse where the first letter stands for something. ex: PLEASE EXCUSE MY DEAR AUNT SALLY.

saying

usually a rhyme. ex: SPRING FORWARD, FALL BACK.

peg-word system

mnemonic device in which you associate items you want to remember with a list of words you have already memorized. goal is to visualize the items to remember with the items on the page.

encoding failure, people fail to encode information because:

1. it is unimportant to them. 2. it is not necessary to know the information. 3. a decrease in the brain's ability to encode.

chunking

more information can be encoded and stored if organized into meaningful chunks.

3 storage systems

sensory, short term, long term

storage

retaining information for future use. (involves retention of encoded information.)

sensory memory

brief, initial encoding of sensory information in the memory system; it is limited in duration and capacity.

sensory memory: iconic store

visual information (lasts less than 1 second)

sensory memory: echoic store

sound information (lasts 3-4 seconds)

sensory memory: eidetic memory

photographic memory.

short-term/working memory

the part of of your memory system that contains you are consciously aware of before it is stored more permanently or forgotten.

maintenance rehearsal

repetition and review of information in short term memory. ex: 2x2=4 2x2=4 2x2=4 2x2=4 2x2=4

elaborative rehearsal

actively reviewing and relating, associating information already in long term memory. ex: peg-word system.

long-term memory

the relatively permanent and limitless storehouse of the memory system. memory is held without conscious effort.

flashbulb memory

a vivid, clear memory of an emotionally significant moment or event.

long-term potentiation

an increase in a synapse's firing efficiency that occurs when the sequence of neurons that represents a particular memory fires repeatedly; believed to be the neural bases of learning and memory. processed through the hippocamus.

explicit memory (declarative)

the memory of facts and experiences. (with conscious recall) facts and personal experiences.

implicit memory (procedural)

the memory of skills and practices. (without conscious recall) motor skills (how to walk), cognitive skills (how to read). processed through the cerebellum.

recall

type of retrieval in which you must search for information that you previously stored, as on a fill in the blank test.

recognition

the type of retrieval in which you must identify items you learned earlier, as on a multiple choice test.

context effect

the enhanced ability to retrieve information when you are in an environment similar to the one which you encoded the information.

state-dependent memory

the enhanced ability to retrieve information when you are in the same physical and emotional state you were in when you encoded the information.

hermann ebbinghaus

german philosopher who conducted pioneering memory studies. he developed the forgetting curve, aka retention curve or ebbinghaus curve.

amnesia

loss of memory

source amnesia

can't remember the source of information. ex: recognizing a person but having no idea where you have seen them.

retrograde amnesia

can't recall memories from after a head injury.

anterograde amnesia

can't recall memories from before the head injury

korsakoff's syndrome

memory loss due to alcoholism.

alzheimer's disease

the most common type of dementia, a progressive disease beginning with mild memory loss and possibly leading to loss of the ability to carry on a conversation and respond to the environment. involves parts of the brain tat an control thought, memory, and language.

interference

a retrieval problem when one memory gets in the way of remembering another.

2 types of interference

proactive and retroactive.

proactive interference

an older memory disrupting the recall of a newer memory. (cannot remember new information).

retroactive inference

when a more recent memory disrupts the recall of the older memory. (cannot remember the old information).

memory jigsaw analogy

memories, rather than being like a video tape, are formed as bits and pieces. people may retrieve only some of the pieces of the memory.

elizabeth loftus

a psychologist at the university of california, irvine, whos research established the constructed nature of memory. she has found that subjects' memories vary based on the wordings of the questions.

misinformation effect

is incorporating misleading information into a memory of a event. affects eyewitness testimony.

children's tetimony on abuse

research has found children's testimony to be unreliable.

cognition

the mental activities associated with thinking, knowing, remembering and communicating.

concept

is a mental grouping based on shared similarity. use of concepts to simplify our world.

concept hierarchy

structured (levels) groupings of concepts. a means to keep mental information organized from basic concepts to specific ones. ex: vehicles - cars, trucks. cars: sedans, hybrids, convertibles. trucks: pickups, semis.

prototype

a typical best example incorporation of the major features of a concept.

algorithm

a problem solving strategy that guarantees the solution to a problem. not always efficient.

divergent thinking

the process of creating multiple, unique ideas or solutions to a problem you are trying to solve. ex: how many ways you can use a fork.

convergent thinking

focus on reaching one well-defined solution to a problem. ex: multiple choice test.

heuristic

rule-of-thumb problem-solving strategy that makes finding a solution more likely and efficient but doesn't guarantee a solution.

representative heuristic

tendency to judge the likelihood of things in terms of how well they seem to represent or match particular prototypes.

availability heuristic

tendency to base the likelihood of events based on their availability in memory.

insight

sudden realization of the solution to a problem.

deductive reasoning

a logical approach where you progress from general idea to specific conclusions. ex: all dogs have ears; golden retrievers are dogs, therefore they have ears.

inductive reasoning

form of reasoning in which inferences and general principles are drawn from specific observations and cases. ex: the flamingos here are all pink. all flamingos i've ever seen are pink. all flamingos must be pink.

mental set

tendency to approach a particular problem in a particular way.

fixation

mental set applied so rigidly that it hinders the solution of a problem. thinking beyond this set to solve the problem.

functional fixedness

the tendency to think of things only in terms of their usual functions.

conformation bias

the tendency to focus on information that supports preconceptions.

phoneme

in language, the smallest distinctive sound unit. eng has around 40 phonemes.

morpheme

in language, the smallest unit that carries meaning. may be a word or part of a word.

grammar

the system of rules governing how we can combine phonemes, morphemes, and words to produce meaningful communication.

overgeneralization

when learning a language, a child will generalize grammar rules so they apply the rules too broadly. ex: "i dugged in the sandbox" rather than "i dug in the sandbox"

noam chomsky

a linguist who argues that children have a predisposition to learn language. as if their brains were hardwired to learn vocabulary and the rules of grammar.

b.f. skinner

psychologist who argued that children learn language through association, imitation, and reinforcement. through association, linking certain sounds with certain people.

language acquisition stages

babbling, one-word stage, two-word stage.

babbling

babies will spontaneously babble phonemes and will begin to babble the phonemes of the child's native tongue at about 1 year old.

one-word stage

child uses one word to convey a complete thought or idea.

two-word stage

two word sentences showing an appreciation of the rules of grammar.