psych 1100 exam 3 lundquist *non-cumulative*

long term memory

(duration and storage capacity)

duration: permanent

storage capacity: infinite (hypothetically)

short term memory

(duration and storage capacity)

duration: seconds to minutes

storage capacity: 7+/- 2 chunks

working memory

short term memory

chunks

organized packets of info in STM

3 aspects of memory process

acquisition

storage

retrieval

acquisition

In order to remember, you must learn something

storage

to be remembered, an experience must leave some record in the nervous system

memory trace

record of experience

retrieval

the process through which you retrieve info from memory in response to some cue or question

2 kinds of retrieval

recall and recognition

recall

type of retrieval that requires you to produce an item from memory in response to a cue or question

recognition

type of retrieval that requires you to judge whether you have encountered a stimulus previously

acquisition

the processes of gaining new info and placing it in memory

intentional learning

placing new info into memory in anticipation of being tested on it later

incidental learning

learning w/out trying to learn, and often without awareness that learning is occurring

primacy effect

early part of list recalled better than middle part

is recalled from LTM- more time for rehearsal

recency effect

last part of list is recalled better then middle part

is recalled from STM- still part of chunks

how to reduce primacy

present words faster

how to reduce recency

elongate time before recall

maintenance rehearsal

mechanical process of repeating the memory items over and over, giving little thought to what the items are or whether or not they form a pattern

importance of active engagement

help to expand capacity of LTM

*penny example

shallow processing

an approach to memorization that involves focusing on the superficial characters of the stimulus, such as the sound of a word or the typeface in which it was printed

ex: is the word printed in capital letters

deep processing

an approach to memorization that involves focusing on the meaning of the stimulus

ex: would it fit into this sentence?

Craik and Tulving's findings

deep processing results in the best recall

relative context allows for better meaning processing and therefore better recall

memory trace

physical record in the nervous system that preserves memory

memory consolidation

biological process through which memories are transformed from a fragile status to a more permanent and robust state, according to most researchers, consolidation occurs over the course of several hours

retrograde amnesia

a memory deficit, often suffered after a head injury, in which the patient loses memory for events that occurred before the injury

STM

phonological- based on speech sounds

will confuse boat with coat

LTM

semantic- based on meaning

confuse "boat with ship"

STM neural code

dynamic- pattern of activity among a group of cells

LTM neural code

structural- pattern of connections within a group of cells

retrieval

process of searching for a memory and finding it

retrieval failure

apparent forgetting

tip of the tongue (TOT) effect

partial retrieval

the condition in which one remains on the verge of retrieving a word or name but continues to be unsuccessful

information is in storage but it is inaccessible

retrieval cue

hint or signal that helps one to recall a memory

retrieval paths

mental connections linking one idea to the next that people use to locate a bit of information in memory

example of good and bad retrieval paths with list of words studied based on sound

was there a word that rhymed with log? good retrieval path to dog

was there a word that is an animal with sharp teeth? bad retrieval path to dog

contextual reinstatement

way of improving retrieval by re-creating the state of mind that accompanied the initial learning

is it the return to an environment that improves recollection?

no, it is the recreation of the mental context of learning

just thinking about the original environment will help retrieval

retention interval

the time that elapses between learning and retrieval

Ebbinghaus

tested his memory by studying random syllables and testing himself

plotted a forgetting curve

forgetting curve

graphic pattern representing the relationship between measures of learning and the length of the retention interval; as the retention interval gets longer; memory decreases

effect of retention interval

(2 ideas for why old memories are lost)

1. passage of time itself- memory decays over time

2. new learning- new info getting added to long term memory somehow disrupts the old info that was already in storage

intrusion errors

memory mistakes in which elements that were not part of the original info get mixed into ("intrude into") someone's recall

misinformation effect

result of a procedure in which, after the experience, people are exposed to questions or suggestions that misrepresent what happened. The term refers to people's tendency to include the misinformation as part of their recall of the original experience

what can lead to the misinformation effect?

misleading questions and giving false details

schema

an individual's mental representation that summarizes her knowledge about a certain type of event or situation

example of intrusion from schematic knowledge:

most professor's offices have books

>may recall seeing a bookshelf that was not there

DRM paradigm

common procedure for studying memory, in which participants read and then immediately recall a list of related words, but the word providing the theme for the list is not included

example of intrusion from semantic associations:

given a list of words: bed, rest, tired, blanket, snooze, nap, snore

when asked to recall list> most falsely recall sleep since it is a common word/idea that shares significance with the list

familiarity

general sense that a certain stimulus has been encountered before

recollection

recall of the context in which a certain stimulus was encountered

do familiarity and recollection learning processes occur in the same place?

no- can lead to issues of one failing but the other succeeding

explain: staged crime example

Witness a stage crime > shown mugshots (none of which from crime) > brought in for a line up- will usually identify someone from the mugshots because of sense of familiarity- where they are remembering them from is wrong

familiarity is successful but recollection is failing

STM forgetting

displacement and or decay

LTM forgetting

misplacement and or retrieval failure

proactive interference

old info affect new

retroactive interference

new info affects old

working memory is not a limit on storage capacity, but rather a limit on...

processing capacity

maintenance rehearsal: STM or LTM?

elaborative rehearsal: STM or LTM?

m: STM

> repeating a phone number until you dial it

e: LTM

> thinking about meaning and how it would fit into a sentence

explicit memory

conscious memories that can be described at will and can be triggered by a direct question

implicit memory

memories that we may not recall consciously, but that are still demonstrable through an indirect test

episodic memory

form of explicit memory

memory for specific events and experiences

semantic memory

form of explicit memory

memory for facts (including word meanings); these memories are not tied to any specific time or place

example of episodic memory

my 7th birthday was at Funplex

example of semantic memory

George Washington was the first president of the United States

flashbulb memories

form of episodic memory; vivid, detailed memories said to be produced by unexpected and emotionally important events

why are flashbulb memories remembered so vividly?

Most likely rehearsal (the story being told over and over) that makes it memorable

anterograde amnesia

a memory deficit suffered after some kinds of brain damage, in which the patient seems unable to form new explicit memories; however, memories acquired

what kind of memory is lost and which is preserved with anterograde amnesia

explicit memory is lost

implicit memory is preserved

patient HM

had hippocampus and amygdala removed to treat epilepsy

> Epilepsy was treated

> Could not put new memories into long term

declarative memory

knowledge of info that can be expressed in words

example of declarative memory

knowing cars run on gas

procedural memory

knowledge of how to do something, such as riding a bike; expressed in behaviors rather than in words

example of procedural memory

knowing how to ride a bike

diff. between explicit and implicit

explicit is a reference to prior knowledge- requires retrieval

implicit has no conscious awareness of remembering- is a result of priming

diff. between episodic and semantic/generic

episodic: events or events of memory

semantic/generic: common knowledge you have gained, but you don't remember gaining it

diff. between declarative and procedural

declarative: information you know that you can explain

procedural: skills you know, but it would be hard to explain how to do

priming effect

An encounter with a stimulus leaves us better prepared for that stimulus the next time we meet it

perceptual learning

another form of implicit memory; having to "recalibrate" your perception to the world

ex: getting new glasses and your eyes learning to adjust to them

propositions

statements relating to a subject and a claim about that subject

node

in network-based models of mental representation, a "meeting place" for the various connections associated with a particular topic

the symbol

association link

in network-based models of mental representation, connections between the symbols (or nodes) in the network

spreading activation

the process through which activity in one node in a network flows outward to other nodes through associative links

presented with 2 strings of letters and told to determine if both strings are real words

Will say yes faster for NURSE-DOCTOR than GARDEN-DOCTOR

>Nurse activated association link that is closely connected to doctor

Form of priming*

sensation

basic, primitive mental state corresponding to energies in environment; experience in the world

perception

mental state corresponding to properties of objects and events in environment; knowledge of the world

distal stimulus

an object of event in the outside world; typically at a distance from the perceiver

proximal stimulus

energies from the outside world that directly reach our sense organs

empiricist's view

learning- experience teaches us how to interpret 2D proximal stimulus

active perceiver concept

mind organizes sensory info into pre existing categories

pyschophysics

approach to perception that relates the characteristics of physical stimuli to the sensory experiences they produce

absolute threshold

smallest quantity of a stimulus that an individual can detect

difference threshold

smallest amount that a given stimulus must be increased or decreased so that an individual can detect the difference

just-noticeable difference (jnd)

smallest difference that an organism can reliably detect between 2 stimuli

Weber's Law

observation that the size of the difference threshold is proportional to the intensity of the standard stimulus

what is weber's law used for?

to compare sensitivities of different sensory modalities

the smaller the weber fraction

the more sensitive the sense modality is

Fechner's law

observation that the strength of a sensation is proportional to the logarithm of physical stimulus intensity

transduction

process through which a physical stimulus is converted into a signal within the nervous system